When serial killers come to mind, stabbing or shooting might be the first methods you think of. However, a deeply disturbing method, strangulation, has been the signature of some of history’s most notorious murderers. Strangulation, the act of killing by compressing the windpipe or crucial blood vessels, is a brutal and often horrifyingly intimate way to commit murder. It can leave minimal evidence if the killer is meticulous, yet some survivors tragically succumb later to internal injuries. This method is prevalent in domestic abuse cases but also a chilling tool for serial killers seeking power and control over their victims. Consciousness can be lost in seconds, with death following in minutes as oxygen to the brain is cut off. This list delves into the dark world of serial stranglers, some infamous, others shockingly obscure, all sharing this gruesome method.
10. The Brownout Strangler
Eddie Joseph Leonski, born in 1917 to Russian/Jewish immigrants, endured an abusive, alcohol-ridden upbringing and was often bullied due to his overbearing mother. As a U.S. Army soldier stationed in Melbourne, Australia, in 1942, the 24-year-old Leonski murdered three women by strangulation. His victims were Ivy Violet McLeod (40), Pauline Thompson (31), and Gladys Hosking (40). He earned the moniker “The Brownout Strangler” for attacking during low-light conditions. Leonski claimed he was fascinated by female voices and strangled them to “get their voices.” Despite theories of an alter-ego, he was sentenced to death and hanged on November 9, 1942.
9. The Schoolgirl Strangler
Arnold Karl Sodeman, born in 1899 in Victoria, Australia, had a troubled youth. His father and grandfather died in mental institutions, and his mother suffered from amnesia. After a history of petty crimes and imprisonment, Sodeman seemingly settled down with a wife and daughter. However, at 31, he abducted and strangled 12-year-old Mena Griffiths. The following year, he killed 16-year-old Hazel Wilson. In 1935, he murdered two more girls: Ethel Belshaw (12) and June Rushmer (6). A co-worker’s tip-off after Ethel’s body was found led to Sodeman’s arrest. He confessed, detailing how he left his victims gagged, bound, and strangled. He was executed by hanging on June 1, 1936.
8. The Accra Strangler
Charles Kwabena Ebo Quansah, a mechanic born in Accra, Ghana, in 1964, is believed to have murdered over 34 women. He was initially arrested in 2000 for killing his girlfriend, Joyce Boateng. Investigations then linked him to the 1996 strangulation death of Akua Serwaa. Authorities had been monitoring Quansah. While imprisoned, he confessed to strangling eight women in Accra. Before these horrific crimes, Quansah had a record of robbery and assault. His trial for the string of killings began on July 11, 2002. He was convicted of strangling nine women and sentenced to death by hanging.
7. The Strangler of Tacuba
Gregorio Cárdenas Hernández, born in 1915, is one of Mexico’s most infamous murderers. Despite a promising start, including a chemistry scholarship, Hernández suffered from encephalitis, which caused brain inflammation and nerve damage. In 1942, within weeks, he murdered three young prostitutes and a fellow chemistry student, Graciela Arias Ávalos, burying their bodies in his garden. He then checked himself into a psychiatric hospital. After suspicious neighbors alerted police, the bodies were discovered, and Hernández was arrested. He later escaped prison but was recaptured. In 1947, he received a presidential pardon, later finished law school, and worked as a lawyer.
6. The Panama Strangler
Silvano Ward Brown, born in 1941, is known as Panama’s first serial killer. His father left when he was nine, after which Brown’s life took a turn towards delinquency, leading to juvenile prison. At 18, he committed his first murder, stabbing Paula Caballero during a break-in. He spent 12 years in prison. After his release in 1969, he strangled two prostitutes within a week. When authorities connected him to these stranglings, he confessed to all three murders. A psychiatric evaluation deemed him an amoral psychopath, whose condition led to violent outbursts. After a 20-year sentence, he was released and reportedly worked as a security guard.
5. The Stockwell Strangler
Kenneth Erskine, born in England in 1963, was abandoned by his parents, possibly due to special needs. He was a violent child who attended special schools and had a history of robberies. In 1987, his crimes escalated. Erskine began strangling elderly men and women, leaving them in their beds with sheets pulled to their chins. He was arrested on July 28 after trying to hide a bank account. His fingerprints matched seven murders, and a surviving victim identified him. Erskine claimed amnesia during his trial but was sentenced to seven life terms, required to serve 40 years before parole eligibility.
4. The Sunderland Strangler
Steven John Grieveson, born in Sunderland, England, in 1970, became known for a series of ligature strangulations of four children. Between 1990 and 1994, he murdered Simon Martin (14), Thomas Kelly (18), David Hanson (15), and David Grieff (15). Arrested for burglary in 1993, Grieveson was charged with three of the murders in 1995. After a six-week trial, he received three life sentences with a minimum of 35 years. Grieveson was not charged with Simon Martin’s murder until 2014. He later claimed he murdered three of the boys to hide his homosexuality.
3. The Suffolk Strangler
Steven Wright, born in 1958, grew up in Norfolk. After dropping out of school at 16, he joined the Merchant Navy. He later lived with Pamela Wright (no relation) but led a double life involving gambling, drinking, and visiting brothels. In 2006, he murdered five prostitutes in Ipswich. Wright was found guilty in 2008 and sentenced to life imprisonment. He remains a suspect in at least five other murder cases. A neighbor described him as having a “Jekyll and Hyde character.”
2. The Wednesday Strangler
The Wednesday Strangler is an enigmatic figure, an unidentified serial killer believed to operate in Japan. The nickname arose because six of seven suspected victims disappeared on a Wednesday evening between 1975 and 1989. This killer is thought to be responsible for murdering seven women in Saga Prefecture, a series of crimes also known as the Saga Women Murders. Five women were found strangled; only skeletons of the other two were recovered, making their cause of death uncertain. In 1989, a man arrested for an unrelated crime confessed to some murders but was later acquitted. The case remains unsolved, and it’s unknown if there was more than one killer.
1. The Foundling Wheel Killer
Luísa de Jesus, born in Portugal in 1748, crafted a horrifying scheme to make money due to financial hardship. In the 17th century, foundling wheels allowed mothers to anonymously leave babies they couldn’t care for with the church. The government offered cash rewards for adopting these children. Luísa exploited this system. She adopted over 30 children, using her real name and aliases, only to strangle or smother them and bury them in shallow graves. In 1772, after a woman discovered one such grave, authorities traced the deceased child to Luísa. She confessed, and the bodies of 33 babies were found on her property. She had adopted 34 children but never revealed the whereabouts of the last one. Luísa was charged with 33 murders and sentenced to be garroted, becoming the last woman executed in Portugal’s history.
The stories of these stranglers are a grim reminder of the dark capabilities within human nature. Their methods were personal and terrifying, leaving behind trails of devastation and unanswered questions. The act of strangulation itself, a direct and brutal assertion of power, highlights a particularly chilling aspect of these crimes.
What are your thoughts on these disturbing cases? Share your reflections or any other infamous cases you know of in the comments below.
