Also known as "The Route 40 Killer", Pennell was found guilty for the torture and murder of 2 New Castle County women and is believed to have murdered 3 others. He dismembered their bodies and disposed of the pieces all over New York. By 1973, Corll had killed 28 boys in Texas just outside of Houston. A blue Ford panel van with round headlights drove past. As they were chased away, one caught himself in a tree and hanged until his death. Although Carroll Edward Cole's crimes weren't committed in Iowa, he grew up in the state that seemingly shaped his life into a serial killer. They were all found in pools of blood with their pants pulled halfway down. Together we can reach 100% of WHYYs fiscal year goal. In the years to come, the "Weepy-voiced killer" would be identified as Paul Michael Stephani. Terry Blair first killed his pregnant girlfriend and mother of his two children in 1982. Meirhofer was one of the first serial killers to be identified using FBI's newly developed profiling system that helped catch countless other serial killers. No angry boyfriend or anything that would connect a murderer to her death. Do any specific names or examples come to mind when you think of famous Delaware murders? The day before Halloween, Price, a redhead, was found dead in the bathtub, and Rogers fled the scene. Is A Netflix And Chill Date Supposed To Be A Death Sentence? He is currently serving four life sentences at the ADX Florence Supermax in Colorado. Even the FBI tried to talk to him and get at the heart of what caused him to do this. The motion was granted. In 1994, Capano was a partner at the Wilmington office of Saul Ewing LLP when he became involved with 28-year-old Anne Marie Fahey, the appointments secretary to then-Governor Tom Carper. Gordon's body washed up on the rocky banks of the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal on Sept. 20. Steven Brian Pennell, Delawares only documented serial killer, did all of these things. Want a digest of WHYYs programs, events & stories? Many of the most famous Delaware serial killers can easily be found on any top ten or other form of serial killer list, including list of serial killers in Delaware as well as Delaware serial killer list. Simmons covered the bodies with coats and his best table cloth, wrapped the babies in plastic and left them in the abandoned cars, before going to his local bar for a drink. Many of Delawares unsolved murders are listed on the Delaware State Police homicide cold cases webpage, which is arranged by both law enforcement and investigating agencies across the state. Thomas Joseph Capano (October 11, 1949 September 19, 2011)[1][2] was a disbarred American lawyer and former Delaware deputy attorney general who was convicted of the 1996 murder of Anne Marie Fahey, his former lover. Ocean-going ships that stopped near Cape Henlopen carried news from foreign places; and the ships arriving from Philadelphia dropped newspapers at Lewes that kept residents informed of domestic events. Route40 was the only connection between the two victims. All five were women ranging in age from 17 to 36, Hawaii News Now reports. He drove her to a secluded area and sexually assaulted her in the front seat of his pick-up truck. William Devin Howell can best be described as a drifter. Thats the lingering mystery: Why?, A 1991 psychiatric evaluation submitted to the Delaware Supreme Court cleared Pennell of depression, paranoia and psychosis. However, Fahey's body was never found, and prosecutors were unable to establish the cause or manner of her death. They only knew the suspect as "The Southside Strangler." On Oct. 8, 1898, the Lewes newspaper, Delaware Pilot, reported, "Governor (James) Budd, of California, on Wednesday decided that Mrs. Cordelia Botkin must come here (California) to stand trial. The 1935 Delaware Execution of a Mother & Son Story by Jason Lucky Morrow Posted: December 9, 2015 On November 9, 1927, twenty-year-old Howard Hitchens of Georgetown, Delaware, was growing concerned for his uncle, Robert, whom he had not seen in several days. They eventually killed him by crushing his throat with a pipe. Every year, the Federal Bureau of Investigation publishes a Uniform Crime Report that details the crimes, crime rates, and crime locations in every state, county, and city, which includes a published report for crime in Delaware. This list may not reflect recent changes . It may surprise you to learn that the small state of Delaware holds more than its fair share of haunted locations. Prior to Pennells trial, his defense attorney vigorously attacked the fiber evidence, arguing that Taschner didnt have the authority to seize the strands. He is currently serving his sentence in prison. He was convicted of two murders and sentenced to death. In 1995, Glen Rogers met Linda Price at the Mississippi State Fair and they shared a drink. Delaware's forts were an important part of the harbor defense protecting the ports of Wilmington and Philadelphia. No one knew for years who killed four women in Southern Virginia. Finally, a few examples of unsolved murders in Kent County, Delaware, include the 2015 murder of Douglas Kimball, the 1990 murder of Lena Lorraine Thomas, the 1983 murder of Shirley Weckerly, and the 2009 murder of Robert Watkins, among many others. The program also delves into pop culture, sports, and humor. A psychology major, Bundy was described by his classmates as a master manipulator. It stopped a little farther down the road, stopped again and turned around. He died in prison. The women who met with him for a date disappeared. She fought back and got away. Please follow us on Facebook, for updates. Keep up with Kendra on Instagram, Twitter and kendrasyrdal.com, The essays in this book are short and sweet, and incredible. He was arrested for her murder in November 1997, over sixteen months after her disappearance. He was different than any other person who stopped for me,she recalls. You can read more about Delaware Cold Cases here. Taschner estimates the van drove past her seven times in 20 minutes. Please give today. On her behalf, church followers killed upwards of 40 people. Donald Harvey is better known as "The Angel of Death" after he confessed to 57 murders. One night, a group of slave raiders came to the mansion. Ridgway said he would kidnap runaways and sex workers along the Route 99 and take them to his home. He became an affluent lawyer, state prosecutor, Wilmington city attorney, legal counsel to Governor Mike Castle, and political consultant, well known in Delaware's political circles. DNA testing confirmed years later that Timothy Wilson Spencer was "The Southside Strangler." Eventually, he pled no contest to the September 1988 murders of Michele A. Gordon and Kathleen Anne Meyer. Meanwhile, other task-force members were trying to identify the strange fibers found on DiMauro. Grate was found guilty and was sentenced to death in 2018. On Friday, December 7, 1934, fifty-six-year-old May Carey and her son, Howard, were arrested and charged with first-degree murder. Gacy would sexually assault the boys, strangle them with rope, and then bury their bodies under his house. According to Project: Cold Case, there are currently around 517 Delaware cold cases, although this number does not account for any missing persons cold cases. A white male opened the side panel. Candy From a Stranger: The Cordelia Botkin Case of 1898, Lovers, murder and madness: Revisit Delaware's most sensational killings, http://www.historicalcrimedetective.com/candy-from-a-stranger-the-cordelia-botkin-case-of-1898/, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. 1A's goal is to act as a national mirror-taking time to help America look at itself and to ask what it wants to be. One of the world's most prolific serial killers might still be out there. OnlyInYourState may earn compensation through affiliate links in this article. Capano tried to pin Faheys death on another lover. That night, most of those who had attended the gathering became violently ill, with retching stomach pains and vomiting. Every three weeks to the day this murderer would shoot a couple to death in their car. Fahey's family reported her missing on June 30. In 1927, the American Friendship Society acted as a matchmaking business. There was no sign of forced entry, so police believe each victim let their murderer in voluntarily. In 2017, he was beaten to death in prison. Also among the same list are the many unsolved murders Dover, Delaware, which include the 2014 murder of Christopher Gillis, the 2007 murder of Jerome Hill, the 2016 murder of Tyler Parton, and the 1986 murder of Lonnie Hill, among many others. Capano belonged to a prominent family of Delaware real estate developers and building contractors. He never once used the first person. The murder of Kitty Genovese, killed outside of her apartment while many of her own neighbors watched, shocked the public. He was found guilty on all 33 counts of murder and was put to death in 1994. When police came into his house, they found body parts all over. Wikimedia Commons Kitty Genovese, the victim of one of most controversial and famous murders in history. Charged with the murder of DiMauro, Gordon and Ellis, he exercised his right to remain silent. She first sent anonymous letters to Elizabeth Dunning about affairs she had with Dunning's husband. Patty Cannon, whose birth name may have been Lucretia Patricia Hanly (c. 1759/1760 or 1769 - May 11, 1829), was an illegal slave trader, murderer and the co-leader of the Cannon-Johnson Gang of Maryland-Delaware. Gabby Petitos Family Says There Is No Doubt Brian Laundrie Murdered Her. On Nov. 14, 2017, authorities in Perry County, Pa. charged a local man with the 1983 murder of his wife, providing a reminder that even decades-old "cold cases" are never totally forgotten . The Delaware State Police have arrested 53-year-old Robert Franks of Bridgeville, Delaware for the murder of his wife, Cynthia Moss-Franks. The woman calling said she had been kidnapped. In fact, some of the furnishings were made of body parts. The perpetrator must have sensed a pleasure in the killings,he told the court. Thomas Warren Whisenhant was convicted of raping, mutilating, and murdering 3 women in Mobile County, Alabama in the 1970s. Whisenhant declined having any final words when he was eventually put to death. The condemned murderers wife, Vera Katherine Pennell, did have standing, however. He did not, however, confess. With some poison, she killed every family member that she disagreed with. Jurors spent eight days reviewing the evidence, which is still the longest deliberation in Delaware legal history. That didnt happen.. (AP Photo/Matthew S. Gunby), Assistant U.S. Attorney Colm Connolly, right, answers questions from the media as Delaware State Prosecutor Ferris Wharton, center, and Deleware Attorney General Jane Brady, left, listen after a jury convicted Thomas J. Capano for first-degree murder in the death of Anne Marie Fahey. Tags: 1920s, 1930s, Delaware, Execution, Murder, Women, Criminal Cases of America70 Vintage True Crime Stories by Thomas Duke, 1910, All Rights Reserved. 23 people were injured, but somehow there were no deaths. In the book, he calls his need to kill his "bothersomeness." For the most part, Delaware is a peaceful state. Money wasnt an issue. Whisenhant would abduct women, rape them in his pickup before shooting them with a 32 pistol. Falling claimed that she would hear voices chanting Kill the baby! and the only way to silence them way to push a blanket over the childs face. Scott Lee Kimball is an FBI informant turned serial killer. Since he did not commit just one, but continued in the same depraved manner on the others, this pleasure is evident., Deputy Attorney General Richard E. Fairbanks Jr. represented the state. His two other daughters and son were killed the same way. A week later, officers from the Delaware State Police and the New Castle County Police Department sprang into action. The Lizzie Borden Axe Murders. In 2011, Bill and Lorraine Currier were asleep in their home when Keyes broke in and caused a "blitz attack," waking them from their sleep and dragging them to his car. On March 14, 1992, Steven Brian Pennell was the first man executed in Delaware in 46 years. In New Hampshire, he was known as "Bob Evans" who killed one woman and three small children. In 2003, he roamed the streets of Connecticut in his van that he dubbed his "murder mobile." WHYY is your source for fact-based, in-depth journalism and information. Dover, Delaware, murders are more common than those in many other Delaware communities or cities, due to its size and population, being the second largest city in the state. Fairbanks became so impassioned that we thought he would burst into tears,Moore recalls. According to Project: Cold Case, there were roughly 1,993 homicides in Delaware between 1965 and 2019. They were given the name "Sex Slave Killers.". The case of the Boston Strangler serial killer is still left unsolved. Gerald would then keep them as sex slaves, ultimately killing them when he was finished. Between the years of 1987 and 1988, Pennell preyed on the sex workers who worked on Route 40. Ross was executed in 2005, making him the first and last execution in the state of Connecticut. It became known as the Atlanta Child Murders. Here in Delaware, you'll find a handful of haunted accommodations where you might encounter something otherworldly. Two years after his death, a small town in North Dakota learned Butler may have been a serial killer. Charlene got out of jail in 2013 after serving a 16-year sentence. Martha "Patty" Cannon is thought to have been born about 1760. During his "60 Minutes" interview, he apologized for his crimes but said, "I don't know if I would have stopped.". (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast). Henley confessed and told the police about his work with Croll. A 39-year-old man linked to multiple killings in Delaware and Philadelphia has been indicted on 41 felony charges in connection with multiple slayings, assaults and robberies,. He is currently serving a 70-year sentence. When the Spanish-American War began, Dunning decided to follow the troops to Cuba, broke off the affair with Cordelia, and declared that he was going to reconcile with his wife. Upon their arrivals he told them he had gifts for them but wanted to give them their presents one by one. The Supreme Court unanimously rejected the argument, and Pennell was scheduled for execution. Some papers even described her as more of a cartoon character than a serial killer. In 1993, Rifkin was pulled over by police for not having a license plate. At one, he left a letter telling them he can't stop killing and gave himself the initials BTK. Again, there were no signs of sexual activity, but the victim was tortured and mutilated with work tools. They would engage in flirty banter with the men who stopped, but they never got into a vehicle. Her gang of 50 to 60 people operated for 30 years, committing as many as 30 murders and more than 3,000 . While Taschner was engaged in small talk, Hedrick ran the vans plates. Pedro Lopez is linked to more than 300 murders in his native Colombia and in Ecuador and Peru. In 1994, Amy Anderson was the only woman to escape the clutches of Robert Leroy Anderson. An ex-prostitute, Ellis knew Route 40 well. Related:Lovers, murder and madness: Revisit Delaware's most sensational killings, Marys father had a chemist examine the unconsumed candy, and the chemist found that they were laced with arsenic. Pickup before shooting them with a 32 pistol the victim of one of most controversial famous. 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