IN FROZEN NEW ENGLAND,
WOMEN START TO VANISH ONE BY ONE.
I REMEMBER RUNNING ASKING WAS THAT MY LORETTA?
THERE WERE OTHER HOMICIDES OF FEMALES SIMILAR IN NATURE.
A CITY IN PANIC...
I GO, "WHY'S HE PICKING UP THE PACE?"
...AND A KILLER ONE STEP AHEAD.
EVERY ONE OF THESE WOMEN WAS MURDERED
IN COLD, HEARTLESS MANNER.
YOU START TO LOOK AT EVERYONE.
EVERYONE'S A SUSPECT. EVERYONE'S GUILTY.
ON YOUR KNEES!
WITH STAKES THIS HIGH,
ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN.
AND IT DOES.
THE YOUNG MAN POUNCED AND THEN PUMMELED HIM WITH PUNCHES.
THE WORST SERIAL KILLER IN MASSACHUSETTS HISTORY.
WINTER PUMMELS THE WORKING-CLASS CITY
OF SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS.
SPRINGFIELD WINTERS IN GENERAL CAN BE BRUTAL.
YOU THINK YOU'VE SEEN THE WORST,
BUT IT ALWAYS SOMEHOW TURNS OUT WORSE THAN WHAT YOU THOUGHT.
THE SNOW WAS SO DEEP, WE OPENED OUR BACK DOOR
AND THE SNOW FELL INTO THE HOUSE.
BRUTALLY COLD.
THE BRUTAL COLD DOESN'T FREEZE CRIME.
THE CITY IS LIKE EVERY OTHER CITY IN AMERICA.
IT'S HAD ITS PERIODS OF TIME WHERE IT HAS BEEN SAFER,
AND PERIODS OF TIME WHERE THERE'S A LITTLE MORE DANGER
AND IT'S BEEN A LITTLE DARKER.
THE WINTER OF 1998 WILL PROVE TO BE
ONE OF THE DARKEST.
38-YEAR-OLD LORETTA DANIELS HAS ALWAYS CALLED THE CITY HOME.
ONLY 4'11",
THE FEISTY YOUNGEST OF 11 SIBLINGS IS
FONDLY REFERRED TO AS "LITTLE BIT."
SHE WAS FULL OF LAUGHTER AND LIFE
AND SHE HAD AN INFECTIOUS SMILE.
SHE ALWAYS SEEN THE GLASS HALF FULL, SO TO SPEAK.
SHE AND HER OLDER SISTER,
HATTIE, ARE ESPECIALLY CLOSE.
I WAS DEFINITELY LIKE A MOTHER TO HER.
SHE WAS NICE AND PLEASANT AND WOULDN'T HARM A FLY.
SHE WOULD MAKE YOU SMILE.
IT WOULDN'T BE A DAY PASSED
THAT, YOU KNOW, I DIDN'T SEE HER.
AND IF I DIDN'T SEE HER, SHE'D ALWAYS CALL ME.
ON JANUARY 31, 1998, NO CALL COMES.
I DIDN'T HEAR FROM HER.
YOU KNOW, I START ASKING MY OTHER SISTERS, YOU KNOW,
HAD THEY SEEN HER.
AND MY SISTER DOLORES SAID THAT SHE HAD SEEN HER,
LIKE, THE DAY BEFORE.
LORETTA.
DOLORES EXPLAINS SHE RAN INTO LORETTA THAT EVENING.
THE MAN MIGHT HAVE BEEN JUST A FRIEND.
EVERYTHING SEEMED FINE.
A SECOND DAY PASSES WITH NO WORD.
WE KNEW SOMETHING WASN'T RIGHT
BECAUSE NOBODY HAD HEARD FROM HER IN A COUPLE OF DAYS.
SHE DIDN'T CALL ME.
SO THEN I GOT IN MY CAR,
WENT OVER TO MY SISTER'S HOUSE TO PICK THEM UP
SO WE COULD START LOOKING FOR LORETTA.
THEY GO TO TALK TO LORETTA'S FRIENDS.
THEY HADN'T SEEN HER.
IT'S POSSIBLE LORETTA DECIDED
TO SKIP TOWN FOR A WHILE.
THE TWO SISTERS SHARE A BANK ACCOUNT.
SO, THEN, WE WENT TO THE BANK.
THE MONEY WAS STILL IN THE BANK.
SO THEN WE REALLY GOT CONCERNED,
YOU KNOW, ABOUT WHAT WAS HAPPENING.
ON THE THIRD NIGHT, HATTIE HAS A DISTURBING VISION.
I SEEN LORETTA SITTING WITH HER LEGS CROSSED.
HAD HER HAND OUT TRYING TO MEET MY HAND.
THAT'S THE LAST THING I'D SEEN OF HER.
AND I KNEW SOMETHING HAD DONE HAPPENED TO HER.
SHE CALLS SPRINGFIELD POLICE
AND FILES A MISSING PERSONS REPORT.
BUT BEFORE AN INVESTIGATION CAN BEGIN,
A MAN WALKING DOWNTOWN MAKES A CHILLING DISCOVERY.
THIS POOR WOMAN WAS FOUND PARTIALLY CLAD
NEAR THE POSTAL STATION IN AN ALLEYWAY IN MASON SQUARE,
WHICH IS A PROMINENT SQUARE.
ANOTHER RESIDENT, A MINISTER, COVERS
THE YOUNG WOMAN.
OUT OF RESPECT, I BELIEVE,
FOR ANOTHER HUMAN BEING, WHICH I FOUND TO BE
A TOUCHING ASPECT OF A HORRENDOUS CRIME.
SHE WAS A BLACK FEMALE FOUND LYING ON HER BACK.
THE CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATORS WERE ABLE TO TELL
THAT IT APPEARED TO HAVE BEEN A MANUAL STRANGULATION.
HER BODY WAS POSITIONED IN AN UNUSUAL WAY.
HER BOOTS WERE KIND OF PLACED ORDERLY NEXT TO HER BODY.
SHE WAS SEXUALLY ASSAULTED AND STRANGLED.
AND THAT IS WHAT WAS CONFIRMED BY THE CORONER.
IT'S IMPORTANT TO SEE
WHETHER IT WAS APPARENT SHE PUT UP A FIGHT,
IF OUR ATTACKER COULD'VE BEEN INJURED,
SCRATCHED, ANYTHING ALONG THEM LINES.
NO SIGN OF DEFENSIVE WOUNDS.
EVEN BEFORE AN I.D. IS MADE, LORETTA'S NEPHEW SEES
A BREAKING REPORT ON TV ABOUT A BODY.
THE NEWS IS ON. IT'S ON THE NEWS.
AND I REMEMBER SAYING TO MYSELF, "THAT'S MY LORETTA."
I JUST GOT THAT GUT FEELING.
I REMEMBER RUNNING TO THAT PLACE ASKING
WAS THAT LITTLE BIT?
WAS THAT MY LORETTA?
THAT'S MY AUNT LORETTA.
WE HAVEN'T GOT ANY INFORMATION ON THIS YET.
THEY CALLED AND TOLD ME
THAT THEY FOUND A BODY.
AND I TOLD THEM THAT WAS MY SISTER.
I KNEW IT WAS.
I WAS DEVASTATED, SPEECHLESS.
AND YOU JUST WANT TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENED
AND HOW DID IT HAPPEN,
YOU KNOW, AND WHY.
I CANNOT IMAGINE HOW WOULD ANOTHER PERSON
TAKE ANOTHER PERSON'S LIFE.
OUR JOBS AS INVESTIGATORS AT THAT POINT
WOULD BE TO CANVASS THE AREA LOOKING FOR WITNESSES.
THEY FIND NO ONE WHO SAW OR HEARD ANYTHING,
AND HOPE THE AUTOPSY WILL REVEAL MORE.
DURING LORETTA DANIELS' AUTOPSY,
I WAS ASSIGNED TO ASSIST THE M.E.,
AND IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT SHE HAD A CLOTH ITEM
DOWN HER THROAT.
A SOCK, LIKELY HER OWN --
IT CONTAINS SEMINAL FLUID.
BUT THERE'S NO SUSPECT TO COMPARE IT TO.
DETECTIVES TRY TO IDENTIFY AND QUESTION
ANY MALE SEEN WITH LORETTA AROUND THE TIME OF HER DEATH.
NO ONE ADMITS KNOWING ANYTHING ABOUT THE CRIME.
LOOK, IF THERE ARE NO OTHER QUESTIONS,
CAN I GO HOME NOW?
THANK YOU.
AND INVESTIGATORS FIND NOTHING TYING ANY OF THEM TO IT.
AS THEY WORK, SOME DETECTIVES COME TO A TROUBLING REALIZATION.
THE MURDER OF LORETTA DANIELS SEEMS EERILY FAMILIAR.
WITHIN THE PAST FOUR MONTHS AND NEARBY,
TWO OTHER WOMEN WERE KILLED.
SIMILAR HOMICIDES --
SEXUAL ASSAULT, STRANGULATION.
EVERY ONE OF THESE WOMEN WAS RAPED, ASSAULTED...
...AND MURDERED IN A COLD, HEARTLESS MANNER.
AND THAT'S WHEN ONE OF THE INVESTIGATORS SAID,
"THIS ISN'T SOUNDING GOOD.
WE MAY HAVE A SERIAL MURDERER."
DURING A HARSH
SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS, WINTER,
LORETTA DANIELS GOES MISSING,
UNTIL HER BODY TURNS UP
IN A DOWNTOWN ALLEY NEAR THE POST OFFICE.
THE PLACE THAT THEY DID FIND HER,
SOMEPLACE THAT YOU JUST WALK PAST EVERY DAY
AND YOU JUST WOULD NEVER THINK
THAT THEY WOULD FIND A BODY THERE,
NEVER MIND MY AUNT'S BODY.
SHE'D BEEN RAPED, STRANGLED,
AND HAD A SOCK STUFFED IN HER THROAT.
I COULDN'T BELIEVE IT. I REALLY COULDN'T.
I DIDN'T WANT TO BELIEVE IT.
SHE WOULDN'T HAVE HURT ANYONE,
SO IT BOGGLED MY MIND
THAT SHE WOULD BE A VICTIM TO THAT TYPE OF BRUTALITY.
WHO COULD'VE DONE SOMETHING LIKE THAT AND WHY?
BECAUSE OF THE WAY LORETTA WAS KILLED,
THEY WONDER IF HER SLAYING
MIGHT BE CONNECTED TO TWO OTHERS.
THREE MONTHS EARLIER AND JUST BLOCKS AWAY
FROM WHERE LORETTA WAS FOUND...
THERE WAS A HOMICIDE ON SPRING STREET,
A WHITE FEMALE -- NO IDENTIFICATION.
SHE WAS ALSO FOUND IN A STATE OF UNDRESS.
SHE WAS ALSO FOUND OUTSIDE AN ALLEY.
SHE'S IDENTIFIED AS DANIELLE TAYLOR.
SHE WAS BOUND AND GAGGED, AND THAT, TO ME,
HAD THIS SADOMASOCHISTIC QUALIFICATION TO IT.
A CLUE TO THE KILLER'S PSYCHOLOGY
BUT NOT HIS IDENTITY.
SHE HAD TISSUE FORCED DOWN HER THROAT
THAT WAS NON-VISIBLE FROM THE OPEN MOUTH.
THAT HAD TO BE FOUND BY THE MEDICAL EXAMINER.
THE SAME HELD TRUE FOR LORETTA DANIELS ON STATE STREET.
SHE HAD A SOCK FORCED DOWN HER THROAT
WHICH COULD NOT BE SEEN
UNTIL EXAMINED BY THE MEDICAL EXAMINER.
LIKE THE SOCK FROM LORETTA'S AUTOPSY,
THE TISSUE CONTAINED SEMINAL FLUID.
AS WITH LORETTA, THERE WERE NO WITNESSES.
A WEEK AFTER THAT, ANOTHER VICTIM,
AMANDA LAWSON, 38 YEARS OLD,
JUST LIKE LORETTA.
SHE WAS FOUND IN HER HOME
TWO BLOCKS FROM THE POLICE STATION
GOING UP THE HILL ON WORTHINGTON STREET.
SHE LIVED THERE WITH HER CHILD, WHO ACTUALLY MADE THE DISCOVERY.
THE KILLER LEFT HER DECEASED BODY
IN SUCH A POSITION WHERE THE SON,
THAT MINOR SON WAS GONNA FIND HIS MOTHER.
AND THAT'S SOMETHING NO SON SHOULD FIND.
SHE WAS RAPED, MANUAL STRANGULATION,
AND THERE WAS ALSO A SOCK UNDERNEATH HER BODY
THAT CONTAINED SEMINAL FLUID.
IN THREE CRIME SCENES, TWO SOCKS AND A TISSUE,
ALL WITH BODILY FLUIDS.
THAT'S KIND OF A STRANGE COINCIDENCE.
THAT WOULD INDICATE TO US
THAT THE WOMEN, THEY WERE RAPED,
AND THE SOCK OR OTHER ITEM WAS USED
TO CLEAN HIMSELF AFTERWARDS.
THERE'S ONE MORE SICKENING TRUTH.
THERE WAS EVIDENCE THAT THERE WAS
POST-MORTEM SEXUAL RELATIONS WITH THESE VICTIMS.
DETECTIVES SEND THE SOCKS AND THE TISSUE
TO THE LAB TO TRY TO EXTRACT DNA EVIDENCE.
BACK THEN, DNA WAS A RELATIVELY NEW SCIENCE.
IT INVOLVED COLLECTING VIALS OF BLOOD FROM PEOPLE
AND SUBMITTING THEM TO THE LAB,
AND THE PROCESS OF DEVELOPING THAT PROFILE,
IT TOOK A LONG TIME.
ARE THE THREE MURDERS REALLY CONNECTED?
IT WAS TOO EARLY TO JUMP TO THAT CONCLUSION.
UNTIL THE SCIENCE CAME BACK, WE KEPT AN OPEN MIND.
THE COMMUNITY WAS BASICALLY LIKE,
"OKAY, WE NEED SOME ANSWERS."
EVEN IF IT'S JUST ONE PERSON, YOU WANT TO FIND OUT.
BUT WHEN IT'S MULTIPLE PEOPLE THAT ARE GETTING KILLED,
WE NEED TO HAVE SOME KIND OF ANSWERS.
NONE OF THE VICTIMS HAD DEFENSIVE WOUNDS,
AND NO WITNESSES SAW OR HEARD ANY STRUGGLE.
WE FOCUSED OUR ATTENTION TO MALE SUBJECTS
WHO WOULD BLEND IN IN THE COMMUNITY.
SOMEONE THAT THESE WOMEN WOULD BEFRIEND,
LOOK TO SPEND TIME WITH.
THE POLICE CHIEF AT THE TIME, PAULA MEARA,
ASSIGNED A HEAVY UNIFORM PRESENCE
IN THESE NEIGHBORHOODS
AS WELL AS AN AWFUL LOT OF UNDERCOVER OFFICERS.
WE WORKED WITH A LOT OF PEOPLE
ON THE STREETS, IN THE NEIGHBORHOODS,
ALL OVER THE CITY, AND WE WERE GETTING COOPERATION.
SO WE REALLY FELT THAT IF SOMEBODY KNEW
THAT THEY WOULD COME FORWARD.
WE GOT TIPS. WE'D GET PHONE CALLS.
MOST OF THEM VAGUE ACCUSATIONS,
NAMES OF MEN WHO KNEW SOME OF THE VICTIMS.
NO ONE PROVIDES DIRECT EVIDENCE,
BUT THE LIST OF SUSPECTS GROWS.
WHEN THE BODIES START TO PILE UP
AND IT'S FOCUSED ON THE CITY OF SPRINGFIELD,
YOU START TO WONDER AND LOOK AT EVERYONE.
EVERYONE'S A SUSPECT.
EVERYONE'S GUILTY.
EVERY ONE OF THESE MURDERS WAS UNWITNESSED,
AND UNWITNESSED MURDERS ARE VERY, VERY DIFFICULT TO SOLVE.
WE DID EVERYTHING WE COULD IN TERMS OF ADDING
UNLIMITED OVERTIME,
CALLING IN ALL THE EXPERTS IN THE LAW-ENFORCEMENT COMMUNITY.
INCLUDING FBI PROFILERS
WHO REVIEW DETAILS OF THE THREE KILLINGS
AND DEVELOP A PROFILE.
THEY SAID THAT HE WAS FAIRLY YOUNG --
30, GIVE OR TAKE.
THAT THIS PERSON COULD MOVE IN AND OUT
OF THIS COMMUNITY OF PEOPLE VERY COMFORTABLY
AND WAS COMFORTABLE WITH THEM.
THAT HE DID A TYPE OF WORK
THAT WAS PRECISE AND EXACTING.
HE'LL APPEAR NORMAL, MAYBE EVEN BORING.
THAT HE LIVED AND WORKED NOT TOO FAR FROM THE AREA.
AND HE DOES NOT LIVE ALONE.
IT DID COME BACK THAT THE KILLER WAS LIKELY
AN AFRICAN-AMERICAN MAN.
WE WERE REALLY QUITE SHOCKED AT THAT
BECAUSE MANY OF THE SERIAL KILLERS
IN AMERICAN HISTORY UP TO THAT POINT
HAD BEEN WHITE MEN.
PROFILERS ALSO KNOW
SERIAL KILLERS OFTEN KEEP SOUVENIRS FROM VICTIMS --
CLOTHING, JEWELRY.
THEY'RE UNCERTAIN IF JEWELRY WAS TAKEN
FROM THEIR THREE VICTIMS,
BUT IF SO, FINDING IT MIGHT LEAD THEM TO THE KILLER.
THERE WAS AN ESCALATING FEAR IN THE COMMUNITY,
AND THERE WERE WARNINGS TO EXERT EXTREME CAUTION
IN WHO YOU COME IN CONTACT WITH.
THE TENSION WAS SO, SO HIGH
THAT YOU COULD CUT IT WITH A KNIFE
WHEN YOU WALKED THROUGH THE NEIGHBORHOODS.
YOU WANT TO CATCH THIS GUY AS QUICK AS YOU CAN.
THE PUBLIC WAS FRUSTRATED.
WE AS POLICE OFFICERS WERE FRUSTRATED.
IT TAKES A CERTAIN TYPE OF PERSON
TO BE A HOMICIDE INVESTIGATOR,
THE TYPE-A, HARD CHARGING "LET'S SOLVE THIS."
AND WE WEREN'T ABLE TO DO THAT.
YOU HAD THREE WOMEN DEAD IN A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME.
AND SOON THERE WOULD BE A FOURTH.
IN SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS, POLICE WORRY
THE WINTER MURDERS OF LORETTA DANIELS,
AMANDA LAWSON, AND DANIELLE TAYLOR ARE RELATED.
DETECTIVES RECOVER TWO SOCKS AND A TISSUE
FROM THE THREE SCENES, ALL WITH BODILY FLUIDS ON THEM.
BUT THEY NEED A SUSPECT TO COMPARE THEM TO.
THERE'S DNA.
WE KNEW THAT THAT WAS REALLY GONNA BE THE CONNECT.
UNTIL THEY FIND THAT SUSPECT,
CITY-WIDE FEAR.
EVERYBODY WAS KIND OF ON ALERT,
ESPECIALLY WOMEN, YOU KNOW,
WHERE THEY WOULD SAY YOU JUST DON'T GO OUT BY YOURSELF.
ALWAYS TRY TO HAVE A SECOND PERSON WITH YOU.
BUT IT WAS A SCARY FEELING.
JUST NINE DAYS AFTER LORETTA'S MURDER...
HEY, MOM.
MOM?
MOM?!
MOM, WAKE UP.
PLEASE WAKE UP, MOM.
COME ON.
...THE KILLER CLAIMS A FOURTH VICTIM,
43-YEAR-OLD ROSEMARY DOWNS.
WENT TO THE APARTMENT. THE SON HAD LET US IN.
THERE WAS NO SIGN OF A FORCED ENTRY.
THE OBVIOUS SIMILARITIES WERE STRANGULATION, RAPING.
LEFT AT THE SCENE AND COLLECTED AND ANALYZED WERE
A PIECE OF CLOTHING THAT CONTAINED SEMINAL FLUID.
ROSEMARY'S BODY AND HER APARTMENT,
FROM WHERE LORETTA WAS FOUND MURDERED, WAS,
AS THE CROW FLIES, MAYBE NO MORE THAN A HALF MILE.
WORD SPREADS QUICKLY THROUGH ROSEMARY'S FAMILY.
MY OLDEST BROTHER CALLED TO INFORM US
THAT SHE HAD BEEN KILLED.
THAT'S WHEN WE ALL DROVE
STRAIGHT OVER TO MY AUNT'S HOUSE.
I COULDN'T BELIEVE IT.
IT WAS HARD TO BELIEVE THAT SHE WAS GONE
AND THAT ANYONE WOULD DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT TO HER,
'CAUSE SHE WAS NICE TO...
SHE WAS GOOD TO EVERYONE.
ANOTHER SENSELESS SLAYING
OF A GOOD WOMAN LOVED BY MANY.
SHE WAS THE LIFE OF THE PARTY.
SHE WAS AWESOME.
WE'D ALWAYS GO OVER THERE.
AND SHE WAS EITHER COOKING OR HAD SOME MUSIC ON.
SHE LOVED MUSIC.
MY BROTHERS WOULD RATHER GO TO HER HOUSE IN THE SUMMER
INSTEAD OF GOING TO CAMP.
SHE WAS GREAT.
I'M RACKING MY BRAIN.
AND EVERYONE I LOOK AT, I'M ASKING ARE THEY CAPABLE
OF BEING THAT HEARTLESS AND RUTHLESS TO KILL SOMEONE
AND FEED OFF OF THAT?
JUST A SICK, TWISTED, MIXED-UP INDIVIDUAL.
YOU KNOW, IT'S LIKE, "WE GOT A SERIAL KILLER RUNNING
AROUND IN SPRINGFIELD? THAT'S CRAZY."
IT'S ABSURD ANYWHERE,
BUT WHERE WE LIVE, NO, THAT'S CRAZY.
WHO IS HE?
WHY THESE WOMEN?
WHY THIS WINTER?
WHAT'S IN THIS GUY'S MIND? IT STARTED SLOW.
ALL OF A SUDDEN, IT'S SPEEDING UP,
THE AMOUNT OF HOMICIDES LIKE THIS.
AND YOU'RE LIKE, "MY GOD, WHAT IS THIS GUY DOING?
WHY IS HE PICKING UP THE PACE?"
WE WERE SHOCKED AT THE APPETITE OF THIS KILLER,
THAT HE COULD DO THIS TO THESE WOMEN
AND, IN NO TIME, DO IT OVER AGAIN.
WE HAVE TO UNITE AS A COMMUNITY.
WE HAVE TO STAND TOGETHER.
NEIGHBORHOOD LEADERS HOLD MEETINGS
TO DISCUSS THE CASE.
THE COMMUNITY WAS VERY IN TUNE WITH WHAT WAS GOING ON.
THE CITIZENS WERE AFRAID.
YOU GOT TO HELP THEM GET THEIR PEACE OF MIND,
BECAUSE YOU DON'T WANT TO LIVE IN FEAR.
YOU WANT TO DO WHATEVER YOU CAN TO MAKE THEM FEEL BETTER.
YET, WHAT THEY WANT IS AN ARREST.
AFTER MY AUNT WAS MURDERED,
I DIDN'T FEEL COMFORTABLE AROUND ANY MEN.
I COULDN'T TAKE THE BUS OR ANYTHING
'CAUSE I JUST DIDN'T TRUST ANYONE,
AND I BASICALLY STAYED IN THE HOUSE FOR A WHILE.
INVESTIGATORS AGREE WITH FBI PROFILERS
THAT THE KILLER IS AN INSIDER.
THEY SAID THAT HE MOVED EASILY THROUGH HIS COMMUNITY.
SO, WE DID FEEL THAT THIS KILLER HAD ACCESS
TO THE WOMEN AND THAT HE KNEW THEM.
WE WERE WORKING 20 HOURS A DAY.
SOMETIMES, WE WORKED AROUND THE CLOCK --
VERY LONG DAYS IN AN ATTEMPT TO SOLVE THESE CRIMES.
OFFICERS, THEY KNOCKED ON DOORS,
THEY TALKED TO EVERYBODY AND THEIR BROTHER,
AND THEY FOLLOWED UP ON EVERY BIT OF INFORMATION
THAT THEY HAD.
THERE WAS ONE INDIVIDUAL BEING SURVEILLED
24 HOURS A DAY.
THIS INDIVIDUAL HAD A CONNECTION TO TWO,
IF NOT THREE OF THE MURDER VICTIMS.
THERE WAS NOTHING FORENSICALLY PUTTING HIM AT THESE CRIMES.
IT WAS JUST THAT HE KNEW THESE FEMALES.
THEY FOLLOW HIM, HOPING TO SPOT HIM WITH TROPHIES
OR OTHER CONNECTIONS TO THE SLAYINGS,
YET FIND NOTHING.
HE SUBMITTED TO A DNA SAMPLE. HE COOPERATED 100%.
AND IT WAS ULTIMATELY DETERMINED HE WAS NOT RESPONSIBLE
FOR THESE HOMICIDES.
BACK TO SQUARE ONE.
A FRIGHTENED COMMUNITY ARMS ITSELF.
THEY HAVE A RUSH OF -- AN INFLUX OF NEW WEAPONS
THAT WERE GOING INTO HOMES IN THE CITY.
IT CAUSED ME SOME CONCERN, TOO.
REALLY, IT'S SCARY TO BE OUT AT NIGHT NOW.
I'M SO AFRAID FOR MY DAUGHTERS RIGHT NOW TONIGHT,
WHEN MY DAUGHTER GETS OFF AT 11:00, I WILL ESCORT HER HOME.
I CERTAINLY UNDERSTOOD WHY THEY DID IT.
I CERTAINLY UNDERSTOOD IT.
BUT IT WAS NOT A GOOD COMBINATION.
IF WE DIDN'T CATCH THIS PERSON,
WE EXPECTED ANOTHER DEATH DOWN THE ROAD.
IT HAD TO BE SOMEBODY THAT JUST DIDN'T HAVE A SOUL.
SOMEBODY WHO'S NOT FINISHED KILLING
AND IS ABOUT TO RIP A MOTHER...
- MWAH. - ...AWAY FROM HER CHILDREN.
HE'S PROBABLY THE WORST SERIAL KILLER
IN MASSACHUSETTS HISTORY.
HE'S AN ICE-COLD KILLER.
OVER FOUR WINTER MONTHS,
A SERIAL KILLER HAS CLAIMED THE LIVES OF FOUR WOMEN...
INCLUDING LORETTA DANIELS AND ROSEMARY DOWNS.
THEY ALL HAD FAMILIES.
AND NONE OF THEM DID ANYTHING WRONG
TO HAVE THEIR LIFE TAKEN AWAY.
SOMEONE THAT EITHER HAS A SWITCH THAT GOES ON AND OFF
OR IS JUST PLAIN EVIL.
THIS HAD TO BE A HEARTLESS MONSTER
TO SNUFF THEIR LIVES OUT PURELY FOR HIS OWN PLEASURE.
IT WAS JUST STUNNING BEYOND BELIEF.
HE ALSO HAS TO BE SOMEBODY THAT THE WOMEN
PROBABLY WOULD FEEL COMFORTABLE WITH.
THE FIRST TIME THAT I EVER SAW IT,
AND I WAS ON THE JOB FOR 391/2 YEARS --
SUCH HORRIFIC CRIMES THAT WERE GOING ON.
EIGHT DAYS AFTER ROSEMARY'S MURDER,
FAMILY MEMBERS REPORT
A SPRINGFIELD WOMAN NAMED VICKY ROBERTS MISSING.
- YOU GUYS GONNA BE GOOD TONIGHT? - YES.
COME GIVE MOMMY A HUG.
THE 37-YEAR-OLD SINGLE MOTHER WAS LAST SEEN
LEAVING HER DAUGHTERS WITH A BABYSITTER
FOR A NIGHT OUT.
- ALL RIGHT, I LOVE YOU. - SHE WAS A GOOD MOM,
AND I KNOW THAT SHE WOULDN'T HAVE DESERTED HER CHILDREN.
THERE WAS NO DOUBT IN MY MIND
THAT SOMETHING EVIL HAD HAPPENED TO HER.
ONCE I FOUND OUT THAT SHE WAS MISSING,
I IMMEDIATELY THOUGHT THAT THIS COULD BE
THE SAME PERSON THAT KILLED MY AUNT.
INVESTIGATORS NEED TO FIND OUT
WHO VICKY WENT OUT WITH THAT NIGHT
AND BEGIN QUESTIONING FAMILY AND FRIENDS.
THE NEXT DAY, HER CAR TURNS UP NEARBY.
SHE LIVES IN A LARGE COMPLEX
OFF THE NORTH BRANCH PARKWAY.
SHE LIVED ON ONE SIDE,
AND ON THE EXACT OPPOSITE SIDE WAS HER CAR --
LEFT UNLOCKED.
THERE WAS SOME BLOOD INSIDE THE CAR, SMEARS.
THERE WASN'T MUCH. THERE WASN'T MUCH.
THIS IS NOT GOOD.
WHETHER YOU ARE LEANING TOWARD THERE'S A SERIAL KILLER OR NOT,
THIS MAY HAVE A BAD OUTCOME.
THE BLOOD MIGHT BE VICKY'S
OR WHOEVER GRABBED HER.
THERE WAS A HOPE THAT SHE WAS ALIVE.
THERE WAS THAT HOPE.
THIS COULD BE THEIR ONE CHANCE
TO SAVE A MISSING WOMAN
BEFORE SHE BECOMES ANOTHER DEAD BODY.
SHE WAS MISSING.
WE KNEW WE HAD A KILLER WITH A TREMENDOUS APPETITE.
WE BEAT THE BUSHES.
IN THE AREA WHERE SHE LIVED,
THERE WAS A HEAVILY WOODED AREA NOT TOO FAR THAT WAS SEARCHED.
WE HAD OUR CANINES OUT.
WE HAD OUR OFFICERS DOING SEARCHES.
WE DID EVERYTHING THAT WE COULD.
WE DIDN'T LOCATE HER.
BUT DETECTIVES DO FIND SOME OF THE PEOPLE
SHE WAS WITH THE NIGHT SHE VANISHED.
ON THE NIGHT THAT SHE DISAPPEARED,
SHE WAS IN THE COMPANY OF A COUPLE FEMALES
AND A MALE.
AND THE COUPLE FEMALES IDENTIFIED THE MALE SUBJECT.
FINALLY, THEY HAVE A NAME.
VICKY WAS WITH 31-YEAR-OLD ALFRED GAYNOR.
GAYNOR IS WELL KNOWN IN THE COMMUNITY.
MY AUNT ROSEMARY KNEW GAYNOR.
I DID SEE THEM TOGETHER ONE DAY WALKING DOWN THE STREET,
AND MY MOTHER KNEW SOME OF THE GAYNOR FAMILY.
HIS FAMILY LIVED, LIKE, ON THE NEXT STREET, YOU KNOW,
SO THE NAME GAYNOR WAS LIKE A NAME THAT OUR FAMILY KNEW.
YOU KNOW WHY WE CALLED YOU DOWN HERE?
NOPE. REALLY?
MR. GAYNOR WAS FIRST BROUGHT IN FOR QUESTIONING.
HE WAS BROUGHT IN NOT AS A SUSPECT
BUT AS A PERSON WHO WAS LAST SEEN WITH ONE OF THE VICTIMS.
WHERE WERE YOU ON FEBRUARY 2nd? DO YOU REMEMBER?
HE ADMITS HE WAS WITH VICKY THAT NIGHT,
BUT THEY SEPARATED WHEN SHE SAID
SHE WANTED TO GO PAWN SOME EARRINGS.
MR. GAYNOR INFORMED US THAT HE WAS DROPPED OFF
ON A CERTAIN STREET IN SPRINGFIELD
AND HE GAVE DIRECTIONS
WHERE TO GO SELL HER JEWELRY IN HOLYOKE,
AND SHE DROVE OFF BY HERSELF.
THE INTERVIEW LASTED SEVEN HOURS.
HE SWEARS HE DID NOTHING TO HARM VICKY
OR ANY OF THE OTHERS.
AND THEY HAVE NO EVIDENCE OR TESTIMONY AGAINST HIM.
A DNA SAMPLE WAS TAKEN FROM HIM --
VOLUNTARILY SUBMITTED.
BACK THEN, IT REQUIRED TAKING SOMEONE
TO THE HOSPITAL FOR THEM TO DRAW FOUR VIALS OF BLOOD.
WILL IT MATCH THE FLUID FROM THE BODIES
AND THE BLOOD FROM VICKY'S CAR?
DNA WAS IN ITS INFANCY STAGES, SO IT TOOK A GREAT DEAL OF TIME,
TOO MUCH TIME, ACTUALLY.
UNTIL THEY GET RESULTS,
THEY HAVE TO RELEASE HIM.
WE DID NOT HAVE PROBABLE CAUSE.
YOU KNOW, WE WERE VERY CAUTIOUS.
YOU DO NOT WANT TO MESS UP A CASE LIKE THIS,
AND LET A GUY OUT ON A TECHNICALITY.
YOU DON'T WANT A JUDGE TO COME IN AND SAY,
"YOU KNOW WHAT? YOU MADE A MISTAKE."
DO YOU WANT TO BE THE DEPARTMENT THAT MESSES SOMETHING LIKE THAT?
THEY WERE SUPER-CAREFUL.
MR. GAYNOR WAS PUT UNDER SURVEILLANCE.
IT WAS A HIDDEN SURVEILLANCE.
24 HOURS A DAY, 7 DAYS A WEEK,
EVERYWHERE HE WENT, THE OFFICERS WENT.
THERE WAS NO TIME MR. GAYNOR COULD'VE SLIPPED AWAY.
THEY HOPE HE'LL LEAD THEM TO VICKY.
AS EACH DAY WENT BY, THE CONCERN WAS IS
THAT SHE WASN'T ALIVE.
SO THERE WAS SOME CONCERN
THAT WE WERE GONNA FIND ANOTHER DEAD FEMALE SOMEWHERE.
SHE WAS MISSING FOR APPROXIMATELY THREE WEEKS
WHEN SHE WAS LOCATED IN THE SOUTH END,
DOWNTOWN SPRINGFIELD AREA.
THERE WAS AN INSPECTION GOING ON AT THE BUILDING,
AND THE PERSON CONDUCTING THE EXTERIOR INSPECTION...
LOCATED HER KIND OF TUCKED BEHIND SOME SMALL SHRUBBERY.
AND SHE WAS FROZEN TO THE CORE.
HER DEATH WAS CONSISTENT
WITH THE OTHER HOMICIDES -- MANUAL STRANGULATION.
LAW ENFORCEMENT WAS VERY CLEAR THAT THEY FELT
THAT SHE HAD BEEN SLAIN ELSEWHERE
AND THAT HER BODY WAS DUMPED OUTSIDE.
AND SHE WAS SEXUALLY ASSAULTED.
AN IMPORTANT CLUE -- SHE'S NOT WEARING THE EARRINGS
SHE WORE THE NIGHT SHE VANISHED,
THE ONES GAYNOR SAID SHE WAS GOING TO PAWN.
THEN, SURVEILLANCE UNITS FOLLOWING ALFRED GAYNOR
SPOT HIM VISITING A PAWN SHOP.
OUR DETECTIVES WENT OUT AND DISCOVERED AT THE PAWN SHOPS
THAT HE HAD PAWNED OUR LAST VICTIM'S EARRINGS.
INVESTIGATORS THINK THEY FINALLY HAVE THE PROOF.
HE IS THEIR GUY.
AS FOR THE FBI PROFILE...
THE KILLER WAS LIKELY AN AFRICAN-AMERICAN MAN.
HE'S THE SAME RACE, FAIRLY YOUNG --
30, GIVE OR TAKE A FEW YEARS.
HE WAS IN HIS EARLY 30s.
HE LIVED WITH HIS PARENTS.
HE DID A TYPE OF WORK THAT WAS PRECISE AND EXACTING.
- WHERE ARE YOU GOING? - GOT TO GO TO WORK.
AUTO BODY AND MACHINING WERE HIS TRADES,
AND CERTAINLY MACHINING HAS A PRECISION QUALITY TO IT.
BUT IN THIS STORY, THE DANGER IS FAR FROM OVER.
THE YOUNG MAN POUNCED ON ALFRED GAYNOR
AND PUMMELED HIM WITH PUNCHES.
HE JUST JUMPED UP.
HE COULDN'T CONTROL HIMSELF.
FIVE WOMEN DIE AT THE HANDS OF A SERIAL KILLER
BEFORE POLICE GET THE EVIDENCE THEY NEED
TO ARREST SUSPECT ALFRED GAYNOR.
IT WAS AMAZING THAT -- IF HE DIDN'T PAWN THOSE EARRINGS
HOW MANY MORE LADIES WOULD'VE DIED?
ALFRED GAYNOR, ON YOUR KNEES!
MY FAMILY, WE WERE WATCHING THE NEWS EVERY DAY ALL DAY
TO SEE IF THEY WOULD EVER CATCH SOMEONE.
FREEZE, ALFRED GAYNOR, NOW!
FINALLY, THEY HAD SAID THAT THEY HAD APPREHENDED ALFRED GAYNOR.
THE GAYNOR I KNEW CAME ACROSS FROM TIME TO TIME.
I NEVER WOULD'VE IMAGINED.
IT JUST DIDN'T MAKE SENSE TO ME.
I WAS SURPRISED. I WAS SHOCKED.
I WAS HURT. I WAS CONFUSED.
IT WAS REALLY A SHOCK TO HIS FAMILY
AND TO PEOPLE WHO KNEW HIM, HIS NEIGHBORS.
THOSE ARE THE PEOPLE THAT WERE SURPRISED.
"WHAT? THAT WAS ALFRED WAS DOING THAT?"
INVESTIGATORS STILL HAVE WORK TO DO.
EVEN THOUGH THERE WAS AN ARREST,
AND EVEN THOUGH THE CHIEF AND THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY
THOUGHT THEY HAD THE SUSPECT,
TO LINK IT ALL TOGETHER AND BE 100% SURE --
YOU JUST NEVER KNOW.
WE CONTINUED TO INVESTIGATE THAT UP UNTIL THE TRIAL.
HIS PALM PRINTS WERE RECOVERED AT TWO CRIME SCENES,
HIS FINGERPRINTS WERE RECOVERED AT ONE OR TWO CRIME SCENES,
AND HIS BLOOD WAS RECOVERED AT THE ROSEMARY DOWNS HOMICIDE.
THE FINAL NAIL IN GAYNOR'S COFFIN --
THE DNA TEST RESULTS.
THE DNA FROM MR. GAYNOR MATCHED THE DNA
FROM THE BIOLOGICAL EVIDENCE FROM A NUMBER OF CRIME SCENES.
THERE WAS NO DOUBT IN OUR MINDS WHEN THE DNA FINALLY CAME BACK
THAT ALFRED GAYNOR WAS RESPONSIBLE AND WAS THE KILLER.
I WAS HAPPY.
AND I WAS SAD.
UPSET THAT SOMEONE THAT WAS MY AUNT'S FRIEND TOOK HER LIFE.
WHEN GAYNOR IS ARRAIGNED -- MAYHEM.
MY AUNT'S OLDEST SON, HE COULDN'T CONTROL HIMSELF.
HE JUST JUMPED UP.
AND THEN, GAYNOR'S TWO RELATIVES,
HIS SISTER AND A NEPHEW, CAME RUNNING FROM THE GALLERY
AND JOINED THE FRAY.
THE TRIAL IS AN EMOTIONAL ONE.
GOD.
MNH-MNH.
I MADE SURE THAT WHEN HE WAS IN THE COURTROOM
THAT HE WOULD LOOK RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME,
THAT HE WOULD LOOK IN MY FACE.
HE ACTUALLY ADMITTED KILLING MY SISTER TO ME.
FACE-TO-FACE.
I WAS TERRIFIED, 'CAUSE I COULD PUT A FACE
TO THE MAN THAT HAD KILLED MY AUNT.
PROSECUTORS DESCRIBE HOW GAYNOR SOUGHT OUT WOMEN
HE KNEW WHO WOULD BE COMFORTABLE WITH HIM.
HE TARGETED WOMEN THAT WERE BY THEIRSELF...
SO HE COULD TAKE ADVANTAGE.
HE STRUCK WITH INTENSE FURY.
THEY DIDN'T STAND A CHANCE.
THEN, HE'D DISAPPEAR INTO THE COMMUNITY,
WHO THOUGHT THEY KNEW HIM.
ON INDICTMENT NUMBER 98-965,
YOU, THE JURY, FIND THE DEFENDANT GUILTY
OF MURDER IN THE FIRST DEGREE.
ALFRED GAYNOR IS FOUND GUILTY ON ALL COUNTS.
THE FIRST FOUR THAT THE JURY CONVICTED HIM ON WERE
MURDER IN THE FIRST DEGREE AND AGGRAVATED RAPE.
HE RECEIVED LIFE SENTENCES FOR EACH
WITH A 25-YEAR ON IT AFTER FOR EACH AGGRAVATED RAPE.
OUR OFFICERS COULD BREATHE.
OUR COMMUNITY MEMBERS COULD BREATHE.
THE INTENSE FEELING OF FEAR THAT RAN THROUGH OUR COMMUNITY
LIKE A CHILL WAS IMMEDIATELY RELIEVED.
BUT IT'S STILL NOT OVER.
TURNS OUT HE'S RESPONSIBLE FOR EVEN MORE MURDERS.
YEARS LATER, HE CONFESSED TO FIVE OTHERS,
AND DURING ONE OF THOSE,
HE LEFT AN 18-MONTH-OLD BABY AT THE CRIME SCENE...
TO SLOWLY DIE IN THE SAME APARTMENT...
CAN I HELP YOU?
...THAT HER MOTHER WAS KILLED.
THE NEIGHBORS WERE CALLING, AND THE LANDLORD WAS SAYING,
"LISTEN, THERE'S A PROBLEM.
WE HAVEN'T HEARD FROM THE WOMAN HERE, AND SHE HAS A BABY."
WHEN WE GOT THERE, THE BABY HAD DIED.
HE WAS INDICTED FOR A FEW MORE MURDERS,
AND HE'S CONFESSED TO AND BEEN HELD RESPONSIBLE IN COURTS
FOR EIGHT OR NINE MURDERS AT THIS POINT.
AND AS FAR AS I'M CONCERNED,
HE STILL COULD BE RESPONSIBLE FOR A COUPLE MORE.
IN THIS BUSINESS, A DOUBLE MURDER IS VERY RARE.
TRIPLE MURDER -- VERY RARE.
TO HAVE SOMEBODY WITH 7, 8, 9, 10--
UNHEARD OF.
HE'S WHERE HE SHOULD BE.
NOW HE'LL NEVER HARM ANYONE
OUTSIDE THE PRISON SYSTEM AGAIN.
HE'S NEVER GONNA GET OUT.
THERE'S NO DEATH PENALTY IN MASSACHUSETTS.
SO HE COULDN'T GET ANY MORE.
HE GETS TO LIVE.
MY AUNT DOESN'T.
I'M ONE AGAINST THE DEATH PENALTY.
BUT I THINK I WOULD'VE MADE AN EXCEPTION THIS TIME.
I BELIEVE IN THE BIBLE --
EYE FOR AN EYE, A TOOTH FOR A TOOTH.
HE TOOK THEIR LIVES.
HE SHOULDN'T BE ABLE TO BE ALIVE.
THAT'S MY HONEST OPINION.
YEAH.
ROSEMARY MISSED OUT ON HER CHILDREN'S LIVES,
HER GRANDDAUGHTER'S LIFE,
THE BIRTHS OF HER GREAT NIECES AND NEPHEWS.
ALL THE GOOD TIMES THAT WE USED TO HAVE, YOU KNOW,
WAS STOLEN AWAY FROM US.
THINGS WEREN'T THE SAME AFTER.
THAT, TO THIS DAY, IS STILL HARD.
LORETTA WAS A BEAUTIFUL PERSON.
SHE HAD SO MUCH LIFE IN HER, AND, YOU KNOW, I JUST WISH
SHE COULD'VE HAD THAT CHANCE TO LIVE IT.
WE'LL ALWAYS --
WE'LL ALWAYS LOVE YOU, AUNT LORETTA.
YOU'LL ALWAYS BE A PART OF US.