The Green River Killer
Gary Ridgway
Background
Born: February 18, 1949 (age 66), Salt Lake City, UT
Nationality: American
Education: Tyee educational complex
Spouse:Judith Lorraine Lynch (married 1988–2002)
Children: Matthew Ridgway
Number of kills
How he began killing
Ridgway's slayings began in 1982, when young runaways and prostitutes began disappearing from state Route 99 in south King County, Washington. He brought many of them to his home and strangled them, then left them in woodsy, remote sites. The first few bodies turned up along the now-notorious Green River.
How he got away with it for as long as he did
Why he did it
Multiple life sentences
Facing the prospect of execution, Ridgway made a deal with investigators to revealed where he'd hidden the bodies of several of the young women who'd never been found while also agreeing to plead guilty to any future cases where his confession could be substantiated by evidence. He was sentenced to life in prison in December 2003, having committed more murders than any serial killer in U.S. history.