Robert resented it and withdrew, becoming a loner of sorts. [7], In the years following his 1988 convictions and incarceration, Berdella granted an interview to the Missouri-based television station KCPT, and corresponded with numerous individuals. See more ideas about Killer, Robert berdella, Serial killers. He said all the men were killed in his house. [8], Despite initially pleading not guilty to the remaining five murder charges on September 13, 1988,[29][30] with the agreement of his two defense attorneys, Berdella ultimately conducted a plea bargain with the prosecutors to avoid the death penalty in these remaining charges. He viewed this business as his full-time job and later ceased working as a chef. Kansas City Police DepartmentRobert Berdella’s business card. [1]:281, On September 26, 1985, Berdella answered a phone call from an acquaintance named James Ferris,[n 3] who asked to stay at Berdella's home for a short time. [39][13], At 2:00 p.m. on October 8, 1992, Berdella complained to prison staff of heart pains, and was taken from his cell to the prison infirmary. On the way, Robert Berdella plied the youth with alcohol and then drugged him with Valium and acepromazine. Berdella is a 2009 horror film written and directed by William Taft, and co-directed by Paul South. This individual had stated that, judging by the notes he had written about victim Robert Sheldon, the accumulation of chlorpromazine injected into this victim had been toxic. [1]:100 Shortly after graduation, Berdella relocated to Kansas City. As a child, Berdella was intelligent, but a loner who rarely played outside his home, and seldom had friends visit to socialize. William The Conqueror's Corpse Exploded On People At His Funeral, What Stephen Hawking Thinks Threatens Humankind The Most, 27 Raw Images Of When Punk Ruled New York, Join The All That's Interesting Weekly Dispatch. Note: This board includes true crime cases that involve real serial killers that committed shocking crimes. [n 8][9], In late April, the skull found inside Berdella's closet was identified via dental X-rays obtained via subpoena from the University of Kansas Medical Center as that of Robert Sheldon. As a result, Berdella became increasingly withdrawn, and further immersed himself in the solitary activities he had participated in since childhood such as painting, collecting coins and stamps, and writing to foreign pen pals. (Investigators later sought to obtain handwriting samples from Berdella in an effort to prove he had written the notes found within the various stenographer's pads discovered at his house; he refused to cooperate and was sentenced to six months in jail for contempt of court. Berdella finished this discussion with a stern warning: "I've gotten this far with other people before, and they're dead now, because of mistakes they made. [26] In response to questioning by his attorneys, Berdella stated: "I put a plastic bag over his head, and tied it with rope and allowed him to suffocate." [1]:46–47, When Berdella reached puberty, he discovered that he was homosexual; initially, he kept this fact a closely guarded secret, and he did not become open about his sexuality for several years. [1]:247 By this stage, Berdella had been openly gay for several years. He was severely nearsighte… Nonetheless, investigators did discover that, in August 1987, Berdella had filed an assault report from a hospital room in which he alleged a man named "Larry Person" had deeply bitten his penis during oral sex, causing a serious laceration. On this occasion, Berdella could not post bond, and he spent five days in jail, although the charges against him and one of the other students would be dropped due to a lack of evidence. He had a speech impediment and wore thick glasses from the age of five because he was severely nearsighted. Soon, Berdella became acquainted with Paul Howell's younger son, Jerry. Berdella was taken to a hospital in Columbia, Missouri, where he was pronounced dead from a heart attack at 3:55 p.m. Michael H. Stone & Gary Brucato. [1]:80 According to Berdella, he plied Howell with alcohol, Valium and acepromazine both in his car and at his house until the youth became unconscious. Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com: accessed ), memorial page for Robert Andrew “Bob” Berdella Jr. (31 Jan 1949–8 Oct 1992), Find a Grave Memorial no. “Although he was the subject of both drug and missing persons investigations, Robert A. Berdella was able to manipulate Kansas City’s criminal justice system,” Blakeman wrote in March 1989. [11][n 2] By the early 1980s, many of his older acquaintances had ceased any form of social contact with him, with Berdella increasingly relying on these young men as a source of companionship and friendship. He attempted to turn Stoops into a submissive sex slave, trying to incapacitate him through electrical shocks to the eyes, and by injecting drain cleaner into his larynx in an unsuccessful effort to render him mute, while repeatedly raping and sexually assaulting him. )[1]:180, Berdella was initially formally charged with one count of felonious restraint, one count of assault, and seven counts of forcible sodomy,[16] as investigators continued their investigations into the discoveries at his property, and formally compiled further charges against him. Kansas City Police Dept./Kansas City Star/MCTRobert Berdella after his arrest. Nonetheless, he did claim that he had tried to prevent any of his victims from developing any form of malnutrition or infection by occasionally administering antibiotics, or nutrients intravenously as his abuse and torture escalated. [8] The following month, he was arraigned and pleaded guilty in the 4th Circuit of the Jackson County Court before Judge Alvin C. Randall to the first degree murder of Larry Pearson. [1]:24–25, Later questioned in greater detail at the Kansas City Police Department,[n 5] Bryson said he had been held against his will by the occupant of 4315 Charlotte Street, who had subjected him to four days of repeated sexual abuse, humiliation, and torture. He was also diagnosed with high blood pressure for which he took several medications. Todd Stoops, 23, June 17, 1986: Kidnapped due to Berdella being "sexually frustrated" with him. Berdella confesses in court and is sent to the state penitentiary in Jefferson City, Missouri for the rest of his life. [25][n 10] The plea was entered following a late-morning recess in the arraignment hearing into this particular murder, and came as a surprise to both the judge, and prosecuting attorneys. Robert Andrew Berdella Jr. was born on January 31, 1949, in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio,[1]:45 the first of two sons born to Robert Berdella Sr., a die setter for the Ford Motor Company, and Mary Berdella, a homemaker. On March 29, 1988, Berdella abducted his last victim, a 22-year-old male prostitute named Christopher Bryson who he had solicited for sex. [8], "You did not choose to be here, but you are. By the summer of 1984, Jerry Howell had turned 19.[1]:81–82. [16] According to Berdella, he did not initially intend to capture this individual, but formed the plan to do so on June 23 when, having bailed Pearson out of jail, the young man began jokingly referring to his practice of robbing gay men in Wichita. In response to these guilty pleas, Judge Meyers imposed five further concurrent life sentences, with an additional condition barring any future prospect of parole in the sole case of first degree murder to which he pleaded guilty. After several weeks, the woman dies of a contracted illness despite her captor's efforts to keep her alive. [1]:258 He also informed investigators there were occasions during his final three victims' periods of captivity when he ceased making additions to his abuse logs because he assumed the victim would not "be able to make it much longer". [27] In this plea bargain, Berdella agreed to confess in graphic detail as to whom he had killed, what indignities he had subjected each victim, how he had killed each victim, and what he had done with their bodies. James Ferris, 25, September 26, 1985: The first victim who Berdella stated he had intentionally tortured prior to his death. Feb 26, 2019 - Learn more about the American serial killer who turned his darkest fantasies into a shocking reality. However, he would later state to investigators that he had thought almost constantly about escaping. [2], Describing his murders as being "some of my darkest fantasies becoming my reality",[1]:264 Berdella pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for the first degree murder of one of his victims, Larry Pearson, in August 1988, and would later plead guilty to one further charge of first degree murder, and four charges of second degree murder in December 1988. [1]:231 He would initially operate this side-business from his home. He also engaged in acts of animal torture on at least three occasions while a student at the Kansas City Art Institute; during two of these instances, he tortured a duck and a chicken in the presence of his peers, and in the third instance, he experimented with sedatives and tranquilizers on a dog. [25], On December 19, 1988, Berdella formally waived his rights to be tried for any of the outstanding murder charges, upon the understanding he was to be convicted of one further count of first degree murder (that of Robert Sheldon), and four counts of second degree murder. [6]:245 Berdella's father was a Catholic of Italian descent, and raised his family in a deeply religious household, in which the family regularly attended mass, and both sons regularly attended religious education courses. With the state's assistance, he would complete a drug rehabilitation program. Two days later, Berdella returned to Cuyahoga Falls by himself. Then, read the story of serial killer Edmund Kemper, whose story is almost too gross to be real. Opening a second-story closet, they discovered a human skull as well as human vertebrae, marked from where they had been cut with a bone saw. Berdella was largely unathletic, whereas his younger brother, Daniel – seven years his junior – displayed an aptitude for various sports from an early age. He later dissected Sheldon's body in the third floor bathroom. [11] Both a hacksaw and a miter saw were discovered in the basement of the property,[16] and a chainsaw was also found to be soiled with bloodstains, flesh, and pubic hairs. Atop a chest of drawers in one bedroom, officers discovered a stenographer's pad containing the detailed torture logs he had maintained for each victim,[1]:37 several newspaper clippings from The Kansas City Star regarding a missing young man named Jerry Howell, and both a wallet and a driving license belonging to a missing person named James Ferris was discovered in a closet on the second floor of the property. Bob Berdella who originated from Ohio, moved to Kansas City in the 1960s to enroll at the KC Art Institute. That evening, Berdella's father had a heart attack at the age of 39. He then injected Howell with a heavy tranquilizer before binding the youth to his bed. After he received harsh backlash from the administration of the institute for an art piece where he tortured, killed, and cooked a duck, Berdella left college and moved into a house in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Kansas City. As a means of obtaining additional income, he also sold arcane items of art and antiques he had accrued and collected from contacts he had established in Africa, Asia, South America, and various Pacific Rim countries. [6]:270 Towards the end of Stoops's captivity, he tried to feed his captive ice cream and soup, although Stoops "wasn't able to keep anything down". Robert Berdella after incarceration. Furthermore, Berdella confessed that the level of abuse he inflicted had increased with each successive victim, and he had viewed the Polaroid images he had taken of his victims as being a "trophy or record of the event". This confidence manifested itself in a rude and condescending attitude, especially towards women, that he would hold for the rest of his life. A metal tray containing syringes, small bottles apparently containing prescription drugs, swabs, and eye drops were also close to the bed. He had realized that he was gay, and though he kept this a closely-guarded secret, it gave him a level of self-assurance. Despite these later claims to investigators, Berdella would often engage in sexual relations with several of these individuals, and would establish a degree of control over them – in part to engage in these sexual relations – via methods including loaning them money, and allowing them to live rent free at his house for periods of time. He died of a heart attack while incarcerated at the Missouri State Penitentiary on Oct. 8, 1992, at the age of 43. [1]:300 On June 27, he ruptured Stoops's anal wall with his fist, causing bleeding and discharge. He crashed to the ground and ran to a nearby meter maid, who called the police. [32] His victims, he stated to investigators, had lost any degree of humanity in his eyes once he had chosen to render them captive. Searching elsewhere in the house and grounds of 4315 Charlotte Street, investigators uncovered a human skull inside a closet on the second floor of his property,[21] and a partially decomposed human head in the backyard. He was known for being a Criminal. So ended the life of one of the most horrific serial killers in modern history. 6139718, citing Oakwood Cemetery, Cuyahoga Falls, Summit County, Ohio, USA ; … On July 5 that year, Berdella offered to drive the young Howell to a dance competition at a neighboring town. [n 11] In addition, he vehemently denied media rumors that he had been engaged in any form of satanism, or that he had sold sections of his victims' bodies at his flea market booth. On April 15, 1985, a roofer arrived to do some repair work and Berdella suffocated [7], Berdella provided testimony to prosecutors between December 13 and 15, after he changed his plea and sought approval of their agreement not to seek the death penalty against him if he fully confessed. April 2, 1988. Berdella was not attracted to Sheldon, and though he did not rape him, he did restrain and torture him. Berdella then beat and strangled Pearson to death. One other method of torture was the insertion of needles beneath their fingernails. Sheldon's skull was that which he placed inside a closet on the second floor of his property,[36] in an area of the household Berdella referred to as "my gallery area. He was 43 years old. [4], In the summer of 1967, Berdella graduated from Cuyahoga Falls High School. [1]:13, At 1:00 a.m. on March 29, 1988, Berdella abducted his last victim, a 22-year-old male prostitute named Christopher Bryson, whom he lured to his house upon the promise of payment for sex. Two officers were told to maintain a discreet surveillance of the property, as Bryson was driven to the Menorah Medical Center, accompanied by a third officer, for treatment as the fourth officer radioed the Kansas City Police Department to request a formal search warrant of the property be drafted. [1]:260, Although police extensively searched for the remains of Berdella's victims throughout their initial investigation into his crimes, the confession Berdella provided to investigators in the autumn of 1988 confirmed the dismembered bodies of all six of his victims had been stowed in trash bags and subsequently taken to a landfill. He further claimed he had been demonized unfairly by the media before, during, and after his arraignments and plea bargains, and that police ineptitude had resulted in his being allowed to remain at liberty following his first murder. [13], Shortly after, the judge at his trial, Alvin Randall, was informed of Berdella's death. List of serial killers in the United States, List of serial killers by number of victims, "Robert A. Berdella, Already Convicted of One Count of First-Degree Murder, Pleads Guilty to A Second Charge", "Kansas City Sicko Kept Detailed Diary, Photos of Sex Torture, Bondage and Murder", "Robert Berdella: Madman or Just Murderer? When they ventured into the basement, they found large barrels stained with blood, as well as the personal belongings of two missing people and a stack of Polaroid photos depicting naked men being sexually assaulted and tortured. In addition, despite the fact that more than 20 different men were depicted in postures suggesting unconsciousness or death within the 334 Polaroid images and 34 snapshot prints seized from 4315 Charlotte Street following his arrest, Berdella was adamant that the six individuals identified as victims and that he had confessed to killing were the only ones that he killed. This casual friendship began when Pearson entered his shop and explained to Berdella that, as a child, he had held an interest in both witchcraft and wizardry. By the final day of his captivity, Stoops was so weak Berdella later stated he had been unable "to breathe in a sitting position". 6 Robert Berdella. But Bryson knew how to gain Berdella’s trust, eventually persuading Berdella to tie his hands in front of him, rather than to the bed. Furthermore, his captor had informed Bryson he had no intention of ever allowing him to leave his property, and that he had claimed to have killed the previous individuals he had captured and treated in this manner, and that if Bryson became a nuisance or threat to him, he would either be subjected to greater levels of torture than what he had already endured, or simply killed. [1]:183, Berdella performed well academically, though teachers often found him difficult to teach, in part due both his aloofness, and his being the recipient of bullying by other students. He did very well in school, though teachers found him difficult to teach and he was bullied by other students. Berdella's living room where police found files kept on his victims (Image: KANSAS CITY POLICE DEPARTMENT). There, Berdella drugged Stoops and kept him trapped in his house for weeks. [n 1] He began spending much of his free time with male prostitutes, drug addicts, petty criminals, and runaways. This house, 4315 Charlotte Street, belonged to the Kansas City Butcher, one of the most deranged serial killers in history. Gabe is a New York City-based writer and an Editorial Intern at All That Is Interesting. The torture he endured prior to his death included electric shocks via a, Larry Wayne Pearson, 20, June 23, 1987: Held captive until August, This page was last edited on 26 January 2021, at 03:57. As Berdella's father valued sports and physical education, he viewed his older son's lack of interest in sports as a sign of failure, and often compared him unfavorably with his younger brother. [8] In spite of this condition of his living with Berdella, Kellogg further stated that numerous male prostitutes and addicts had been reluctant to engage in any form of contact with Berdella because of rumors regarding his links to the 1984 disappearance of Jerry Howell. [1]:269, In reference to the coded notations within the actual torture logs, Berdella confessed that many of the abbreviated entries were simply shorthand terms for methods of abuse he had inflicted upon his victims, whereas others would describe either their reactions to these ongoing acts of abuse and torture, or his initial observations upon viewing them when he entered the room where he had kept them restrained.
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