Lester Eubanks (born October 31, 1943) is an American criminal and fugitive who murdered 14-year-old Mary Ellen Deener on November 14, 1965, in Mansfield, Ohio.

[9][4] While she was walking from the one laundromat to the other, Eubanks grabbed her, pulled her behind a house and attempted to sexually assault her.

[3][13][14] Eubanks' sentence was commuted to a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole in 1972, when Ohio abolished the death penalty in response to the Supreme Court claim that the death penalty was unconstitutional.

[5] In the months leading up to December 1973, the number of visitations to Eubanks in prison drastically increased.

[10] Eubanks, as a part of the honor inmate program, was given a temporary furlough to go outside to do Christmas shopping on December 7, 1973.

[10] When the visiting time was up, the Ohio Department of Corrections' security team went to collect Eubanks, who was missing.

[10][14][11] Investigators say he was picked up by a close associate, who drove him to the Detroit, Michigan area, where he lived for two weeks, and that he got on a bus to California afterwards.

[5] He was almost caught when the bus was stopped on an interstate line by officers looking to see if illegal substances were being trafficked.

[4] In 1994, Eubanks was the subject of an episode of America's Most Wanted, and Los Angeles police received thousands of tips.

[15] After watching the show, Kay Banks gave the police a tip that she had been living with him for years.

[3] Lester Eubanks moved back to Ohio in 2003, 2010, and 2012 to attend funerals for family members.

Marshals said they believed he was still living in the Los Angeles area, having received photographs of him with friends there.