Between 1962 and 1964, a series of brutal murders occurred in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, and the surrounding area, resulting in the murder of 13 innocent women, six of whom were elderly women.
This suspenseful unsolved case that shocked the whole United States has not been solved so far, and only the murderer of one case has been confirmed.
In June 1962, Mary, an elderly woman living alone in Boston, was found tragically dead in her bedroom. The cause of death was strangulation by stockings, and the body was still tied with a bow made of stockings.
Mary's quiet life came to an end, and she became the first victim of this serial murder. The case has caused panic and unease among the citizens of Boston. Only 14 days later, a second and third cases occurred one after the other, and the modus operandi was very similar to the first one.
All three elderly women were killed in their own homes, wearing bows tied around their necks with stockings. The police realize that a ruthless serial killer has appeared in the city.
The media named it "Boston Strangler", and for a moment panic swept through the city.
After the three cases, Boston went into a panic. Residents are worried about their lives, and the elderly who live alone can't sleep at night. In the middle of the night, the whole city was filled with panic, and any sound could be reminiscent of the arrival of a murderer.
Supermarkets and home furnishings are selling safety devices. People are afraid to go out alone for fear of becoming the next victim. The impact is particularly severe on older women, who are already frail and now face the threat of death at any time.
This unsolved case cast a shadow on the originally civilized and open city of Boston, and the people's hearts were panicked, and the harmonious order of life was broken.
A month after the three tragic incidents, the situation has taken a turn for the worse. From July to September, similar murders came to an abrupt end, and the killers seemed to evaporate. Police and citizens alike breathed a sigh of relief, believing that the killer might have fled Boston.
Residents are gradually letting down their guard, and the streets are bustling with activity at night. Unexpectedly, just when everyone thought that life would return to normal, on September 19, the fourth victim was found dead.
Since then, two more cases of cruelty have occurred. The high degree of similarity in modus operandi suggests that the killer did not disappear, but only hibernate temporarily to confuse the police.
In June 1962, the first murder that shocked the city took place in Boston. Mary Mullen, 75, was found tragically dead in her bedroom. She used to live a peaceful and peaceful life, but she died overnight.
When police arrived at the scene, they found Mary lying on her back on her back in half-naked state, wearing only her underwear, with her eyes wide open and her facial expression painful. The creepiest thing is that she has a pair of stockings tied around her neck, tied in the shape of a bow.
The room appeared to be in disarray, but upon investigation, it was discovered that no valuables were missing from Mary's home. This suggests that the killer was most likely trying to create a false image. The autopsy revealed that Mary had been sexually assaulted by an unknown object before she was murdered.
Just 14 days later, on June 28, a second case occurred. Nina, a 68-year-old woman living alone, was found dead in her home. She and Mary had a similar experience: in her pajamas, she was lying on her back on the ground, her legs wide open, and a bow tied around her neck with her stockings.
Nina's home also appears to have been ransacked, but the valuables are still intact. The police judged that this was also deliberately done by the murderer. The autopsy also revealed that Nina had been sexually assaulted and brutally murdered by the killer.
Just two days later, a third victim appeared. The 65-year-old Helen was even more miserable, naked and kneeling on the bed, her hands still visibly struggling and bruised.
The killer barely tied a bow around her neck with Helen's underwear. Helen's apartment was also turned into a mess. The modus operandi of the three cases is very similar, the time and place are closely linked, and the police concluded that they were caused by a serial killer.
Residents gave him the chilling nickname "Boston Strangler."
The three homicides occurred in just 16 days, and every few days innocent elderly people were killed, Boston went into a panic. In the middle of the night, screams of terror often echoed in the empty streets; During the day, passers-by are covered with a haze on their faces.
Security equipment in supermarkets and stores was snapped up, and people were afraid to go out alone. The impact is particularly severe on older women in urban areas, who are already unable to move and are now confined to their homes.
Boston, once bustling and lively, is now a ghost town.
After the first three homicides, Boston ushered in a "window period". From the end of June to mid-August, there were no similar cases in the city. Police and residents alike believe that the series of homicides, which continue to shock the city, may have come to an end.
The killer may have fled Boston and won't be coming back. As a result, the panicked city began to regain its former life. The streets are crowded with pedestrians, and the night is no longer deadly silent.
People are beginning to let go and believe that life is about to get back on track.
Just when everyone was breathing a sigh of relief, on August 19, the peace was broken again. The fourth victim, 75-year-old Ida, was found tragically dead in her home.
As in the previous three cases, Ida was also strangled by stockings. The police realized that this cruel murderer had not stopped, but was only temporarily hiding to confuse the police.
Because in the past two months, the police have been investigating with all their might, but there has been no clue. In September and October, two murders with similar tactics followed.
Although the two newest victims are different in age from the previous ones, the characteristics of the crime are highly consistent and there is no doubt that they belong to the same person.
The two-month window did not allow the police to relax. Instead, they intensified their reconnaissance around Boston in search of the demon that was constantly taking people's lives.
They analyze the victims' social connections, screen all the people in the city who have a criminal record, and look for clues through various means. It's a pity that this cunning seems to have no flaws, and all the investigations ended in failure, and the police found nothing.
Two new cases in August and September have shown the cruelty and insidiousness of the murderers. This once-quiet murder case once again kicked off the horror with the emergence of a new victim.
By November and December, the already haunting serial murder case had changed unimaginably. On November 5, the first schoolgirl of African descent became a victim.
Her name is Sophia, she is only 21 years old, and she is an honor student in medical school. Unlike the background of the older white women in front of her, Sophia is young and beautiful, and her future is bright.
She shares an apartment with two white roommates, and the three of them get along well. For security reasons, they installed two locks at the door of the apartment, and carefully screened visitors to ensure that they were harmless before opening the door.
Unexpectedly, the murderer broke in at the moment when a roommate was out and killed Sophia. The corpse also had a bow tied with stockings. The most cruel thing is that Sophia was not only murdered, but also sexually assaulted by the murderer, leaving terrible evidence on her body.
Three weeks later, the situation changed again. A 23-year-old white female secretary named Padrisha was killed in her home. This time, the killer targeted a young woman of childbearing age who was pregnant at the time of Padrixia's murder.
The life of the fetus in her womb was also lost. From Sofia to Padrixia, the age range of the victims has widened from 21 to 23, and the ethnic background has changed from black to white.
The police are completely unaware of the pattern of the serial killer, and his target seems to be nowhere to be found. Some experts judged that the killer was likely to suffer from a severe female hatred complex that brutally ended the lives of these young women.
Both cases show that no woman is safe and that they can all be targeted. For a time, Boston was plunged into a new round of panic, and all the women lived in fear.
In December, the case continued to escalate. A 23-year-old female singer was killed, not only was she strangled with stockings, but she also had as many as 22 abusive wounds on her body. Then, a 58-year-old divorced woman was killed, with her underwear still stuffed in her mouth.
There are signs that this already disturbing series of murders is rapidly deteriorating in a more brutal and unpredictable direction. The police feel unprecedented frustration and predicament, because at this moment they do not know as much about the murderer as they did when the case first occurred.
Just when the police were in a desperate situation, there was a breakthrough in the case. In October 1964, a man, Albert, was captured. Initially, he was arrested for multiple cases of harassment and rape.
Unexpectedly, Albert soon admitted during the interrogation that he was the outlaw "Boston Strangler". He not only gave details of the various crime scenes, but also described the victims in each case.
This inside information convinced the police that the killer had finally been caught. For a time, "Boston Strangler" made headlines and headlines in major media outlets. The reputation of the police has also been shattered by solving crimes.
However, just when everyone breathed a sigh of relief, the attentive people noticed the problem. There were obvious contradictions in Albert's confession, and some of the details he described did not match the scene of the crime.
For example, he claimed to have put duct tape over a victim's mouth, but the police did not find it. What's more, one of the attempted cases Albert is alleged to have never been reported or heard of by anyone.
It can be said that Albert's confession is very flawed. Subsequently, the two female reporters concluded through their investigation that Albert was likely induced to be wronged.
In order to give an explanation to public opinion, the police still tried Albert. However, at the critical moment, he was stabbed to death in prison. The truth is once again mysterious, and it is never possible to determine whether Albert is the real murderer.
Years later, new DNA technology confirmed that Albert was indeed involved in a homicide. But the other 12 unsolved cases remain completely shrouded in fog. It can be said that the victory of the police in solving the case this time was short-lived.
This cunning serial killer eventually defeats the justice system and escapes the game.
Albert's death in prison is even more of a mystery. Until then, he had been under close guard and isolated from other prisoners. But someone was still able to approach and kill him, and the guards disappeared inexplicably.
There are all kinds of signs that it is possible that some forces are silently sheltering the real murderer, so they can quietly silence them. Albert became another victim in this unsolved case.
The whole incident is full of unsolved mysteries, and the police's failure to do so is also suffocating. The Boston strangulation case remains unsolved to this day, and 13 lives have not been treated fairly.
It's also a wake-up call that there's a ruthless killer hiding in a corner of the city.
This two-year-long Boston serial murder case also reflected the problems of American society at that time.
The first is that there are serious barriers within the policing system. Although there have been many similar cases in the Boston area, there is little information exchange and joint investigation between the different police districts.
Each police district operates independently and even competes with each other to be the first to solve the case. This division of policing creates room for the killer to get away with it. If a unified case information platform could have been established at that time, and the police forces of various districts could have joined forces, perhaps the criminal suspects could be locked down and arrested more quickly.
Secondly, the society at that time did not pay enough attention to the status of women, and the pension system was also flawed. Most of the victims are elderly or middle-aged women, who are easy targets.
As a vulnerable group, they need more protection and care from society. If we can pay attention to women's rights and improve the care and resettlement measures for the elderly living alone, we may be able to avoid such a tragic event.
Finally, there are derelictions of duty in the media. The major media paid too much attention to the sensational nature of the report, hyped up the details of the case to attract attention, and neglected the in-depth investigation of the incident.
If the media can remain objective and rational and pay attention to discovering the truth, it may be able to help the police solve the case faster, instead of gaining attention by exaggerating the atmosphere of terror.
Overall, this unsolved case illustrates the shortcomings of the United States in the 1960s in terms of government, society, and public opinion. It is a wake-up call to pay more attention to women's rights, a fairer and more efficient justice system, and a more accountable media.
Only by constantly improving the building of these systems and reducing the defects of the social system can we prevent the recurrence of such tragedies.