Serial killers get nicknames for various reasons, and many have interesting stories behind their monikers. The press and law enforcement dubbed some, like Bible John or the Alphabet Killer, with sobriquets since they were never identified. Others, like the Lipstick Killer and the Red Spider, earned their nicknames from messages about their crimes. The Vampire of Sacramento and the Eyeball Killer got theirs due to the depraved acts they committed against victims after death. The Chessboard Killer's moniker came from his desired kill count, while Aunt Thally's fellow inmates gave her a dark nickname nodding to her murders. The Black Magic Killer, the Brides in the Bath Murderer, the Scorecard Killer, and Metal Fang also have intriguing stories behind their nicknames, rooted in their motives, methods, records, and appearances. Each story is more horrifying than their name.
About this list
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Nikolai Dzhumagaliev.Dzhumagaliev was convicted of murdering seven women in Kazakhstan and the Soviet Union between 1979 and 1980. He raped his victims in public places, like a park, then used a knife or an axe to kill them. He also dismembered the women’s bodies and took pieces to his home where he cooked and ate the remains. People invited to a dinner party found his host.He dismembered the body of another guest in a spare bedroom.The dismemberment happened in a spare bedroom.
The cannibal, nicknamed "Metal Fang" because doctors used metal front teeth to replace teeth he lost fighting younger, was found not guilty by reason of insanity in 1981. He went to a mental hospital for schizophrenia treatment. In 1989, Dzhumagaliev escaped custody while moving to another facility. He was on the run for two years until he was caught.
Shortly before Christmas 2015, the killer known as Metal Fang allegedly escaped again. Some people suspect him in the disappearance of 22-year-old Saida Akzhanova, who vanished less than two weeks after 63-year-old Dzhumagaliev reportedly left the mental hospital.
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From December 1977 to January 1978, 27-year-old Richard Chase terrorized Sacramento, California. Chase spent time in a mental institution after attempting to inject animal blood into his veins.Chase murdered six people in Sacramento, California. These included a pregnant woman and a 22-month-old boy. Chase terrorized the residents during this time.He terrorized Sacramento, California. He murdered six people, including a pregnant woman and a 22-month-old boy. Before the killings, Chase killed Teresa Griffin by draining blood from her body into an empty yogurt container, then drank the contents of the cup., and became unstable after stopping his prescribed mental health medication. Chase killed victims with a handgun or knife. He earned the nickname "Vampire of Sacramento" for cannibalism and necrophilia. After murdering Teresa Griffin, From December 1990 to March 1991 in Dallas, Texas, three women were murdered. Authorities found Mary Pratt, Susan Peterson, and Shirley Williams dead. The authorities found all three victims died from gunshot wounds.Medical examiners found a disturbing commonality among the three victims. Their eyeballs had been surgically removed from their sockets. This led the murderer to be called the "Eyeball Killer."
Chase's terror ended January 27, 1978. He left Evelyn Miroth's home. He faced trial and conviction for six murders. Despite mental illness, he received a death sentence. On December 26, 1980, Chase died in his cell after taking an antidepressant overdose.
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From December 1990 to March 1991 in Dallas, Texas, three women died. Mary Pratt, Susan Peterson, and Shirley Williams' bodies were found. Authorities found the three victims died from gunshot wounds.Further inspection showed the medical examiner found a shared trait. The three victims had had their eyeballs surgically removed from their sockets. This led to the murderer being called the "Eyeball Killer."
Charles Frederick Albright was arrested March 22, 1991. He faced charges for three killings but only was convicted of murdering Williams. Investigators found Albright's eye obsession started whenhis mother showed him taxidermy.As a boy, this hobby taught him the precise skills needed to remove victims' eyes. On December 19, 1991, Albright received a life sentence, so he likely will not target other women.
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Alexander Pichushkin.Pichushkin committed his first known murder in 1992 at age 18. He killed at least 48 others before authorities caught him in 2006. Born in Moscow in 1974, his grandfather taught him chess. Pichushkin excelled at the game. He regularly challenged adults to games in Bitsa Park.
In 2001, Pichushkin began killing people rapidly. He often lured homeless old men to secluded spots in Bitsa Park with vodka.Pichushkin used a hammer to beat them to death.Pichushkin killed many elderly men, but he also killed women, children, and younger men. He aimed to murder 64 people for each square on a chessboard, earning him the nickname the"Chessboard Killer."
Surveillance cameras caught Pichushkin on a train platform with Marina Moskalyova just before she was killed. The 32-year-old Pichushkin faced arrest on June 16, 2006. He was tried and convicted of 49 murders and three attempted murders. He received a life sentence.
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George Joseph SmithSmith was a British bigamist. He married seven women in six years, using fake names to hide that he failed to divorce one wife before marrying another. Smith used these marriages to take advantage of the women, stealing their money and valuables before moving on. However, his crimes became deadly. From 1912 to 1914, he killed three wives in Blackpool, England, drowning each one in a bathtub, a method that gave him the name "Brides in the Bath Murderer."
Victims showed no signs of a struggle, so his crimes went unnoticed. Investigators figured Smith forced them to drown by pulling their legs out of the water and letting their heads slip into the bath.
Thankfully,a member of the public saw the similarities between two deaths, even though Smith used different aliases. He was eventually arrested but only faced trial for one killing.On July 1, 1915, 43-year-old Smith was found guilty of murder. He was executed by hanging the next month on August 13, 1915.
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From 1986 to 1998, Ahmad Suradji, an Indonesian shaman, strangled over 40 young women and girls. He buried their dead bodies up to their waists in a sugarcane field near his home.Suradji claimed the murders were part of a black magic ritual.His dead father ordered these acts in a dream, telling him to perform them to boost his healing powers as a sorcerer. This led to him being called the "Black Magic Killer."
After killing the women and girls, Suradji drank their saliva. He believed this fluid made him a stronger sorcerer. He even convinced one of his three wives to help him commit the crimes.
Police arrested Suradji on April 28, 1997, after finding a victim's body in the sugar cane field. He confessed to the murders. The Black Magic Killer faced a death sentence. On January 10, 1949, 57-year-old Suradji wasA firing squad executed him.
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Between November 1971 and April 1973,three young girls were found raped and murdered.These killings happened in towns near Rochester, New York. Each victim's first and last names began with the same letter. The town where bodies were found shared this initial, earning the unidentified killer the name"Alphabet Killer."
Theyoung girlsincluded Carmen Colon, age 10, found in Churchville; 11-year-old Michelle Maenza, found in Macedon; and Wanda Walkowicz, also 11, located in Webster.
Whilemany men have been considered suspects.Authorities have not charged anyone in the killings. Officials are unsure if the double initials signify something about the killer.
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Randy Steven Kraft, a computer programmer, wasconvicted of murdering 16 young men and teenage boys from 1972 to 1983 in Southern California. Authorities think he killed many more people. Kraft lured men and boys into his car with drugs, alcohol, or a ride. He then made them powerless with booze and narcotics. Kraft raped the young men and often tortured them by burning them with a car cigarette lighter andactive from 1972 to 1983 in Southern California. Authorities think Kraft killed many more people. Kraft enticed men and boys into his car with drugs, alcohol, or a ride. He then made them powerless with booze and narcotics. Kraft raped the young men and often tortured them by burning their bodies with a car cigarette lighter.
Kraft murdered his victims using stabbing, strangulation, asphyxiation, and bludgeoning. He then dumped their corpses, sometimes after dismembering them, off freeways in Southern California. Officials found a coded list in his car on May 14, 1983, with eyewitness help. This list tracked his victims and the acts he committed, earning him the moniker theScorecard Killer.
In 1989, 44-year-old Kraft received a death sentence for 16 murders and remains on death row in California.
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June 5, 1945, Josephine Ross's lifeless body was found in her Chicago apartment.Six months later, the corpse of another Chicago woman, Frances Brown, surfaced. Stab wounds killed both women. A message written in lipstick on Brown's apartment wall told police they faced a killer who would likely keep killing until stopped. The killer, nicknamed the "Lipstick Killer" for the writing tool, scrawled "Catch me before I kill more. I cannot control myself."
On January 1, 1946, the murderer killed the last victim, six-year-old Suzanne Degnan. William Heirens, a teenage boy caught trying to enter an apartment, allegedly confessed. On August 7, 1946, Heirens pleaded guilty to all three murders and received three consecutive life sentences. Heirens later claimed his confession was forced; he only accepted the plea to avoid the death penalty.
Experts believe Heirens did not commit the murders. The convicted killer filed clemency petitions, but he died in prison on March 5, 2012, at age 83.
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From February 1968 to October 1969, three young women, Patricia Docker, Jemima McDonald, and Helen Puttock, were involved.were all found brutally murdered.The murders occurred on the streets of Glasgow, Scotland. The young women had all been raped and strangled, and they all went to the Barrowland Ballroom that night. The serial murderer, who remains unidentified, was nicknamed Bible JohnThis nickname came from a description given by the last victim's sister. Puttock's sister claimed the man said his name was "John Templeton" or "John Sempleson."He was between 25 and 30, with reddish-blonde hair. She also described him as thin, about 5'10", well-dressed, polite, and articulate.
The killer seen with Helen Puttock before her murder earned the nickname Bible John because he referenced prayer and Moses. He quoted the Bible and stated his father thought dance halls were "dens of inequity". At least one detective thinks Bible John was actually Peter Tobin.At least one detective thinks Bible John was actually Peter Tobin.Bible John is a Scottish serial killer. He got life in prison in 2006 after being 60. He killed people in the late 1960s; no one has officially named him.
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Caroline Grills, an Australian woman who stood over four feet tall, lived from 1947 to 1953.Caroline Grills murdered four family members.Aunt Thally served food and drinks laced with thallium, the chemical in rat poison. This killed her first known victim near age 60. Greed drove the elderly woman; she took the lives of people near her to inherit their homes.
Crimes surfaced when she tried to kill two more distant family members. These intended victims began suspecting Grills tried to poison them. After taking a sample of the tea Grills served them to the police,Authorities found the drink contained thallium.This is Aunt Thally from the list '11 Terrifying Backstories To Creepy Serial Killer Nicknames'.
Grills faced trial for four murders and three attempted murders. The court convicted her on October 15, 1963. Initially, the death penalty was set, but her sentence shifted to life in prison. While serving, other inmates called Grills"Aunt Thally"People called her "Aunt Thally" for her kind manner and the poison she used to kill victims. She died in a Sydney hospital on October 8, 1960, at 72 years old.
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