Serial Killer Took His Secrets to His Execution

There are many arguments as to whether the Death Penalty should be a fixture in the United States. But even those that disagree with it will admit that they are not sad that John Wayne Gacy was executed for his crimes two decades ago. The Serial Killer left a trail of tears and horror from 1972 to 1978. He was confirmed to have killed 33 teenaged boys and young men. Gacy, would sexually abuse and murder his targets often by strangulation. Some of his victims had even done odd jobs for the construction company owner. Gacy had the public fooled. He was a married father who was known as an upstanding member of his community. He would often dress up as a clown to entertain young children at parties.  When he was finally arrested, the news shocked the country and made news across the globe. Gacy had buried 26 of his victims under the crawlspace of his home at Neptune Park Township in Illinois. Several others were buried on other parts of the property and several were dumped at the Des Plaines River. Until his death by execution in 1994, he would deny any involvement in the deaths of his victims. Sadly, Law Enforcement believes Gacy may have more victims in Illinois and neighboring states.

He took that secret as well the identities of five of his victims who to this day have not been identified. It is possible that they may have been abducted some of the unidentified at bus stops (Gacy would pretend to be a police officer). It is likely that the four are runaways or even transients. Two of his known victims were from Michigan and Minnesota, so it is possible that his seven unidentified victims could be from there or anywhere in the US.

Gacy’s victims were all white males. The remaining seven unidentified are believed to have ranged in ages between ages 14 to 32. They ranged in height from possibly 5 foot 2 inches to 6 foot 2 inches. Some of the older victims could have been male prostitutes but that is not confirmed. DNA has been recovered from all the victims and identification is possible.

In July of 2018, composite sketches were done as to what Law Enforcement believes that some of Gacy’s victims may have looked like.  John Doe #10 was a white male between

the ages of 17 and 21 years old.  He was believed to be between  5-foot-7 and 5-foot 11, inches tall.  Of important note, he had sustained an injury to his left clavicle (collar bone),  which was well healed.   He had also had some dental work as indicated by a few dental fillings.  John Doe #13 was white male that medical experts estimate to be around the ages of 18 and 21 years old.  He was between 5-foot-9 and 6-foot-2 inches tall.  The deceased male had wavy dark brown hair and had an unusual dental feature in that one of his upper teeth was displaced behind a different tooth.

If you believe your loved one could be a victim of John Wayne Gacy “The Clown Killer” please visit this website https://www.cookcountysheriff.org/unidentified-victims-john-wayne-gacy/

UPDATE 7-19-2017: James “Jimmie” Haakenson who was sixteen years old has been identified as one of Gacy’s unidentified murder victims. It is highly likely that the remaining unidentified victims of Gacy are from other states and not from Illinois.

UPDATE 10-25-2021:  Francis Wayne Alexander has been identified through genetic DNA testing as another victim of Gacy.  He lived in the area and was in his early twenties.

Decades Apart – Two Babies Dead and Nameless

The town of Greenwich, Connecticut  is best known as being one of the wealthiest towns in America. It’s had it’s fair share of homicides including the famous Martha Moxley murder in 1976. Ten years later, another murder victim was found in town but police and the public don’t talk about it much at all. It was May 16th, 1986 when a sanitation worker found the remains of a newborn infant that had been placed in a dumpster at the Town Hall Annex apartments at 27 Havemeyer Place. An autopsy would prove that the male child died from ashyxiation. He was 3 pounds 10 ounces and described as having “black features”. It is believed that the mother of the child may have been from out of town but either she or someone she knew was familiar with the Greenwich area. The baby could have been hispanic or bi-racial. The mother of the dead baby could have been a teenager. If you have any information about this case please call the Greenwich Police Department at (203) 340-9752. You call can remain confidential.
Decades earlier on February 26th 1954, the body of a baby girl found in a lavatory in a Westport Bath Room Rest Stop. The child’s mother was believed to be around five foot four and around 30 years old. She was on a greyhound bus from New York City to Boston but had gotten off in New Haven.

UPDATE: 11-19-2021, 62 year old Janita Philips of Lake Mary, FLorida has been arrested for the murder of the young male child in 1986.  She had lived in an apartment at Havemeyer Place at the time of the baby’s murder.

https://patch.com/connecticut/greenwich/arrest-made-connection-1986-homicide-newborn-police

Was Dead Hitchhiker from Connecticut or Somewhere Else?

It was October 18th 1984 near the small town of Malvern, Arkansas. An Unidentified white male died as a result of a car accident when the vehicle he was in landed in a body of water. The other occupant of the car (the owner) managed to get out safely. The victim had been under water for as long as 30 minutes and died two days from his injuries. His name is not known and it is believed he had been hitchhiking when he was picked up by the owner of the vehicle in Louisville, Kentucky. The owner of the car was driving to Houston, Texas and allowed the hitchhiker to come along. During the drive, the owner of the vehicle allowed the victim to drive while he (the owner) went to sleep. Shortly after the victim took the wheel, the two got into a car accident.

The deceased is a White male 5’8″; 167 lbs and around the ages of 25 to 35 years. He had medium to dark brown hair which measured about 6 inches in length. The deceased also had a bushy, brown beard, brown eyes a small circular scar on his left ankle. Found on him were: Brown boot shoes; a pair of red, black and white sweat socks sized M8; a cut brown sweater; 28 x 32 Corduroy trousers; and multicolored long sleeved shirt ” John Henry ” (his neck size was 14 1/2 inches (32-33)). There is a belief that he may have been from the New Haven, Connecticut area. He may have also been trying to get to California. If anyone has any information as to who this man may be, please contact the Hot Spring County Coroners Office at 501-732-0561 . You can email them at chris.edwards@crimelab.arkansas.gov.

News Story about the Arrest

Unidentified Body an Early Victim of the Long Island Serial Killer(s)?

It was a grisly discovery and a catch that the fisherman will never forget. On March 3rd, 1993, the Thunder Bay, a 76-foot trawler, got a catch from water 800 feet deep about 80 miles south of Point Judith in Narragansett, Rhode Island at around 10:35 pm. The fishing crew found a torso and head of a deceased human. A forensic examination revealed that the body may have been of a female. There are questions as to how the body got there? A boatwreck. A stowaway. Or maybe the woman had been a victim from Long Island or (Rhode Island) and whose body was taken out by the ocean current. It’s a mystery as to who she is and what happened to her.

Who Was Barefoot Doe?

Mental illness can be crippling to individuals and to their families. Since May 12th 1986, the identity of a white male transient remains a mystery. He was killed in a car accident in the area Valley View and Chapman streets in Garden Grove, California. The Orange County Medical Examiner made the following observations about the unknown man.

He has no shoes at the time of death and probably did not wear shoes for months if not years. His clothes were pretty dirty and he had a scruffy beard. He was estimated to be between the ages of thirty and fifty. Brown hair, brown eyes and balding. He was around 145 pounds and five foot nine. He wore green pants and gray T-shirt. Despite him being a possible transient, he did have teeth that were well cared for. He may have started his lifestyle within the last year of his life.

For more information about this case please click on http://www.ocsd.org/divisions/fieldops/coroner/ud/john/8602355er

Connecticut River Reveals Dead with No Names

Whether it’s suicide, accidental or murder. The Connecticut River has seen it’s fair share of human bodies for hundreds of years. Many of those found are never claimed or even named. The City of East Hartford has two cases where bodies were found but never identified. One of those was of a white male who was found near the Charter Oak Bridge on August 10, 1986. The Medical Examiner estimated that his body may have been in the water between six to eight months. His age was believed to be between the ages of fifty and sixty years old and he was five foot four and a half tall. According a Hartford Courant article, he was found wearing a lined dungaree jacket, a long sleeve shirt, a blue cardigan sweater, two pairs of pants gray and brown which were held up by blue suspenders. His remains were buried in the Old South Cemetery in town.

In the summer of 1965, the badly decomposed body of a man between the ages of 40 to 65 years old was found in the river not far from Colts Street. According to the Hartford Courant, the body is believed to have been in the water for around a month. The man was missing his three upper teeth, wore a white shirt with blue checks, black pants and crepe sole shoes with slits near the small toe in each side. His remains were also buried in the Old South Cemetery.

Was This Woman and her Killer Ever Identified??

We are not sure if this case was ever solved. Around October 12th or 13th in 1973, the body of a white female estimated age 20 to 35 years old was a victim of strangulation and found in a trunk. She had black hair and was around five foot one and 109 pounds. The trunk was made of plywood and covered with black paper. The trunk was found two miles from Stamford, CT and four miles from Eaton’s Neck, New York. The victim wore a size seven cotton dress with a purple, green red floral design on a beige background. She also wore silver color nail polish. There were other unusual items including a gold wedding band that was inscribed “Bristol 14-K”. It is likely that Law Enforcement from Suffolk County is investigating the case, fingerprints were given to the FBI in 1974. The theory from newspaper articles is that the trunk floated along the Connecticut coastline. It has also been weighted with an anchor and a grappling hook. The case is mentioned because if it is still unsolved, it is not on any of the unidentified databases.

 

Fifty Year Mysteries

The Willamette River turned up a mystery on September 9th 1966 in Portland, Oregon.  The body of an unidentified Native American Male was found in the water of Multnomah County.  The man was estimated to be between the ages of 35 to 40 years old and had died according to his death certificate of Asphyxiation by submersion.

The manner of the man’s drowning is not known and it could be accidental, suicide or even a homicide. His body was found by the Burnside Bridge and he was buried at the Union Cemetery of Cedar Mill.  It Death Certificate picture was taken by Tracy Turner and taken from the Find A Grave website.

Several months earlier another unidentified body of a white male was found in the Willamette River near the Broadway Bridge in Portland on June 18th, 1966.

He was a white male that was believed to be around 50 years of age.  His death was also listed as Asphyxiation by submersion and no manner of death was listed.   Suicide, Accidental or Homicide could be any of the reasons why this individual was found in the water.   Death Certificate picture was also taken by Tracy Turner and found on the Find A Grave Website.

If you have any information as to who either of these two deceased men may be, please contact the Multnomah County Medical Examiner’s Office at 971-673-8220

 

 

A Gruesome Discovery With Few Clues To Go On

Police in the Connecticut town of Milford are still trying to discover the secret behind a gruesome discovery found near the banks of the Housatonic River in 1994. A torso was found dumped at the end of Oronoque Road, and has yet to be identified. The torso was found March 24, 1994, in a secluded neighborhood near the river banks. It was wearing shorts, wrapped in a bedspread and stuffed inside a canvas bag according to police sources. Police said they believe the remains were that of a black-haired Latino male who was between 24 to 30 years old, weighed 120 pounds and had a birthmark on his buttocks.

In 1992, the body of an Asian man wrapped in a rug was also found off Oronoque Road in another  unsolved case. The victim in that case had been shot to death. Law Enforcement believe that the Asian male may have been from out of state and between the ages of 18 and 25. For additional information about this victim go to here.

 

 

 

Newborn Baby Never Identified, Killer Unknown

It was a discovery no one wants to make. On January 24, 1974, an eleven year old boy opened a suitcase at 4:30 pm near a building at the corner of Ely Avenue and Wilson Avenues in Norwalk. Inside a suitcase was the body of a newborn female infant believed to be either white or Hispanic. A Medical Examiner declared the death was as result of a homicide and that she had been deceased for 2-3 days. There are few clues as to who killed and may have given birth to the dead child. A half an hour earlier, a white or Hispanic female had been seen walking down Ely Avenue carrying the same type of briefcase. She was described as being Caucasian (possibly Italian) or Hispanic. She is believed to be in her early 20’s,with dark hair, and a medium complexion. She was also described as being well dressed as well. The suitcase also had a brand name of ”Jesus A. Ossam” of Medellin, Colombia. If you have any information you can contact Lt. Art Weisgerber at the Norwalk Police Department at (203)854-3028. Or email him at aweisgerber@norwalkct.org. Anonymous Tips can be called in at (203)-854-3111.

 

Buried without a Name and Forgotten

Hartford, Connecticut has had several unidentified dead buried over the decades.  Most of these have been stillborn/murdered newborns from the 1960’s and earlier as well as illegal abortions in Northwood Cemetery in nearby Windsor.  Northwood is also where several of the nameless 1945 Hartford Circus Fire victims are buried.

There are two unidentified adults though whose remains are also without a name.  A black female estimated to be around 24 years of age was found at 4 Kensington Street in the North end of Hartford on April 13th, 1969.   On August 26th 1977, a white male in his late fifties was also discovered in the Connecticut River.   At the time an article in the Hartford Courant estimated that he had been in the water for four or five days.   These two are not in any databases and the record obtained above were from the Northwood Cemetery.

 

Baby Abandoned and Left To Die

It was a horrible discovery was made two boys on Christmas Eve in 1984. The boys found the body of a white female baby with brown hair that was dead in Woodland Lake located at the Dismal Harmony Park in Mendham Township, New Jersey.  An autopsy revealed that the baby died of exposure and hypothermia.  The child had lived for around 24 hours before her life would be lost.  A month later another baby would be abandoned in the town of Teaneck.  Fortunately, the male child was saved by someone who heard his cries.  Sadly, Morris County has had several cases of babies being left for dead in which they and their parents were never identified.

Morris County Unsolved Cases   If you have any information about this case, please contact the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office at  (973) 285-6200.

 

Man Remains Nameless Fifty Years Later

Spanning over 400 miles through four states, the Connecticut River is the longest body of water in New England.  Popular for fishing,  swimming, boating, it is sadly a place where people go to commit suicide and criminals dump the bodies of their victims.

On April 21st, 1969, police in Glastonbury, CT (two towns southeast of Hartford), pulled out the body of an unidentified white male possibly aged 55 to 65 years of age.  He was estimated to be about five foot nine inches (175 centimeters) and 170 pounds (77 kilograms).   The deceased wore blacks leather shoes, heavy socks, a belt made of leather and what may have been a red & dark striped shirt.  The autopsy performed discovered that the man had a hernia operation done on his left groin.

Perhaps most telling about the man was that he had three tattoos. The first was of a naked girl on his right arm.  On his left arm was a bird’s wing and the letters W-A-R-D.  It is possible that there were other letters on the arm, the deceased may have had the name edward or howard but the body did suffer from severe decomposition.  At the time of death, a Hartford Courant article stated that the body could have been in the water from 6 months to 2 years.  It is unknown where the body came from, and that heavy flooding could have dislodged the body from a wooded area near the river further north.   This case is not on NAMUS and is still listed as Unidentified in the Glastonbury Death Records.  If you have any information about who this person may be, contact this website at unsolvedct  @  hotmail.com.

Who was Dead Appalachian Trail Hiker?

It was January 26, 1997 when a hiker was going through some brush 150 yards off of the Appalachian Trail in Shenandoah Park in Virginia. The hiker discovered skeletal remains that are believed to be that of a white male between the ages of 45 to 70 years old. It is possible that due to the clothes of the deceased, that this may have been a hiker. There was no hiking equipment nor supplies found with the body. however clothing found on the deceased indicate that the person was indeed equipped to go for a “day hike”. The following clothing was found on the deceased.

A short sleeve tan shirt that had the label,”Authentic Mountain Tex” “Size L”. There was a pair of Tan pants with legs that zip-off that had no label. He wore a black synthetic belt which when closed around the loops measured 29 inches in circumference. He also wore green socks and had a red, green, and white bandana in a pocket of his pants.

The deceased also wore a pair of Brown hiking-type boots that had “Raichle” on soles. Both of his boots were missing the tongues and measured 11 1/2 inches.

It is likely that he died in 1995 to 1996. He may have been around 5 foot 7 inches and may have had a previous fracture of his right wrist It is unknown if this was a murder, suicide or accidental death.

If you have any information about who this may be please contact the Northern District Medical Examiner Office at 703-530-2600.