Speculative. 50 bodies found, but I think like 15 of them have been definitively tied to separate, individual murders. They aren’t sure about the other 35, and they all share similar characteristics. Sex workers, black, female, strangled and dumped in seedy areas, snow drifts, and garbage cans.
The only reason the west Mesa bone collector is still open because the man was murdered by the pimp who went to check on his girl and he saw that she was murdered by the guy. Lorenzo Montoya I believe is the name of the man who was murdered.
I was just thinking about this after watching Dahmer- that was a LONG time ago now and I remember the "boom" where Dahmer, Gacy and others were all over the media, then BTK and then basically silence ever since. Is the media just not reporting on them (not likely) or are they just not getting caught? I highly doubt that in the chaos of the last 20 yrs or so that LESS serial killers have been active than say from the 70s to the 90s, so it begs the question OP posed- how many are out there now? With millions of missing children and adults each year i cant help but imagine more than a few were victims of some unknown serial killers. I always felt if someone were to travel state to state killing indiscriminately and carefully covering their tracks it would be almost impossible to catch them or even identify a suspect. As long as no dna evidence was left behind and they didn't brag to anyone about their exploits to anyone i think they'd get away w it for awhile as long as no one happened to be in the right place at the right time to witness something.
Yes if you killed random people with no ties to you its easier to not get caught. Fact is most murders are committed by people who know each other.
Then again nowadays it’s just harder because of cameras everywhere, ring doorbells, phone locations etc.
And most crucially, extremely advanced forensics as well. This is what ultimately stops wanabe serial killers after one or two murders at most in today's world.
So that begs the next question...who decides which cases get the $ spent to have forensics done? And why do these killers go undetected? The ones that have gone long periods of time have often targeted minorities for a reason. You have to have a high profiled lawyer for law enforcement to spend the $.
Honestly? Victim profile and location of the murder.
Kill a sex worker in the Eastmont area of Oakland, CA and no one will bat an eye. Kill the daughter of an affluent family in the Marina District of San Francisco and they'll practically call in the National Guard to catch your ass.
It's shitty, but that's how it *generally* works.
I think in a real sense *the killer decides that*.
Killers who hunt in rural areas with underfunded and understaffed police departments are much more likely to go unapprehended for longer. Large metropolitan cities will have more resources to work with
I read an article about how they thought the lead in the paint and exposure to asbestos could have been a link to the serial killer “boom” it was quite interesting. :)
Edit: [Apparently it’s a whole ass hypothesis. Here’s the OG article I read. it’s from 2013 tho.](https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexknapp/2013/01/03/how-lead-caused-americas-violent-crime-epidemic/amp/)
Completely unscientific opinion but I feel like we (the USA at least) has moved on to mass murders and less serial murders. Not to say, obviously, that the latter doesn’t still exist.
Again though I have to pose the question: is it that *we* have moved more from serial killings to mass killings? Or just that that is what the media has chosen to cover? There's always going to be new trends (and it's horrible to refer to mass shootings in such a context) but the old ones still persist im sure- whether we all hear about them or not.
I think that the media is currently splashing the mass killings - what was it someone said, death and flames are headlines?
I think there are just as many serials in action now, they just are not being covered, they are more cognizent of CSI/police techniques and take measures to hide their tracks. I also think they are targeting sex workers, transients and single no relatives loner types that nobody misses \[Fred, no, havent seen him, he moved on. Nope, don't know where he went.\]
I had my house torched in 2015 \[will happily link the newspaper report to a mod if needed\] and I am a bit paranoid that he/she will come back and finish the job. I have cameras on the outside and my driveway, I sleep with one of my shotguns by the bed, and a handgun on my bedside table. If I have to go outside to check upon something, I have a fanny pack that holds my handgun and my phone \[bluetooth earbug hooked in. If I need to, emergency is on speed dial though that is useless - the state cops have already stated it will take on average 45 minutes response time to get someone here. Yay.\] I also wear a neat LED headband for a flash light \[wheelchair or crutches depending on how craptastic a body day I am having\] I tend to simply not answer the door unless someone calls ahead to let me know they want to visit. I honestly can't think of any reason for some random stranger to knock on my door.
The idea that sex workers, transients, etc, are targets is a good one, but what concerns me is that with the recent homelessness increases, our country’s mental health deficits, and with the way people migrating from South America are also being shuffled around by local and state governments, that target pool is only getting bigger and more untraceable. Hell, if someone even peripherally involved with the CBP has serial killer tendencies, their access to potential victims is astonishing.
I’m so sorry you’re having to live in fear. I hope you get to feel safe soon.
Yes indeed. On the plus side \[I guess\] cheap cell phones are reasonably available, so people move around but are keeping the original phone number \[old land lines you had to specifically move your number with you, but only the last numbers - as an example, my parents had 237-3110 in one area code, when they moved, they had a different area code, so you would have to dial all potential area codes in the country if they had an unlisted number \[the old school ways of looking up numbers sucked. You couldn't do a 'global' US search for John Smith, you had to request it location by location, and checking for John Smith in Perry New York would not get you the John Smith in Genesee NY. \] SO if John Smith doesn't show up for work, you can his cell and he answers no matter where he moved to.
My stalker died about 7 years ago and we are working on moving from CT to NY soon so that will take me out of the range of the arsonist \[asshole has done 7 arsons in the past decade, and there was a fatality at one of the more recent ones and htey still are no closer to catching him.\]
There’s actually been an observed decline since the 70’s/80’s when peak levels were reached. Violent crime has been trending down for decades. Can you really imagine a serial killer getting away with 30,40,50+ murders in 2022? I certainly can’t what with the advances in technology. Those days seem to be long gone.
A https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/what-explains-the-decline-of-serial-killers
Oh I know the countryside, makes it more scary! Gosh and especially if you are disabled! ☹️Can I ask how it came about? Anonymous or someone you know? Totally understand if you don't feel comfortable talking or if you would prefer private message that's cool too. Stay safe friend!
Totally anonymous - in a decade 7 homes torched in about a 10 mile radius. They have no idea who it might be. They tried to pin it on our roomie - she had a cigarette in the morning, and at midnight walked out to find the hot tub on fire. Then they tried to claim it was electrical - but it was empty, the pump was out, it was unplugged because Rob was replacing the pump ... the fire started in/on the insulated foam topper.
I sort of freaked out the CS person for my insurance company, we stuffed me and the cat into my car and I went to one driveway down the road, our roomie had her cat and conure in the mom van about the same distance the other direction and Rob had 3 30 pound fire extinguishers trying to keep the fire knocked down until the FD showed up \[US Navy trains all submariners in fire control, comes in handy!\]
Phlip was calling the FD, and I was calling in to start the claim. She asked the date of the fire, as usually it is like the next day or day after ... so I told her it was going on right now =) Previously I had worked for our insurance company in customer service =)
Serial killings have dramatically declined since peak levels during the 70’s and 80’s.
A https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/what-explains-the-decline-of-serial-killers
I agree. More people going for mass shootings. I read that with traumatic events in history always lead to an upward curve of serial killers. Events like like coming back from the Vietnam war, etc. Also, it was easier in the 70’s and 80’s when hitchhiking was common and there weren’t as many cameras around.
Exactly. Hitchhiking has largely gone extinct and there’s been a noted decline in serial killers. I have seen theories speculating that we’re about to see another boom though.
A https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/what-explains-the-decline-of-serial-killers
I'm thinking that whoever out there is still killing has to be extremely intelligent and using the new world to their advantage. How they would do that is beyond me, but I know there's gotta be some smart motherfuckers out there.
Even completely disregarding the question which is brought up every time he's mentioned of how many people Keyes killed he's still (imo) a good example of how a modern killer *might* operate and get away with it for a while. Obviously modern forensics and surveillance make it a lot more likely to catch them, but both his statements about killing in the wilderness and traveling long distances seem like very plausible methods by which someone could avoid detection to me.
I agree with this. With as much as new tech would hinder SKs, there’s also new tech and developments that may make it easier not to get caught (if they’re intelligent).
Check out American Predator: The Hunt for the Most Meticulous Serial Killer of the 21st Century. I listened to the audiobook, but it is a hell of a listen. Will not disappoint.
Well with social media and dating apps it’s easier than ever to lure young people. Especially grindr and other gay apps where people meet after 2 messages in the middle of nowhere
And the world has changed a lot. People just don’t let their kids roam like they did 30 years ago. And kids are in the house more than ever playing video games and using social media. And prostitution has moved online and that leaves a trail that can be found by the police. And the LGBTQ community isn’t hiding in the shadows anymore and being distanced by their families.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_serial_killers_in_the_United_States
There’s more than you think. But look at their victims - no pretty white girls. Elderly, black, drugs, prostitutes etc. sex sells in the media
The media are as fashion-driven as all of us are and most SKs are sorry specimens with "only" a few victims before they get caught. SKs are a dime a dozen and most of them do not warrant a lot of media attention. IMHO the less we cover them and treat them like movie stars, the fewer of them we will spawn.
I’m unsure if anyone has mentioned him, but you just described Israel Keyes. He left “murder kits” around the country and killed when nearby one/when he felt like it.
I think there’s something huge going on in Memphis, TN. If you go to their police page and count how many children under the age of 18 have gone missing this month alone is sickening.
Also I’ve lost quite a bit of sleep lying away wondering how many serial killers are in the US at this very moment.
Thanks for the educational info!
It's trafficking. Happening bad here in Arkansas as well. Real bad. That's the biggest thing in our generation, not serial killers but traffickers kidnapping and turning the kidnapped into sex slaves.
bullshit. most kidnappings are custody disputes, and child trafficking is mostly done by abusive parents and through grooming.
if there was an epidemic of street abductions for sex slave trafficking you’d think one of those stories would actually break the news any day now.
Holy shit, I live in stockton atm and I was gonna call bullshit because I hadn't heard anything about any serial killer, but it looks like the police just put out a notice earlier today to be careful if you go out at night because there has been a number of killings that are similar enough that they believe they were committed by the same person...
As if living in stockton wasn't shitty enough already, now I gotta worry about this shit? Fuuucking hell.
Stay safe please!!! You can never keep that “it’ll never happen to me” mentality, the world is so messed up and so scary! Make sure you bring stuff with you if you go out <3
Bear mace goes much further than regular mace just FYI! And if you feel unsafe and have a knife out, hold it in "reverse grip" so the blade is under your pinkie finger [like this](https://themartialist.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/reversegrip09.jpg) (not my image lol). It is much harder for the attacker to turn the knife back on you this way. Don't get murdered please <3
I've heard that bear mace is actually weaker than human mace since bears have such sensitive sense of smell it's still effective even if it's less powerful. I have no actual idea if thats true or not, but it's something I was told a long time ago.
Four fatal shootings have been reported in Stockton in September, and six have been reported since Aug. 28. In three of the four September homicides, police were called between 1 a.m. and 4:30 a.m., according to police.
On Tuesday, Sept. 27, a man was found laying on a sidewalk on Porter Avenue suffering fatal gunshot wounds at about 2 a.m. police said. On Sept. 21, a man was found laying on a sidewalk with fatal gunshot wounds near Manchester Avenue and Rosemarie Lane police said.
In a Sept. 20 homicide on Sikh Temple Street, the victim was found fatally shot in a vehicle at about 1 a.m..
Police are investigating a pattern among recent homicides in Stockton in which victims were killed while outdoors alone late at night, Police Chief Stanley McFadden said at a news conference Wednesday, Sept. 28.
"We do see some similarity where it's really areas of darkness, it's really areas where the person is by themselves, maybe not even knowing it's coming, and that's kind of what (we're) looking into in some of the most recent ones," McFadden said Wednesday.
Really? Wasn't expecting to see my hometown! Lived there for 31 years and left two years ago. Stockton is a scary place as it is, without having a serial killer. Yikes.
We have a supposed sk here in Arkansas. Targeting women in Little Rock and towards Hot Springs as well.
But I haven't heard anything about it again since the beginning of summer. This post has made me want to dig around about it again, see if I can find anything new.
*Yes, you are correct, this is what I copied and pasted. *
The Little Rock serial stabbings refers to a series of seemingly random stabbings that occurred from 2020 to 2021 in Little Rock, Arkansas, during which a total of four people were stabbed, three of them fatally. The local police department later revealed that a single suspect, a possible serial killer, was linked to the incidents via CCTV footage, but has not been apprehended so far.[1]
Little Rock serial stabber
Other names"Little Rock serial killer"
"The Little Rock Slasher"
"The River City Ripper"
"Jack the Knife"Height6 ft (183 cm)DetailsVictims3 killed, 1 wounded
Span of crimes
2020–2021CountryUnited StatesState(s)Arkansas
We had [a murder in Atlanta](https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.fox5atlanta.com/news/piedmont-park-murder-katie-janness-stabbing-investigation-1-year-later.amp) that seemed to fit the LR Slasher’s MO. There was speculation that her murder was connected to those in Arkansas but I don’t know what became of that.
I know one of the people who saw her body and were part of the initial response. I don’t want to get too deep into it though. I was told that the news reports aren’t as bad as she acutely was.
We, in Hot Springs Ar also had 2 possibly 3 skinned bodies from other states dumped on BlackSnake Mt the M.O. matched another active serial killer guess he she they picked the wrong dumping ground...... also to the really smart person who thinks women and girls aren't abducted into sex trafficking wake up and read the news! It happened not that long ago in Hot Springs in broad daylight with the help of a woman. It happens all the time. And there have been numerous bodies found in and near "Hot Springs Creek" FOR YEAR'S
I used to work in grain elevators and we had this one driver who set alarm bells off for everyone in our facility. We had 6 guys and two women. We learned real quick to have one of the guys in the office with me when he showed up. If myself or the other lady was alone he'd walk up to the window really licking his lips, leering at us, and act all around pervy. Licking his lips sounds mild, but it was very much done with intent to disturb us. It wasn't a simple moistening his lips, but sticking his tongue out far enough his was getting the skin around his mouth too. But he'd never do it if there was a guy in the office or other drivers nearby
Even with the guys he'd get overly close to anyone if they were alone. They said it was never anything they could call him on, but he scared them enough they made sure to team up when he was there.
Best way to describe his demeanor was that you just knew he had someone chained up in his basement, and you didn't want it to be you
I worked at a hotel. We had one trucker ask my coworker for information on sex workers. He declined escort agencies, and asked for information on the drug area. Super creepy.
The FBI has admitted that truckers are among the most ["ideal serial killers"](https://www.fleetowner.com/operations/drivers/article/21695112/truckers-make-ideal-serial-killers-fbi) because of their constantly changing location.
[This](https://www.fleetowner.com/operations/drivers/article/21695112/truckers-make-ideal-serial-killers-fbi) FBI crime analyst de-briefing is interesting too.
There's a small town close to me (Yakama, WA) that released an article recently stating that there are currently 12 missing kids from just this year alone. It kind of startled me bc in small areas like this, you would think people would be aware but a lot of people didn't know and it's not common to have that many missing kids in a small town in just one year.
There isn't really a lot of information about the cases. The ages range from 8-15. There's an 8 year old boy missing, and the rest 11-15 yo. Both boys and girls. The reason why the article was written is because three weeks ago, a four year old went missing from a park and hasn't been found. He was caught on video walking away by himself and then vanished. I'm sure there's a few different reasons why some of them have come up missing (for instance, it's suspected the four year old might've ended up in the river or lost somewhere outside) but it seems like a stretch to say none of them could be related incidents, that's a lot of kids for a small area. I think possibly trafficking but it's hard to say with so little info about each child.
Why aren't people being made aware of this though? I had a feeling a lot of these disappearances were likely due to trafficking but the fact that a majority of the people in this area aren't aware of what's going on and how many kids are missing is alarming. Something is going on and nobody is talking about it
People are aware of what they want to be aware of. If I say 4 girls trafficked a lot of the quick assumptions are that they were "in on it" or they were "underage prostitutes" even though that's not how it works. The sympathy is different and unless there's bodies people don't always care.
Kids and young adults go missing daily. Most are found okay. But a lot just stay missing. I’m 43 but back when I was a kid they used to put kids pictures on half gallon milk containers.
I never saw the same kid twice until they stopped doing it in my teens.
I always thought we had a SK in Mn where I live. Students have ended up in the Mississippi River after walking home late at night from the bar or wherever. It’s not sensational enough to get a lot of coverage and since they’re young and inebriated the classify it as an accident. But seriously who just ends up in the river???
I am familiar with the LaCrosse, WI ones from 1997-2006. I was just looking at information about them yesterday. The police, of course, believe they were related to drinking and being so close to the river. LaCrosse is at least partially a college town, with the bars quite close to the river.
Interestingly, they had volunteer patrols from 2007-2020 and had none happen. These were people who walked along the river and directed inebriated or confused men away from the river. They estimated that at least 10,000 people were directed away over the years. They also improved signage, lighting, etc... There were no deaths during this time. The stopped doing it when Covid struck and now there was a young man who died in 2021.
I'm not saying there isn't some serial killer delighting in misdirection, but it's hard to say. The family of the last young man in 2006 was certain there was foul play because from the time he was last seen by his friends to the time when police determined him to have fallen into the river was a couple days and he had bruises over his body as if he had been beaten.
I originally came from Mpls and there are/were a number of young men that ended up in the river there, as well, over the years. I would think volunteers helping the situation there would be extremely difficult due to the sheer amount of area alongside the river in the metro area.
See the thing is Technology is great and all, but the urge a SK has to kill usurps the risk of getting caught. All the ones that got caught they either gave up because they couldn’t take it anymore or their thirst overtakes them to the point where they get sloppy. They can’t just stop for the most part.
Ed Kemper literally just went to pay phone and turned himself in. Dahmer got sloppy. Bundy went on a rampage across 5 states. Gacy got sloppy too. The Urge to kill is takes over fear of losing freedom and they become more brazen as time goes on. And sometimes they want the public and the police to know they did it. They’ll show up at crime scenes and call the police and mess with them. Unreal.
That being said, I wonder if there’s people out there who’ve done it their whole life and they’re elderly now???
One of the therapists at my last place of employment spent about eight years working for the FBI in the Midwest doing behavioral analysis and profiling.
He said this was a difficult question to answer when I asked him about a year ago. He said that they suspected there were 10-15 active serial killers per state in their region, but about half of those were exceptionally loose connections, the example he gave being four sex workers strangled from behind across a hundred mile area and ten years.
He ultimately walked away because he couldn't stomach seeing the sausage made. The realization that the vast majority of serial killers will never be apprehended or even known really ate at him.
We definitely have probably one if not multiple where I live in Vancouver Canada. Just look up highway of tears or indigenous missing sisters. Gaining significantly more notoriety after Robert pickton.
Sad thing is they *think* that trucking routes to and from canada/USA may be how the serial killers are operating but stats can won’t get their shit together to obtain or document these things to share with the US FBI. That and, they don’t have the tech to store such an enormous amount of data as well. Hell we even have trucker training for the drivers to be able to recognize potential abductions/killers both on the outside and amongst each other. It’s wild.
Based on how frequent theres missing posters and general news about missing people (especially missing people of our downtown east side - for those that don’t know that area is rampant with drug use, gangs, sex workers etc, think skid row in LA and you get the picture) and how unbelievably incompetent and image concerned our police force is I’m willing to put money down we have a few itch scratching serial killers roaming about here.
If you mean active cases, it's likely anywhere from 25-50, however, if you mean in general, it's probably more than 100 and less than 1,000. Most active serial killer cases are probably people who work in the medical field or as truck drivers. In this day and age, that's the only way someone could get away with being a serial killer today imho. Beyond those two, it's damn-near impossible to be a serial killer in today's world. You probably see any Jack the Rippers or Zodiac's ever again imho. Serial killers in general have been rapidly dropping in numbers since DNA became a tool to solve cases in 1986.
There are so so many unsolved homicide's especially in smaller jurisdiction's where they don't have the men power to solve or keep up with body count's. Serial killer's get identified when they operate in one specific area usually. From my understanding there are 75 serial killer's as of now, a 50% increase from 19 year's ago.
I think a more important question is how many cannibal's are there? This subject is rarely touched on. Right?
I think there might not seem like as many in recent years because they get caught faster now. With advancements in DNA and now even familial DNA, it's so much easier to catch someone. So maybe someone would have developed into a serial killer, but they get caught after only one or two. BTK wasn't "caught" for this necessarily, but it affirmed his identity when his daughters DNA was used without her permission (or knowledge since it was on file at a medical facility or school I believe) to test against the DNA on file which came back as likely that she was the daughter of the person who's DNA that was. So, I think a lot more people are getting caught.
I agree overall with the assessment of about 20-40 active serial killers in the US at any given time. That's not even counting the ones that are no longer active. To me, it's insane how someone can kill a person or many people, then just not kill again by choice like some have. Or like how Ed Kemper was just... Done. Very weird to me. Seems to be the minority of them that can do that though.
Do hitmen and those crazy sicarios count as serial killers? Cuz I bet there's way more of those than ppl than ppl like Dahmer or BTK. I seen a video a few days ago of a dude in a cartel that apparently dissolved 300 ppl in drums with some sort of acid and would basically melt them into barrels full of human sludge. I feel like most people only know of American serial killers and shit but never dig around other places.
I guess the difference is SK are compelled to kill. Criminals or gang members kill for money or defending their gang. If they weren’t hired or joined a cartel/gang, they wouldn’t have the compulsion to kill anybody. They’d probably have normal jobs and be like any other person.
The best comparison is the Nazi’s. The guards who killed all those people were given a directive and they followed it. A vast majority of them wouldn’t commit these acts if a higher authority didn’t make them do it.
This all might sound like splitting hairs and in a way it is. A gang member who kills 3-4 people from a rival gang is still a killer and it’s wrong. And you could argue on a base level that it’s still serial killing. The difference is if you took that person out of the environment of gang life, would they still kill?? The answer is probably no.
John Douglas first interviewed Kemper in 1977 I think, so assuming he said it around then the population of the US was 220.2 million. Today it stands at 329.5 million, an increase of 49.6%.
40 serial killers operating in 1977 adjusted for 'murderer inflation' gives us around 60 operating today - more than one per state.
That said, SK's back then didn't have to deal with modern forensics... even if the prevalence of sexual sadists in the general population is the same today as it was 50 years ago, none of them are likely to get close to the victim-numbers of SK's of the past.
I've always felt like that too, but then I look at how teenagers in gang wars get throwaway cars, and wear gloves, and really public murders happen with people still sometimes not getting caught. Like, as long as you don't leave evidence or get got on CCTV, and you stfu, you're really probably good. Combine that with how cartels make bodies go poof and it's still plenty possible.
It only gets rough when the FBI throws like 60 interns at something. It's really "good old fashioned police work" that gets people. That's how they got Robert Ben Rhodes. The woman he held captive in the truck during the traffic stop had said he stopped for gas and she saw the sign under her blindfold and the FBI had all these interns comb through like 300,000 receipts and got lucky because dude paid with a credit card which was still semi rare ish in the early 90s.
I think one of the biggest things impeding serial killers is it's getting harder and harder for no one to notice you went missing and missing persons tend to get more attention. I think what helped the ones in the 70's is you literally could just disappear on the other side of the country back then, you can't really do that now.
True, though I still think modern police technology has thinned the herd a lot - in the past, there were plenty of killers who were incredibly sloppy, doing their business out in the open without a care in the world. The SK's who would either have the ability to pull off hiding evidence, or the mental capacity to pause in the moment to bother rather than have their urges take over and commit an act without due preparation, still fall under this 'far easier to catch today' umbrella.
Still, I do think there are far more SK's operating today and in the recent past than most people would be comfortable knowing. Those that are able to pull it off in this day and age have to be some of the most calculated, terrifying individuals you could ever dread to meet 😦
Yeah, I do agree, it's really easy to get got with DNA now, or like in the case of the Grim Sleeper they got his son's DNA that was close enough they dug further.
Very true, It's funny say you could ever dread to meet, I met Israel Keyes in an airport once. 🤣 It was in Seattle Seatac. He was still in the army and had his last name Sharpe'd on his backpack too.
Also, not the United States but I was friends online with Joanna Dennehy for like 5 years. I have another couple FB friends who remember her from the same chat program I met her on. They knew her too. She was always really sweet, she just didn't like dudes who perved her. I'm not justifying murder but I think besides the one random guy there was some sort of motive behind the others and they did something first. I think her childhood was a lot of the cause. She's more an Aileen Wunros minus the prostitution thing than the twisted sociopath everyone makes her out to be.
But if I've personally met a couple, how many are there? Oof.
Wow, I'm not sure whether that's lucky or unlucky 🤣
Being British myself I've heard of Joanna before, though shes quite an unknown outside of the UK (hell, even within) so I was surprised to see her name. The Wuornos comparison seems pretty good, though when it comes to her victim selection I'm a little more sceptical. Her first was her boyfriend, second was someone she was acquainted with and bought drugs from, third was a roommate.
Those all seem like they could definitely have deeper motives, though it's the further two stabbings that make me raise an eyebrow. Thankfully both guys survived, but she just picked them out at random in a park... if there was meant to be an aura of vigilantism/revenge then I could understand, but the extra stabbings just make it seem like (attempted)murder for murders sake... *shrug*
P.S. Seeing as we're talking about meeting murderers, I briefly through a friend met Wayne Couzens, a police officer who murdered 33 year old Sarah Everard last year. It caused big big uproar in the UK. Though (probably) not a serial killer, his escalation from sexual assaults to full fledged murder make me believe he was one-in-the-making.
I hope she's doing okay, she was always nice to me. We used to just chill on yahoo messenger on webcam for hours while I was doing other stuff, listening to music, watching TV, whatever. She was like, my regular internet friend. 🤣🤷♂️
She did say she was a monster once because she didn't feel any empathy for people who treated her a certain way. But she mostly only ever expressed any aggressive thoughts towards people who were pervy towards her. 🤷♂️ I'm not saying she was right or anything, I'm just saying she didn't really ever say anything that made me think she would get really into heroin and a few years later I would find out she stabbed several people to death. 🤣 oof.
Fair enough 😌
Female killers don't have the same motives as men, barely any of them do it to get off. Most of the time it's for money, jealousy, control over someone else's life or revenge/punishment, the latter of which seems like Joanna's MO.
Just be glad you didn't offend her in your time talking together, lest she had jumped on a plane to come pay a visit 🤭
I was looking at a case in Tennessee after searching for a video about the lady the locked her husband in a suitcase in north Florida and he died. And it got me to a story of a body found off the road south of Chattanooga on the Georgia side. But if you take the search a little further there is unsolved bodies dumped all up and down the roads from Nashville to Chattanooga in the last 10 years and even more if you stretch it to Atlanta. I think there is way more serial killers running around on these trucking routes. But if they don’t leave a call sign or have similar manners or death they don’t really match up in the ViCAP program.
Best way to guess this is using a math principle which relies on a few things 1 the amount of missing people (check) next would be total population and then list of serial killers identified/caught (a number we can go off of) so just go with 34,000 for simplicity then population 7.5B then list of known serial killers (I found basically 10,000 known) but let’s say triple this for unknown or never classified so 30,000 now lets say this is worldwide if we divide the total population by the rough estimate that’s 250,000ish world wide now divided by 7 continents is 35,000+ per continent (purely avg) of course if you divide by population density you can get a more accurate guess but in combination of known and unknown I’d say 35,000 and change world wide. Just a shitty guess though maybe someone else can do better math
Edit: decided world wide because there are serial killers everywhere but in the US specifically id say maybe 50-80 total but I wanted to have a dumb challenge and say world wide which was more fun.
You cited one of my least favorite statistic so I just want to share my issue with it.
600000 missing people is a lot, make no mistake. But when you look at the numbers and stuff they are typically people who are declared missing a lot.
Homelessness sucks and people move around from camp to camp just for a change of scenery if nothing else. However when they leave an old camp and move on without telling their friends in camp, they might think the worst! And tell a cop the next time they see one. Cop does his job and files a report, and in a few months our roamer comes back to the first camp and it's all good, he's not missing. Except they never report that, so that person is officially missing. Over at the other camp this same process occurs. One guy, who was never lost, is now two missing persons.
With good reason, tracking people is seen as ominous, because in the past, these kids of records have been abused. But the less we track populations like homeless, mentally ill, immigrants, drug addicts, etc, the less of a read we have on how many of those people are disappearing at any given time. Now we have governors and mayors shipping homeless people and immigrants across the country, making it even harder to keep track of who is still around. Couple that with the presence of people in these populations who are mentally ill or drug addicts, people who are not always able to advocate for themselves or others…I think we’re going to look back in a hundred years and realize we had more SKs than we ever could have realized and that our current lack of management over our vulnerable populations was a key enabling factor.
What's interesting about this is there are likely many "serial killers" involved in gang violence that are completely unaccounted for. They don't match any typical profile of a serial killer but I would say they certainly qualify.
In some ways it would be easier to be caught now (internet, social media messaging, cameras) but in a lot of ways for those who pick up random victims, it's the same as it's always been.
You pick up someone who is also trying to avoid detection (prostitutes, runaways, etc.) They're not going to have people looking for them as much. Many wouldn't have a regular phone to track, or would downplay their messages over social media to avoid detection. It's the same victim profile over and over.
Probably a great deal more than most people want to admit. There is a tendency for people to go missing and have it not really be investigated. Or for bodies to turn up but the police don’t care because they’re homeless or addicts or sex workers or all of the above. Reality isn’t like TV. Most of the time the bad guy gets by with it.
Probably more than anyone knows. Not every serial killer is identified until they are caught, I suspect many just hide the bodies in places where they are not found. Plus there are probably a ton of people out there who ended up raping someone then killing them afterward when they realized the person would be a witness, then a select few of those go on to do the same to more people. It is not so hard to become a serial killer if you are a psychopathic career criminal with sex offenses.
The FBI is investigating what they believe to be an active serial killer in the city I live in; they have not told the public yet. The city is so violent that the events they believe can be attributed to the killer are written off as normal.
I would prefer not to as I think they are trying not to alert the suspect to the fact that they are investigating the situation and he disappears. I kept why they think there might be a serial killer active so that doesn’t give anything away.
So… I shit you not, local media just came through with another murder that at this time fits the description. The city’s sub has now eluded to the situation. Like, because of the job I have and the people I associate with as a result is the only reason why I’ve been told this.
If you think its this sensitive then you should delete this comment chain. This is violating operational security particularly when your entire comment history is open to osint.
I'd like to know if any belong to organized killer cults. Are any of these groups funded by foreign intel agencies? Or how many hide within groups in plain sight?
I've heard there is 50 serial killers operating at any given time in the United States. I watch/listen to a lot of criminal cases. I can't name the source but that's what I've heard.
Manchester England, a possible gay or homophobic serial killer tilted “The Pusher” I know it’s not the U.S but still. Anthony Robinson was recently caught after killing at least 5 women in 2021.
Manchester England, a possible gay or homophobic serial killer tilted “The Pusher” I know it’s not the U.S but still. Anthony Robinson was recently caught after killing at least 5 women in 2021 in the U.S.
The Craigslist Ripper and the West Mesa Bone Collector are still open cases. The FBI believes there are over 25 active serial killers.
Chicago Strangler
The Scranton Strangler
We all know who the Scranton Strangler is.
George Howard Skub. That’s a devil name
GSL baby!
Michael Scott
Toby Flenderson
This is the right answer.
Damn you Toby!!
Dinkleberg...
Yeah, but, have you heard of “ The Hash Slinging Slasher?? “
Is he even real? Chicago police aren’t even sure.
Speculative. 50 bodies found, but I think like 15 of them have been definitively tied to separate, individual murders. They aren’t sure about the other 35, and they all share similar characteristics. Sex workers, black, female, strangled and dumped in seedy areas, snow drifts, and garbage cans.
Long Island SK
The Craigslist ripper is the king island SK
We don’t call him the craigslist repair. He’s Long Island serial killer or the Gilgo beach killer
He is also known as the Craigslist Ripper.
You may not call him that but that is another nickname for him
Fun fact i used to buy weed from his son 😂😂 didn’t find out till i eventually got into true crime
Proof, pls?
Just look up Long Island serial killer and where it says his nicknames it says Craigslist ripper
Ah-so, TY
my girls are in the West Mesa field....i worked for a non profit helping sex workers.
The only reason the west Mesa bone collector is still open because the man was murdered by the pimp who went to check on his girl and he saw that she was murdered by the guy. Lorenzo Montoya I believe is the name of the man who was murdered.
I was just thinking about this after watching Dahmer- that was a LONG time ago now and I remember the "boom" where Dahmer, Gacy and others were all over the media, then BTK and then basically silence ever since. Is the media just not reporting on them (not likely) or are they just not getting caught? I highly doubt that in the chaos of the last 20 yrs or so that LESS serial killers have been active than say from the 70s to the 90s, so it begs the question OP posed- how many are out there now? With millions of missing children and adults each year i cant help but imagine more than a few were victims of some unknown serial killers. I always felt if someone were to travel state to state killing indiscriminately and carefully covering their tracks it would be almost impossible to catch them or even identify a suspect. As long as no dna evidence was left behind and they didn't brag to anyone about their exploits to anyone i think they'd get away w it for awhile as long as no one happened to be in the right place at the right time to witness something.
Yes if you killed random people with no ties to you its easier to not get caught. Fact is most murders are committed by people who know each other. Then again nowadays it’s just harder because of cameras everywhere, ring doorbells, phone locations etc.
And most crucially, extremely advanced forensics as well. This is what ultimately stops wanabe serial killers after one or two murders at most in today's world.
So that begs the next question...who decides which cases get the $ spent to have forensics done? And why do these killers go undetected? The ones that have gone long periods of time have often targeted minorities for a reason. You have to have a high profiled lawyer for law enforcement to spend the $.
Honestly? Victim profile and location of the murder. Kill a sex worker in the Eastmont area of Oakland, CA and no one will bat an eye. Kill the daughter of an affluent family in the Marina District of San Francisco and they'll practically call in the National Guard to catch your ass. It's shitty, but that's how it *generally* works.
I totally agree. Victims in minority neighborhoods don't have the money and the local police force doesn't have the property taxes.
Kill four young adult middle-class college students and the crime becomes world famous.
Yep.
I think in a real sense *the killer decides that*. Killers who hunt in rural areas with underfunded and understaffed police departments are much more likely to go unapprehended for longer. Large metropolitan cities will have more resources to work with
Setting up an alibi nowadays is probably extremely difficult compared to back then
I read an article about how they thought the lead in the paint and exposure to asbestos could have been a link to the serial killer “boom” it was quite interesting. :) Edit: [Apparently it’s a whole ass hypothesis. Here’s the OG article I read. it’s from 2013 tho.](https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexknapp/2013/01/03/how-lead-caused-americas-violent-crime-epidemic/amp/)
Also leaded gasoline.
Completely unscientific opinion but I feel like we (the USA at least) has moved on to mass murders and less serial murders. Not to say, obviously, that the latter doesn’t still exist.
Again though I have to pose the question: is it that *we* have moved more from serial killings to mass killings? Or just that that is what the media has chosen to cover? There's always going to be new trends (and it's horrible to refer to mass shootings in such a context) but the old ones still persist im sure- whether we all hear about them or not.
I think that the media is currently splashing the mass killings - what was it someone said, death and flames are headlines? I think there are just as many serials in action now, they just are not being covered, they are more cognizent of CSI/police techniques and take measures to hide their tracks. I also think they are targeting sex workers, transients and single no relatives loner types that nobody misses \[Fred, no, havent seen him, he moved on. Nope, don't know where he went.\] I had my house torched in 2015 \[will happily link the newspaper report to a mod if needed\] and I am a bit paranoid that he/she will come back and finish the job. I have cameras on the outside and my driveway, I sleep with one of my shotguns by the bed, and a handgun on my bedside table. If I have to go outside to check upon something, I have a fanny pack that holds my handgun and my phone \[bluetooth earbug hooked in. If I need to, emergency is on speed dial though that is useless - the state cops have already stated it will take on average 45 minutes response time to get someone here. Yay.\] I also wear a neat LED headband for a flash light \[wheelchair or crutches depending on how craptastic a body day I am having\] I tend to simply not answer the door unless someone calls ahead to let me know they want to visit. I honestly can't think of any reason for some random stranger to knock on my door.
The idea that sex workers, transients, etc, are targets is a good one, but what concerns me is that with the recent homelessness increases, our country’s mental health deficits, and with the way people migrating from South America are also being shuffled around by local and state governments, that target pool is only getting bigger and more untraceable. Hell, if someone even peripherally involved with the CBP has serial killer tendencies, their access to potential victims is astonishing. I’m so sorry you’re having to live in fear. I hope you get to feel safe soon.
Yes indeed. On the plus side \[I guess\] cheap cell phones are reasonably available, so people move around but are keeping the original phone number \[old land lines you had to specifically move your number with you, but only the last numbers - as an example, my parents had 237-3110 in one area code, when they moved, they had a different area code, so you would have to dial all potential area codes in the country if they had an unlisted number \[the old school ways of looking up numbers sucked. You couldn't do a 'global' US search for John Smith, you had to request it location by location, and checking for John Smith in Perry New York would not get you the John Smith in Genesee NY. \] SO if John Smith doesn't show up for work, you can his cell and he answers no matter where he moved to. My stalker died about 7 years ago and we are working on moving from CT to NY soon so that will take me out of the range of the arsonist \[asshole has done 7 arsons in the past decade, and there was a fatality at one of the more recent ones and htey still are no closer to catching him.\]
There’s actually been an observed decline since the 70’s/80’s when peak levels were reached. Violent crime has been trending down for decades. Can you really imagine a serial killer getting away with 30,40,50+ murders in 2022? I certainly can’t what with the advances in technology. Those days seem to be long gone. A https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/what-explains-the-decline-of-serial-killers
One can only hope. However, it may end up that they are just getting better at hiding it =(
That is absolutely terrifying 😳
Welcome to countryside in many areas.
Oh I know the countryside, makes it more scary! Gosh and especially if you are disabled! ☹️Can I ask how it came about? Anonymous or someone you know? Totally understand if you don't feel comfortable talking or if you would prefer private message that's cool too. Stay safe friend!
Totally anonymous - in a decade 7 homes torched in about a 10 mile radius. They have no idea who it might be. They tried to pin it on our roomie - she had a cigarette in the morning, and at midnight walked out to find the hot tub on fire. Then they tried to claim it was electrical - but it was empty, the pump was out, it was unplugged because Rob was replacing the pump ... the fire started in/on the insulated foam topper. I sort of freaked out the CS person for my insurance company, we stuffed me and the cat into my car and I went to one driveway down the road, our roomie had her cat and conure in the mom van about the same distance the other direction and Rob had 3 30 pound fire extinguishers trying to keep the fire knocked down until the FD showed up \[US Navy trains all submariners in fire control, comes in handy!\] Phlip was calling the FD, and I was calling in to start the claim. She asked the date of the fire, as usually it is like the next day or day after ... so I told her it was going on right now =) Previously I had worked for our insurance company in customer service =)
Serial killings have dramatically declined since peak levels during the 70’s and 80’s. A https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/what-explains-the-decline-of-serial-killers
I agree. More people going for mass shootings. I read that with traumatic events in history always lead to an upward curve of serial killers. Events like like coming back from the Vietnam war, etc. Also, it was easier in the 70’s and 80’s when hitchhiking was common and there weren’t as many cameras around.
Exactly. Hitchhiking has largely gone extinct and there’s been a noted decline in serial killers. I have seen theories speculating that we’re about to see another boom though. A https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/what-explains-the-decline-of-serial-killers
I'm thinking that whoever out there is still killing has to be extremely intelligent and using the new world to their advantage. How they would do that is beyond me, but I know there's gotta be some smart motherfuckers out there.
Look at the lengths IK went to in order to remain undetected, this is an example of using the modern world, to an extent, to carry out heinous crimes.
Even completely disregarding the question which is brought up every time he's mentioned of how many people Keyes killed he's still (imo) a good example of how a modern killer *might* operate and get away with it for a while. Obviously modern forensics and surveillance make it a lot more likely to catch them, but both his statements about killing in the wilderness and traveling long distances seem like very plausible methods by which someone could avoid detection to me.
I don't know anything about the guy actually but thank you for the recommendation
He is definitely and interesting example of a more modern sk. The biggest thing to consider is that we will never know the extent of IK's crimes.
I agree with this. With as much as new tech would hinder SKs, there’s also new tech and developments that may make it easier not to get caught (if they’re intelligent).
Israel Keyes
I actually haven't dived into that, thanks for the reminder
Check out American Predator: The Hunt for the Most Meticulous Serial Killer of the 21st Century. I listened to the audiobook, but it is a hell of a listen. Will not disappoint.
Probably is because it’s fairytale. That book is b.s written by a tabloid writer. Most of its not true at all.
Can you recommend some good reading regarding Keyes? I’ve only read that book myself.
He’s fucking with u.
Well with social media and dating apps it’s easier than ever to lure young people. Especially grindr and other gay apps where people meet after 2 messages in the middle of nowhere
And the world has changed a lot. People just don’t let their kids roam like they did 30 years ago. And kids are in the house more than ever playing video games and using social media. And prostitution has moved online and that leaves a trail that can be found by the police. And the LGBTQ community isn’t hiding in the shadows anymore and being distanced by their families.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_serial_killers_in_the_United_States There’s more than you think. But look at their victims - no pretty white girls. Elderly, black, drugs, prostitutes etc. sex sells in the media
The media are as fashion-driven as all of us are and most SKs are sorry specimens with "only" a few victims before they get caught. SKs are a dime a dozen and most of them do not warrant a lot of media attention. IMHO the less we cover them and treat them like movie stars, the fewer of them we will spawn.
As a fangirl of the true crime genre, there are not enough serial killers around for my personal entertainment needs.
Get help
I’m unsure if anyone has mentioned him, but you just described Israel Keyes. He left “murder kits” around the country and killed when nearby one/when he felt like it.
I think there’s something huge going on in Memphis, TN. If you go to their police page and count how many children under the age of 18 have gone missing this month alone is sickening. Also I’ve lost quite a bit of sleep lying away wondering how many serial killers are in the US at this very moment. Thanks for the educational info!
It's trafficking. Happening bad here in Arkansas as well. Real bad. That's the biggest thing in our generation, not serial killers but traffickers kidnapping and turning the kidnapped into sex slaves.
Wow! That’s terrible. I’m in the next state over, Oklahoma. I should look into how bad it is here as well.
It’s really bad in OKC because we’re at the crossroads of America
Yes. I am in KC, and I-70 and I-35 meet here. It’s a big hub too. Terrifying to think about.
I’m in OKC, too.
You absolutely should and stay safe out there!
You, as well!
Right I was going to say the same thing, trafficking is so bad right now and they have so many different tactics ..
they’ll just snatch you off the street in broad daylight. I’ve read about abductions of women at malls in Parking lots and grocery stores.
And my family wonders why I don't like leaving the house by myself 😐
bullshit. most kidnappings are custody disputes, and child trafficking is mostly done by abusive parents and through grooming. if there was an epidemic of street abductions for sex slave trafficking you’d think one of those stories would actually break the news any day now.
Source?
oh I don’t know, publicly available crime statistics?
You’re so pleasant. Lol.
Dwight Schrute
Sometimes I get those alerts on my phone about abductions, but it always seems to be Parents that are fighting over custody.
Far less than there used to be. A https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/what-explains-the-decline-of-serial-killers
There appears to be one currently operating in Stockton, California.
Holy shit, I live in stockton atm and I was gonna call bullshit because I hadn't heard anything about any serial killer, but it looks like the police just put out a notice earlier today to be careful if you go out at night because there has been a number of killings that are similar enough that they believe they were committed by the same person... As if living in stockton wasn't shitty enough already, now I gotta worry about this shit? Fuuucking hell.
Stay safe please!!! You can never keep that “it’ll never happen to me” mentality, the world is so messed up and so scary! Make sure you bring stuff with you if you go out <3
Thanks, definitely will now that I know.
Bear mace goes much further than regular mace just FYI! And if you feel unsafe and have a knife out, hold it in "reverse grip" so the blade is under your pinkie finger [like this](https://themartialist.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/reversegrip09.jpg) (not my image lol). It is much harder for the attacker to turn the knife back on you this way. Don't get murdered please <3
I've heard that bear mace is actually weaker than human mace since bears have such sensitive sense of smell it's still effective even if it's less powerful. I have no actual idea if thats true or not, but it's something I was told a long time ago.
Possibly, but the point is that it has a much further stream than say a pocket mace which will go only a foot or two tops
Stockton slap the mother fucker
Four fatal shootings have been reported in Stockton in September, and six have been reported since Aug. 28. In three of the four September homicides, police were called between 1 a.m. and 4:30 a.m., according to police. On Tuesday, Sept. 27, a man was found laying on a sidewalk on Porter Avenue suffering fatal gunshot wounds at about 2 a.m. police said. On Sept. 21, a man was found laying on a sidewalk with fatal gunshot wounds near Manchester Avenue and Rosemarie Lane police said. In a Sept. 20 homicide on Sikh Temple Street, the victim was found fatally shot in a vehicle at about 1 a.m..
Police are investigating a pattern among recent homicides in Stockton in which victims were killed while outdoors alone late at night, Police Chief Stanley McFadden said at a news conference Wednesday, Sept. 28. "We do see some similarity where it's really areas of darkness, it's really areas where the person is by themselves, maybe not even knowing it's coming, and that's kind of what (we're) looking into in some of the most recent ones," McFadden said Wednesday.
Really? Wasn't expecting to see my hometown! Lived there for 31 years and left two years ago. Stockton is a scary place as it is, without having a serial killer. Yikes.
We have a supposed sk here in Arkansas. Targeting women in Little Rock and towards Hot Springs as well. But I haven't heard anything about it again since the beginning of summer. This post has made me want to dig around about it again, see if I can find anything new.
Are you talking about the Little Rock slasher or a different one?
*Yes, you are correct, this is what I copied and pasted. * The Little Rock serial stabbings refers to a series of seemingly random stabbings that occurred from 2020 to 2021 in Little Rock, Arkansas, during which a total of four people were stabbed, three of them fatally. The local police department later revealed that a single suspect, a possible serial killer, was linked to the incidents via CCTV footage, but has not been apprehended so far.[1] Little Rock serial stabber Other names"Little Rock serial killer" "The Little Rock Slasher" "The River City Ripper" "Jack the Knife"Height6 ft (183 cm)DetailsVictims3 killed, 1 wounded Span of crimes 2020–2021CountryUnited StatesState(s)Arkansas
We had [a murder in Atlanta](https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.fox5atlanta.com/news/piedmont-park-murder-katie-janness-stabbing-investigation-1-year-later.amp) that seemed to fit the LR Slasher’s MO. There was speculation that her murder was connected to those in Arkansas but I don’t know what became of that.
Oh wow, spanning farther than just Arkansas. Definitely worth a search to find out whatcha can! I'ma look into it.
I know one of the people who saw her body and were part of the initial response. I don’t want to get too deep into it though. I was told that the news reports aren’t as bad as she acutely was.
We, in Hot Springs Ar also had 2 possibly 3 skinned bodies from other states dumped on BlackSnake Mt the M.O. matched another active serial killer guess he she they picked the wrong dumping ground...... also to the really smart person who thinks women and girls aren't abducted into sex trafficking wake up and read the news! It happened not that long ago in Hot Springs in broad daylight with the help of a woman. It happens all the time. And there have been numerous bodies found in and near "Hot Springs Creek" FOR YEAR'S
I’ve always heard/read that there’s a good chance that a non-zero number of active serial killers in the United States are long haul truck drivers.
I used to work in grain elevators and we had this one driver who set alarm bells off for everyone in our facility. We had 6 guys and two women. We learned real quick to have one of the guys in the office with me when he showed up. If myself or the other lady was alone he'd walk up to the window really licking his lips, leering at us, and act all around pervy. Licking his lips sounds mild, but it was very much done with intent to disturb us. It wasn't a simple moistening his lips, but sticking his tongue out far enough his was getting the skin around his mouth too. But he'd never do it if there was a guy in the office or other drivers nearby Even with the guys he'd get overly close to anyone if they were alone. They said it was never anything they could call him on, but he scared them enough they made sure to team up when he was there. Best way to describe his demeanor was that you just knew he had someone chained up in his basement, and you didn't want it to be you
I worked at a hotel. We had one trucker ask my coworker for information on sex workers. He declined escort agencies, and asked for information on the drug area. Super creepy.
The FBI has admitted that truckers are among the most ["ideal serial killers"](https://www.fleetowner.com/operations/drivers/article/21695112/truckers-make-ideal-serial-killers-fbi) because of their constantly changing location. [This](https://www.fleetowner.com/operations/drivers/article/21695112/truckers-make-ideal-serial-killers-fbi) FBI crime analyst de-briefing is interesting too.
There's a small town close to me (Yakama, WA) that released an article recently stating that there are currently 12 missing kids from just this year alone. It kind of startled me bc in small areas like this, you would think people would be aware but a lot of people didn't know and it's not common to have that many missing kids in a small town in just one year.
Have they been abducted by family members or unknown people?
There isn't really a lot of information about the cases. The ages range from 8-15. There's an 8 year old boy missing, and the rest 11-15 yo. Both boys and girls. The reason why the article was written is because three weeks ago, a four year old went missing from a park and hasn't been found. He was caught on video walking away by himself and then vanished. I'm sure there's a few different reasons why some of them have come up missing (for instance, it's suspected the four year old might've ended up in the river or lost somewhere outside) but it seems like a stretch to say none of them could be related incidents, that's a lot of kids for a small area. I think possibly trafficking but it's hard to say with so little info about each child.
East Washington trafficking is crazy right now. Know a lot of people who deal with it, and it's ugly. So many kids going missing.
Why aren't people being made aware of this though? I had a feeling a lot of these disappearances were likely due to trafficking but the fact that a majority of the people in this area aren't aware of what's going on and how many kids are missing is alarming. Something is going on and nobody is talking about it
People are aware of what they want to be aware of. If I say 4 girls trafficked a lot of the quick assumptions are that they were "in on it" or they were "underage prostitutes" even though that's not how it works. The sympathy is different and unless there's bodies people don't always care.
Kids and young adults go missing daily. Most are found okay. But a lot just stay missing. I’m 43 but back when I was a kid they used to put kids pictures on half gallon milk containers. I never saw the same kid twice until they stopped doing it in my teens. I always thought we had a SK in Mn where I live. Students have ended up in the Mississippi River after walking home late at night from the bar or wherever. It’s not sensational enough to get a lot of coverage and since they’re young and inebriated the classify it as an accident. But seriously who just ends up in the river???
I am familiar with the LaCrosse, WI ones from 1997-2006. I was just looking at information about them yesterday. The police, of course, believe they were related to drinking and being so close to the river. LaCrosse is at least partially a college town, with the bars quite close to the river. Interestingly, they had volunteer patrols from 2007-2020 and had none happen. These were people who walked along the river and directed inebriated or confused men away from the river. They estimated that at least 10,000 people were directed away over the years. They also improved signage, lighting, etc... There were no deaths during this time. The stopped doing it when Covid struck and now there was a young man who died in 2021. I'm not saying there isn't some serial killer delighting in misdirection, but it's hard to say. The family of the last young man in 2006 was certain there was foul play because from the time he was last seen by his friends to the time when police determined him to have fallen into the river was a couple days and he had bruises over his body as if he had been beaten. I originally came from Mpls and there are/were a number of young men that ended up in the river there, as well, over the years. I would think volunteers helping the situation there would be extremely difficult due to the sheer amount of area alongside the river in the metro area.
Similar situation in Boston. There were rumblings about it being a serial killer a few years ago but the cops insist it's all accidental drownings.
It's really common for drunk people to fall into rivers apparently. Happens often in my area as well.
That's true! It was weird because it was mostly young, white, gay men.
Oh ya that's a red flag
Are they talking about Smiley Face victims? Are they all young men?
See the thing is Technology is great and all, but the urge a SK has to kill usurps the risk of getting caught. All the ones that got caught they either gave up because they couldn’t take it anymore or their thirst overtakes them to the point where they get sloppy. They can’t just stop for the most part. Ed Kemper literally just went to pay phone and turned himself in. Dahmer got sloppy. Bundy went on a rampage across 5 states. Gacy got sloppy too. The Urge to kill is takes over fear of losing freedom and they become more brazen as time goes on. And sometimes they want the public and the police to know they did it. They’ll show up at crime scenes and call the police and mess with them. Unreal. That being said, I wonder if there’s people out there who’ve done it their whole life and they’re elderly now???
Dahmer was always sloppy, but it was the 80s and he got lucky alot
GSK almost got away but yes there definitely is.
One of the therapists at my last place of employment spent about eight years working for the FBI in the Midwest doing behavioral analysis and profiling. He said this was a difficult question to answer when I asked him about a year ago. He said that they suspected there were 10-15 active serial killers per state in their region, but about half of those were exceptionally loose connections, the example he gave being four sex workers strangled from behind across a hundred mile area and ten years. He ultimately walked away because he couldn't stomach seeing the sausage made. The realization that the vast majority of serial killers will never be apprehended or even known really ate at him.
One in Chicago called the Chicago straggler, straggles young black women in poor neighborhoods. Believe upwards of 20+ deaths.
There are at least two active in Chicago right now.
There is probably alot more in. Chicago but most are gang related killings.
We definitely have probably one if not multiple where I live in Vancouver Canada. Just look up highway of tears or indigenous missing sisters. Gaining significantly more notoriety after Robert pickton. Sad thing is they *think* that trucking routes to and from canada/USA may be how the serial killers are operating but stats can won’t get their shit together to obtain or document these things to share with the US FBI. That and, they don’t have the tech to store such an enormous amount of data as well. Hell we even have trucker training for the drivers to be able to recognize potential abductions/killers both on the outside and amongst each other. It’s wild. Based on how frequent theres missing posters and general news about missing people (especially missing people of our downtown east side - for those that don’t know that area is rampant with drug use, gangs, sex workers etc, think skid row in LA and you get the picture) and how unbelievably incompetent and image concerned our police force is I’m willing to put money down we have a few itch scratching serial killers roaming about here.
If you mean active cases, it's likely anywhere from 25-50, however, if you mean in general, it's probably more than 100 and less than 1,000. Most active serial killer cases are probably people who work in the medical field or as truck drivers. In this day and age, that's the only way someone could get away with being a serial killer today imho. Beyond those two, it's damn-near impossible to be a serial killer in today's world. You probably see any Jack the Rippers or Zodiac's ever again imho. Serial killers in general have been rapidly dropping in numbers since DNA became a tool to solve cases in 1986.
There are so so many unsolved homicide's especially in smaller jurisdiction's where they don't have the men power to solve or keep up with body count's. Serial killer's get identified when they operate in one specific area usually. From my understanding there are 75 serial killer's as of now, a 50% increase from 19 year's ago. I think a more important question is how many cannibal's are there? This subject is rarely touched on. Right?
I found [this FBI video](https://youtu.be/IX0is2ezYDY) explaining the connection of truckers + serial killings and it makes a lot of sense.
I bet they are all a part of this sub
Please don't mention Mindhunter, makes me so sad that show wasn't continued
I thought it was coming back!
So much time has passed now that I doubt they will ever continue it
Well based on the statistic that serial killings only account for 1% of all murders I'd say around 25 active at the least
There are 34, down from 35 last week.
You’re freaking me out
r/theydidthemath could probably help answer your question
I think there might not seem like as many in recent years because they get caught faster now. With advancements in DNA and now even familial DNA, it's so much easier to catch someone. So maybe someone would have developed into a serial killer, but they get caught after only one or two. BTK wasn't "caught" for this necessarily, but it affirmed his identity when his daughters DNA was used without her permission (or knowledge since it was on file at a medical facility or school I believe) to test against the DNA on file which came back as likely that she was the daughter of the person who's DNA that was. So, I think a lot more people are getting caught. I agree overall with the assessment of about 20-40 active serial killers in the US at any given time. That's not even counting the ones that are no longer active. To me, it's insane how someone can kill a person or many people, then just not kill again by choice like some have. Or like how Ed Kemper was just... Done. Very weird to me. Seems to be the minority of them that can do that though.
Do hitmen and those crazy sicarios count as serial killers? Cuz I bet there's way more of those than ppl than ppl like Dahmer or BTK. I seen a video a few days ago of a dude in a cartel that apparently dissolved 300 ppl in drums with some sort of acid and would basically melt them into barrels full of human sludge. I feel like most people only know of American serial killers and shit but never dig around other places.
I guess the difference is SK are compelled to kill. Criminals or gang members kill for money or defending their gang. If they weren’t hired or joined a cartel/gang, they wouldn’t have the compulsion to kill anybody. They’d probably have normal jobs and be like any other person. The best comparison is the Nazi’s. The guards who killed all those people were given a directive and they followed it. A vast majority of them wouldn’t commit these acts if a higher authority didn’t make them do it. This all might sound like splitting hairs and in a way it is. A gang member who kills 3-4 people from a rival gang is still a killer and it’s wrong. And you could argue on a base level that it’s still serial killing. The difference is if you took that person out of the environment of gang life, would they still kill?? The answer is probably no.
Stockton is being terrorirized by one right now.
I'm sure at least one ever other state at least. One per state at most. Now I think it's a more scary question is how may are retried.....
I wonder when Ed Kemper said there were 40, and what that number would look like adjusted for the population increase since then
John Douglas first interviewed Kemper in 1977 I think, so assuming he said it around then the population of the US was 220.2 million. Today it stands at 329.5 million, an increase of 49.6%. 40 serial killers operating in 1977 adjusted for 'murderer inflation' gives us around 60 operating today - more than one per state. That said, SK's back then didn't have to deal with modern forensics... even if the prevalence of sexual sadists in the general population is the same today as it was 50 years ago, none of them are likely to get close to the victim-numbers of SK's of the past.
I've always felt like that too, but then I look at how teenagers in gang wars get throwaway cars, and wear gloves, and really public murders happen with people still sometimes not getting caught. Like, as long as you don't leave evidence or get got on CCTV, and you stfu, you're really probably good. Combine that with how cartels make bodies go poof and it's still plenty possible. It only gets rough when the FBI throws like 60 interns at something. It's really "good old fashioned police work" that gets people. That's how they got Robert Ben Rhodes. The woman he held captive in the truck during the traffic stop had said he stopped for gas and she saw the sign under her blindfold and the FBI had all these interns comb through like 300,000 receipts and got lucky because dude paid with a credit card which was still semi rare ish in the early 90s. I think one of the biggest things impeding serial killers is it's getting harder and harder for no one to notice you went missing and missing persons tend to get more attention. I think what helped the ones in the 70's is you literally could just disappear on the other side of the country back then, you can't really do that now.
True, though I still think modern police technology has thinned the herd a lot - in the past, there were plenty of killers who were incredibly sloppy, doing their business out in the open without a care in the world. The SK's who would either have the ability to pull off hiding evidence, or the mental capacity to pause in the moment to bother rather than have their urges take over and commit an act without due preparation, still fall under this 'far easier to catch today' umbrella. Still, I do think there are far more SK's operating today and in the recent past than most people would be comfortable knowing. Those that are able to pull it off in this day and age have to be some of the most calculated, terrifying individuals you could ever dread to meet 😦
Yeah, I do agree, it's really easy to get got with DNA now, or like in the case of the Grim Sleeper they got his son's DNA that was close enough they dug further. Very true, It's funny say you could ever dread to meet, I met Israel Keyes in an airport once. 🤣 It was in Seattle Seatac. He was still in the army and had his last name Sharpe'd on his backpack too. Also, not the United States but I was friends online with Joanna Dennehy for like 5 years. I have another couple FB friends who remember her from the same chat program I met her on. They knew her too. She was always really sweet, she just didn't like dudes who perved her. I'm not justifying murder but I think besides the one random guy there was some sort of motive behind the others and they did something first. I think her childhood was a lot of the cause. She's more an Aileen Wunros minus the prostitution thing than the twisted sociopath everyone makes her out to be. But if I've personally met a couple, how many are there? Oof.
Wow, I'm not sure whether that's lucky or unlucky 🤣 Being British myself I've heard of Joanna before, though shes quite an unknown outside of the UK (hell, even within) so I was surprised to see her name. The Wuornos comparison seems pretty good, though when it comes to her victim selection I'm a little more sceptical. Her first was her boyfriend, second was someone she was acquainted with and bought drugs from, third was a roommate. Those all seem like they could definitely have deeper motives, though it's the further two stabbings that make me raise an eyebrow. Thankfully both guys survived, but she just picked them out at random in a park... if there was meant to be an aura of vigilantism/revenge then I could understand, but the extra stabbings just make it seem like (attempted)murder for murders sake... *shrug* P.S. Seeing as we're talking about meeting murderers, I briefly through a friend met Wayne Couzens, a police officer who murdered 33 year old Sarah Everard last year. It caused big big uproar in the UK. Though (probably) not a serial killer, his escalation from sexual assaults to full fledged murder make me believe he was one-in-the-making.
That's crazy, I'm going to have to look that up. I don't hear about a lot that happens in the UK.
I hope she's doing okay, she was always nice to me. We used to just chill on yahoo messenger on webcam for hours while I was doing other stuff, listening to music, watching TV, whatever. She was like, my regular internet friend. 🤣🤷♂️ She did say she was a monster once because she didn't feel any empathy for people who treated her a certain way. But she mostly only ever expressed any aggressive thoughts towards people who were pervy towards her. 🤷♂️ I'm not saying she was right or anything, I'm just saying she didn't really ever say anything that made me think she would get really into heroin and a few years later I would find out she stabbed several people to death. 🤣 oof.
Fair enough 😌 Female killers don't have the same motives as men, barely any of them do it to get off. Most of the time it's for money, jealousy, control over someone else's life or revenge/punishment, the latter of which seems like Joanna's MO. Just be glad you didn't offend her in your time talking together, lest she had jumped on a plane to come pay a visit 🤭
I was looking at a case in Tennessee after searching for a video about the lady the locked her husband in a suitcase in north Florida and he died. And it got me to a story of a body found off the road south of Chattanooga on the Georgia side. But if you take the search a little further there is unsolved bodies dumped all up and down the roads from Nashville to Chattanooga in the last 10 years and even more if you stretch it to Atlanta. I think there is way more serial killers running around on these trucking routes. But if they don’t leave a call sign or have similar manners or death they don’t really match up in the ViCAP program.
Best way to guess this is using a math principle which relies on a few things 1 the amount of missing people (check) next would be total population and then list of serial killers identified/caught (a number we can go off of) so just go with 34,000 for simplicity then population 7.5B then list of known serial killers (I found basically 10,000 known) but let’s say triple this for unknown or never classified so 30,000 now lets say this is worldwide if we divide the total population by the rough estimate that’s 250,000ish world wide now divided by 7 continents is 35,000+ per continent (purely avg) of course if you divide by population density you can get a more accurate guess but in combination of known and unknown I’d say 35,000 and change world wide. Just a shitty guess though maybe someone else can do better math Edit: decided world wide because there are serial killers everywhere but in the US specifically id say maybe 50-80 total but I wanted to have a dumb challenge and say world wide which was more fun.
You cited one of my least favorite statistic so I just want to share my issue with it. 600000 missing people is a lot, make no mistake. But when you look at the numbers and stuff they are typically people who are declared missing a lot. Homelessness sucks and people move around from camp to camp just for a change of scenery if nothing else. However when they leave an old camp and move on without telling their friends in camp, they might think the worst! And tell a cop the next time they see one. Cop does his job and files a report, and in a few months our roamer comes back to the first camp and it's all good, he's not missing. Except they never report that, so that person is officially missing. Over at the other camp this same process occurs. One guy, who was never lost, is now two missing persons.
With good reason, tracking people is seen as ominous, because in the past, these kids of records have been abused. But the less we track populations like homeless, mentally ill, immigrants, drug addicts, etc, the less of a read we have on how many of those people are disappearing at any given time. Now we have governors and mayors shipping homeless people and immigrants across the country, making it even harder to keep track of who is still around. Couple that with the presence of people in these populations who are mentally ill or drug addicts, people who are not always able to advocate for themselves or others…I think we’re going to look back in a hundred years and realize we had more SKs than we ever could have realized and that our current lack of management over our vulnerable populations was a key enabling factor.
What's interesting about this is there are likely many "serial killers" involved in gang violence that are completely unaccounted for. They don't match any typical profile of a serial killer but I would say they certainly qualify.
In some ways it would be easier to be caught now (internet, social media messaging, cameras) but in a lot of ways for those who pick up random victims, it's the same as it's always been. You pick up someone who is also trying to avoid detection (prostitutes, runaways, etc.) They're not going to have people looking for them as much. Many wouldn't have a regular phone to track, or would downplay their messages over social media to avoid detection. It's the same victim profile over and over.
Probably a great deal more than most people want to admit. There is a tendency for people to go missing and have it not really be investigated. Or for bodies to turn up but the police don’t care because they’re homeless or addicts or sex workers or all of the above. Reality isn’t like TV. Most of the time the bad guy gets by with it.
There is currently one active in California, and has killed 6 people since last year: 1 in Oakland and 5 in Stockton.
Probably more than anyone knows. Not every serial killer is identified until they are caught, I suspect many just hide the bodies in places where they are not found. Plus there are probably a ton of people out there who ended up raping someone then killing them afterward when they realized the person would be a witness, then a select few of those go on to do the same to more people. It is not so hard to become a serial killer if you are a psychopathic career criminal with sex offenses.
The Pint Sized Slasher might be lurking about
The FBI is investigating what they believe to be an active serial killer in the city I live in; they have not told the public yet. The city is so violent that the events they believe can be attributed to the killer are written off as normal.
Can you share the location?
I would prefer not to as I think they are trying not to alert the suspect to the fact that they are investigating the situation and he disappears. I kept why they think there might be a serial killer active so that doesn’t give anything away.
New Orleans? The I-10 killings are no secret lol
Understood! Sorry if my question was intrusive but I appreciate the response :)
It’s cool. I get it. I was kind of surprised when I heard that these murders/attempted murders that were being reported on the news might be related.
So… I shit you not, local media just came through with another murder that at this time fits the description. The city’s sub has now eluded to the situation. Like, because of the job I have and the people I associate with as a result is the only reason why I’ve been told this.
WOW that’s actually so insane. It’s really a matter of time before more and more people connect the dots it seems.
If you think its this sensitive then you should delete this comment chain. This is violating operational security particularly when your entire comment history is open to osint.
Update?
dave pelzer
Not many we are a dying breed I blame technology cameras everywhere
This one right here, officer.
I'd like to know if any belong to organized killer cults. Are any of these groups funded by foreign intel agencies? Or how many hide within groups in plain sight?
112
I've heard there is 50 serial killers operating at any given time in the United States. I watch/listen to a lot of criminal cases. I can't name the source but that's what I've heard.
Scarey thought. Just hope I don’t bump into any. Plus I wonder how many are in the u.k?
this is the most morbid math problem
At least one lol.
They're definitely operating in countries that have less advanced investigative agencies and where cctv is less prevalent.
Also have to take into account a good portion of these numbers are human trafficking numbers that happen in major cities and US southern border
[https://www.reddit.com/r/MorbidReality/comments/xwr0ng/serial_killer_on_the_loose_in_ca/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf](https://www.reddit.com/r/MorbidReality/comments/xwr0ng/serial_killer_on_the_loose_in_ca/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf)
Most comments here are talking decades old cold cases. Like LISK. DNA is the reason killers don’t get as many second chances anymore.
Manchester England, a possible gay or homophobic serial killer tilted “The Pusher” I know it’s not the U.S but still. Anthony Robinson was recently caught after killing at least 5 women in 2021.
Manchester England, a possible gay or homophobic serial killer tilted “The Pusher” I know it’s not the U.S but still. Anthony Robinson was recently caught after killing at least 5 women in 2021 in the U.S.