Serial Killers!
By Levi Day
Gary Ridgeway "Green River Killer" 49 Confirmed Victims
Early Life
- Born on February 18, 1949, in Salt Lake City, Utah.
- Raised near Seattle's Pacific Highway, a deprived neighborhood near SeaTac airport.
- Ridgway had abusive parents that argued and fought a lot.
- Ridgway was tested with an IQ of 82, signifying below average intelligence.
- He wet the bed up until the age of 14. When his mother found out about the incidents, she would have him march naked all the way into the bathroom. She would bathe him and personally wash his genitals. This both aroused and embarrassed Ridgway, which caused Gary to have both sexual and violent fantasies about his mother.
- When he was 16, he stabbed a six-year-old boy, who survived the attack.
- He had led the boy into the woods and then stabbed him through the ribs into his liver.
- He walked away saying, "I wondered what it would feel like to kill someone."
Adult Life
- Was sent to Vietnam after high school.
- After 'Nam, he got a job painting trucks, which he kept for 30 whole years.
- Was married many times but they never stuck because he like to have relations with prostitutes.
- He was "very religious".
The Killings
- Ridgway's murders began in 1982.
- Young runaways and prostitutes began disappearing from state Route 99 in South King County, Washington.
- He brought most of them to his home, strangled them, then left them in wooded, isolated locations.
- He often returned to the dead bodies to have sexual intercourse with them.
- The first few bodies turned up along the now-notorious Green River (Hence his name SK name).
- Ridgway avoided the law until 2001.
- Ridgway told investigators he killed as many as 75-80 women.
- 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 to avoid execution.
- In December 2003 Gary was sentenced to life in prison, and held the record for committing more murders than any serial killer in U.S. history.
Peter William Suteliffe "The Yorkshire Ripper" 13 Confirmed Victims
Early Life
- Born 2 June 1946
- Sutcliffe was born in Bingley, to a working-class Catholic family in West Riding of Yorkshire
- He was a loner at school.
- He left school at the age of 15.
- Between November 1971 and April 1973 Sutcliffe worked at the factory of Baird Television Ltd.
- He left when he was asked to go on the road as a salesman.
- Sutcliffe frequently used prostitutes as a young man and it has been speculated that a bad experience with one during which he was believed to have been conned out of money, helped fuel his violent hatred of women.
Adult Life
- He first met Sonia Szurma (who was of Czech and Ukrainian parentage) on 14 February 1967; they married on 10 August 1974.
- Sonia suffered several miscarriages over the following few years and the couple were informed that she would not be able to have children.
The Killings
- In 1969, Sutcliffe committed his first assault on an older prostitute whom he had met whilst searching for the woman who had previously tricked him out of money.
- Sutcliffe committed his second assault on the night of 5 July 1975 in Keighley. He attacked Anna Rogulskyj, who was walking alone, striking her unconscious with a ball-peen hammer and slashing her stomach with a knife. Disturbed by a neighbour, he left without killing her.
- In 1975, the first victim to lose her life was Wilma McCann, on 30 October. McCann was a mother of four.
- Sutcliffe struck her twice with a hammer before stabbing her 15 times in the neck, chest and abdomen.
- He enjoyed the method of knocking his vicctims out and stabbing them, so that became his regular way of killing.
- On 2 January 1981, Sutcliffe was stopped by the police with 24-year-old prostitute Olivia Reivers in the driveway of Light Trades House, Melbourne Avenue, Broomhill, Sheffield, in South Yorkshire.
- A police check revealed the car was fitted with false number plates and Sutcliffe was arrested for this offence and transferred to Dewsbury Police Station
- Sutcliffe suddenly declared he was the Ripper. Over the next day, Sutcliffe calmly described his many attacks. Weeks later he claimed God had told him to murder the women.
- On 16 July 2010, after being proved to be connected to many murders, his small offense sentence was extended to a full life term.