In it were detailed notes he hoped I would follow up on regarding unsolved murders in Brevard County and his belief that they may have been the work of a former Florida Highway Patrolman convicted of murder in 1990. Mans best friend helped solve the case after Misty Morse was found dead in the Indian River. This time, deputies couldn't just tell Ed to cool off, then file the fight away on an incident report. Cops believe Brevard was also behind two shootings of homeless men in New York City last weekend, in . While the city with highest number of murders period? During his tenure as a highway patrolman, there were 16 unsolved murders of women in Brevard County. Bundy was tried in Miami in 1979. Sentenced to death on Nov. 10, 1998. -- Mamilee Zanders, 72, of Melbourne. He stabbed a young man 30 times and cut another woman's torso from her pelvis to her chest. Name: Date: Victims: Location : A: Aubrey Dennis ADAMS Jr.. January 23, 1978: 1: Florida, USA: James ADAMS November 12, 1973: 1: Florida, USA: Richard Lee ADAMS . During that stretch when Ed couldn't get work, Kennedy sent him $1,000. In the ten-year period during the 1980's, the state recorded 247 serial murders making Florida the third most dangerous state in the United States. There were no initial reports or communications from the agency about the death, however, even as photos from the scene turned up on Facebook. There was enormous pressure on Gainesville police, on state investigators, on prosecutors, to find the killer and put him behind bars. It was a nasty, turbulent, protracted parting that left Ed's mother--a devout Catholic--devastated. Published Oct. 20, 2017. It got easier with each one we did.". Ed's co-worker at the Humane Society, Nancy Breslin, says people sometimes look warily at Ed and say things like: Who's that guy you've got working back there? Murder on the Space Coast: John Torres discusses Season 2. "He trusts me and I trust him," Pauwels says. Email us attips@the-sun.co.ukor call 0207 782 4368 . Blood spattered an easy chair, the carpet, the coffee table. It's also dangerous to make excuses, to insist that something had to have happened to them along the way that caused them to become what they are. He had been shot six times in the torso. Ed's dad, family friends told investigators, had a ferocious temper. The killer mutilated the breasts of two of the young women. Then last week, investigators across the county found themselves dealing with three unrelated deaths in public spaces within a six-hour time frame. And she nagged at Ed constantly. Miami Herald file The killings follow the ghastly murders of three young Gainesville-area women. He let her go when he saw that she was very pregnant. "Ed, you see, not only has been locked up in a cell for 76 days, he's been sent to a psychiatric hospital, kept in prison for a year, had charges for everything under the sun, had all this stuff hanging over his head. He's jaded, you know.". Harris had the means. Earlier that summer, investigators learned, Ed had been kicked out of the Gatorwood apartment complex where two of the victims were killed. After his arrest, Bonin confessed, telling one TV reporter: "I couldn't stop killing. And, then, as far as newspapers go, half the things that lthey) deal with are just negative things about people. Mostly he made threats, but he also would gear up in combat fatigues, strap a knife to his leg and tell people he'd fought in Vietnam--though, of course, he was only 4 when the war ended. Sign up forOxygen Insiderfor all the best true crime content. "I didn't think I would ever be able to walk again. 13 Aug 1974", "5 Bodies Found in Grove; Giles Confesses He's Killer", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bernard_Giles&oldid=1140530346, This page was last edited on 20 February 2023, at 14:03. Unlike other well-known serial killers, Knowles followed no pattern. Creating unbelievably gruesome crime scenes that were designed to shock the people who had the misfortune of happening upon them, hestabbed his young victims to death, mutilatedtheir bodies, and posed their corpses in disturbing positions. The suspected serial shooterand in at least two cases, killerof unhoused people, Gerald Brevard III, is in custody hours after his father said they had a normal conversation. She was living on the streets. The murders occurred over several days, which made them all the more terrifying. However, Leach was his final victim, and Bundy was apprehended and convicted of her murder and the killings of Levy and Bowman, the two young women at FSU. One day in April 1988--after Ed had dropped out of school for a while and gone to live with his brother, George, in Gainesville--the two were taking a drive to the beach to talk about Ed moving home. And it goes to this officer that's in-the control booth and I'm like 'Yeah, how much longer do I have to sit in this cell, man? They will not speak to reporters without Ed's approval. "That was real bad, because I couldn't walk," Ed says. Ed Humphrey, on that August morning, had not been taking his medication for some time. Officials were able to usefingerprints to identify thevictim as 22-year-old Misty Morse, who lived about 20 miles from where her body was discovered, though. It lets him have his old smile back. Her fully clothed body was found in a palmetto thicket, shot in the head, on December 10, 1973. "I don't know," he says. For other inquiries, Contact Us. They wound up having a few drinks and getting in trouble with a security guard at a hotel bar. They hoped that these hairscould help lead to the killer. Carlton, a neighbor . She disagrees. The way I- see it, he got the shaft when they sentenced him. Carlton Francis stabbed to death 66-year-old twin sisters, Bernice Flegel and Claire Brunt, at their West Palm Beach home on July 24, 1997. The metamorphosis seemed to happen in a matter of days. "Of course you do.". His victims were all hitchhikers whom he picked up and drove at gunpoint to remote orange groves where he sexually abused and shot them. His mother was well-intentioned and caring, but nervous. In the unprovoked attack, Alexander Taylor struck 91-year-old Yen Jit Wong in the 2400 block of South Wentworth in Rogers Park on Sept. 18, 2018, sending the long-time Chinatown resident into . Some of the other inmates had made threats. Investigators then submitted the hairs stuck to white duct tape on Mistys body to a West Coast lab for analysis. She was known for murdering truckers. -- Patricia Mallon, 41, of Melbourne. Aileen Wuornos, then, was an exceedingly rare anomaly. Acquaintances claimed he went on late-night "missions" through the Alachua County woods. Even today, a spokesman for the new state attorney hesitates: "Is Ed Humphrey still a suspect?Well, hmmm.One would think it ought to be a simple question.". The deputy put Humphrey in the back of his patrol car. () Ted Bundy: ) This sexual predator hit the central region of Florida. She was last seen at the Colonial Motel in Melbourne a few days before her body was found. Among Florida's 380 Death Row inmates, many are guilty of ghastly killings. OtherFlorida serial killers,like Ted Bundyand Bobby JoeLong, had nation-wide crime sprees that ended with death row in the Sunshine State. Gallop is a criminal justice/breaking news reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Much of the internet speculation was bandied about on a number of Facebook-connected crime watch pages. [4][5], Paula Darlene Hamric, 22, disappeared November 17, 1973. Giles is currently Brevard County high security prison in Florida where he is serving life in prison for the murder of five. Their bodies were found, in some cases raped, in orange groves or wooded areas in Brevard County. Rocket Homes Florida Brevard County Melbourne 32934. The day he killed Hendricks, Harris had pulled over another woman earlier and ordered her from her car. -- Christopher Dana, 18, of Cocoa. On February 26, 1984, Wilder embarked on a seven-week-long cross-country trip, during which he murdered at least eight women, all aspiring models. He may have more plastic surgery. In Florida, the serial killer Danny Rolling, and the female serial killer Aileen Wuornos. He was tall, good-looking, athletic, polite. Her nude body was found strangled, hands bound, eight days later. Gerard Schaefer was dubbed the "Killer Cop" because he was a Sheriff's deputy who found his victims while on patrol in Martin County, Florida. They wonder if his death could have been. She was found strangled, wearing only a St. Christopher's necklace; her shirt and sweater were found near her remains. But more investigative files are expected to be released later this month--evidence that may seem incriminating to Ed. Ed was still serving 14 months probation at the time, and drinking was a violation of his terms. He said a lot of grandiose things (that) caused him to be a suspect. She was found dead in her home in May. "Ed--everywhere he went he caused a scene," said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity. We need a backstory, an explanation because we don't like to believe the possibility that evil just exists. And I said, 'Holy sh--.' During his tenure as a highway patrolman, there were 16 unsolved murders of women in Brevard County. Wilder, 39, a wealthy Boynton Beach man, committed suicide during a shootout with New Hampshire state troopers in April 1984. The Executioner: Is a private citizen who is paid $150 per execution. And that goes directly to the point that Florida Tech's Angela Tenga -- assistant professor in the School of Arts and Communication -- made Thursday night during her lecture: "Serial Killers: Our Deepest Fears and Darkest Desires?". Timothy Harris had several of the traits Tenga discussed. On Aug. 30, the day after the last of the bodies was found, Edward Humphrey--then 19, deeply troubled and wild-looking--was arrested and jailed for assaulting his 79-year-old grandmother. -- Kimberly Walker, 21, of Vero Beach, and another woman yet to be identified. He left her body in a wooded area in Indian River County, where it went undiscovered for weeks. He revealed that he decided not to kill at least another three young women he held at gunpoint because they talked to him, which "humanised" themselves to him. Ed says. I mean, why don't the girls tell me that? "The state attorney fully intends to prove the guilt of Danny Harold Rolling in these murders. The investigation has cost more than $5 million, taken over 130,000 man-hours, amassed 1,500 pieces of evidence and involved more than 6,600 investigative leads. Case #87-15546 (Unsolved-447). Brevard County, State of Florida Robert Eugene Koehler Robert Koehler is accused of being the infamous "pillowcase rapist" who attacked at least 44 women in South Florida in the 1980s,. I was like, God, I can't handle this.". Ed, following his attorney's advice, won't talk about it--or anything else he may have said to police at the time. Investigators then submitted the hairs stuck to white duct tape on Mistys body to a West Coast lab for analysis. In late November, 1985, in Malabar, Brevard County, Florida, a nude teen woman, handcuffed at both feet and ankles, had been crawling along the side of the road. There was a toilet, a sink and a military mattress on the floor. Ed answered immediately, and the two have been exchanging letters at least once a month ever since. "He was just the wrong boy at the wrong place at the wrong time--with the wrong malady.". On June 26, 2014, the 24-year-old male suspect was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death. The nude body of David Spears, a 43-year-old construction worker, was found June 1, 1990, in Citrus County. "The first night I was in there, no one told me anything," he says. She was found beaten to death in her home in May. The case received worldwide attention at the time . The transcript of that interview has never been made public. Aileen Wuornos was eventually picked up on a . Lets just say, all of the talk came on our radar, said Claycomb, who also said there was no evidence of a serial killer being at work in the area. Over a frenzied three-month period in the early 1970s, he embarked on a killing spree of unimaginable horror inTitusville, Florida. Anyone else--they would have dropped the charges or maybe given him one year's probation. The reports painted an eerie picture. She knew hmm only as Ed--a nice guy, hard worker, easy to get along with. We also have a serial killers collection - for the truly edgy crowd. But months passed and Humphrey was never charged with the crimes, the Alachua County grand jury deciding that there was no case against him. The Florida Gay Bar Murders: Gary Ray Bowles was a bisexual who cruised the Florida gay bars in the mid-1990's looking for men to murder and rob. [16][17], Since then, Giles has been moved around various penitentiaries around the state. The investigative records on the GainesviUe murders are filled with entries of Ed Humphrey scaring people in the final months before his arrest. Investigators did quickly notice a potential clue: black hairs in the duct tape that didnt belong to the victim, who hadauburn tresses. And he reportedly has been whispering details of the killings to a fellow inmate, who has been telling investigators. "I just thought it sounded like he was being railroaded,"says Kennedy, who noticed an article about Ed one day in the San Francisco Chronicle. To learn more about the case, watch One Deadly Mistake, airing Saturdays at 7/6con Oxygen, or stream episodes on Oxygen.com. WF, born 6/5/38, was sentenced in Dade County on 9/16/87 for the 1983 murder of an 84 year old woman. TAMPA Three people have been shot and killed in the last two weeks in Seminole Heights, and police say the cases are related. "First of all, a lot of people watch TV a lot--five hours a day, on the average. We pay for your stories! Most of his friends described him in a very positive manner. A Florida jury has found serial killer Robert Hayes guilty of slaying three women while he was majoring in criminal justice at college, prosecutors said. "I hit her and I'm sorry." She is a savvy and persistent woman who tenaciously guards Humphrey's contact with the media. But that's pretty much how I feel.". But just all of a sudden I got a real bad depression, a real deep depression. -- Julie Backstrom, 29, of Cocoa. [1] Early life [ edit] ', News Group Newspapers Limited in England No. Investigators theorized that the rumors, although false, about Morse being pregnant may have played a part in the homicide. It was also obvious that she had been murdered, said Harrell. She had disappeared June 6, 1983, while vacationing in Cocoa Beach. Margaret Allen, 45, was convicted last September of killing and torturing the housekeeper in 2005 who accused her of stealing $2,000. This earned him the ominous moniker of "The Beauty Queen Killer." Wilder's first victim was 20-year-old Rosario Gonzales, who was working at the Miami Grand Prix in which Wilder was a contestant. Heres what you need to know about the 65-year-old serial killer and the gruesome murders that he committed. In 11, they have leads, a few suspects and insufficient evidence to make an arrest. And Ed Humphrey is still a free man with a lingering cloud over his head: suspect. Brevard is a 30-year-old . JEFF DAUGHERTY , 33, died Nov. 7, 1988, by electric chair. ", Mackenzie answers quietly. 0:00. who manufactures restoration hardware furniture They were Paula Hamric, a 22-year-old mother-of-two, Nancy Gerry, 18, Carolyn Bennett, 17, Sharon Wimer and Krista Melton, both just 14. He was charged with assault and attempted rape. Read on below to see how we crunched the numbers and how your town ranked. A neighbor also reports that the grandson is running in and out of the home - shouting that he is going to murder the grandparents. ", A police officer told state investigators that 10 days before the killings Ed claimed he was going to Gainesville to "cut up some women.". Well, then that is not only a major story but it is also a fascinating one. A real estate agent in Florida hunted down homeless men, according to authorities out of Miami. And when the jail returned it--saying it did not allow cash to be mailed to inmates--Kennedy got a money order. By Sharon Lynn Pruitt I fell asleep there.". Frank Johnson was the first inmate executed in Florida's electric chair on October 7, 1924. Gerald Brevard III is the suspected serial shooter accused of killing two homeless men and wounding three others in Washington D.C. and New York City, police say. "I guess I kind of pushed her because she fell and hit her head on that mantle there. Stano moved to the Daytona area with his parents when he was a young adult. She saw what happened to him once, and she will not risk letting it happen again. And they don't even know what the terminology is. It worked--but it also made him dull, sluggish, overweight. He confessed to the murder of Hamric, and during the trial, pled guilty to the murders of the three remaining girls, as well as a series of non-lethal attacks and attempted murders against others. Ed's bail, originally set at $10,250 was increased to $1 million - 100 to 200 times the scheduled rate for aggravated assault. He would not be here, sharing his birthday with the media, were it not for the publicist. Sheriff's officials can find no motives. Following his arrest, he fully admitted his guilt and was sentenced to several life imprisonment terms in 1974. In 1993, a grand jury indicted Walls for the murder of 47-year . Don Lykkebak, Ed's attorney, says, "He was a medical patient at the time who was not being treated. There was enormous pressure on Gainesville police, on state investigators, on prosecutors, to find the killer and put him behind bars. Officials call Willy Suarez Maceo, 25, a serial killer. ", Marti Mackenzie nods. BERNARD Giles features in Confessions Of A Serial Killer With Piers Morgan in which he talks candidly about his crimes. (The seven Brevard arrestees are overwhelmingly white, all men and have a median age over 40 a profile consistent with the majority of . Then he banged his head on the window so hard the deputy worried he would break the glass. Hammack stepped inside the wide front door into the living room. Her car was found days later in Mims. Her fully clothed body was found shot in the head on January 31, 1974. He only escaped the death penalty by confessing to the murders. We pay forvideostoo. He'll never change his name, but some day, he says, when he's done with school, he might move somewhere far away. And he paid his dues--both in time and torment. Jacksonville with 129. You're better off without it. Crime lab experts had damning evidence that semen found at the murder scene came from Rolling. A Florida mom went on a murderous rampage, killing her four children early today before turning the gun on herself. He was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison. The spokesman, Will Irby, thinks it over, consults his boss and tries again. Detectives are working to determine if foul play was a factor. Her throat was cut while she was at a Cocoa hotel in February 1988. Especially around his mouth, she says, the skin is much smoother and more elastic and natural-looking. Most of my friends got 1200 or something. In 1972, he married 17-year-old Leslie Jo Ann, who gave birth to a daughter in July 1973. [4][3], Carolyn Jan Bennett, 17, disappeared on November 15, 1973. I'm standing by the door and I'm pressing the button, and the guards come up and they slam the door open." Palm Beach County has produced 11 condemned killers since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976. "There's this girl at work--Kelly--and she didn't know at all until today. Bernard Eugene Giles (born April 9, 1953) is an American serial killer and rapist who killed five girls and women in Titusville, Florida between September and November 1973. They eventually fled to a wooded area where they hid for the night before Brevard County Sheriff's investigators found them near their Port St. John home on the chilly morning of Jan. 7, 1999. The sheriff's office says it kept him there for his own safety--not as punishment--because he'd threatened suicide. "It showed a picture of him, and he seemed trustworthy but kind of crestfallen. BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. - For weeks a slew of seemingly mysterious deaths - from a suspected suicide found on the banks of a scenic riverside neighborhood to a body found lying in the middle of a. Joseph Smith is currently at the Florida State Prison in Raiford for the 2004 abduction, rape and murder of 11-year-old Carlie Brucia in Sarasota.