When we usually think of serial killers, we think of, you know, John Wayne Gacy, Ted Bundy, those who are captured and imprisoned. But what about those who were never captured, those who killed went on killing sprees and got away with it, those who were never identified other than whatever nickname we gave them, some perhaps still cling to this very day. Let’s take a look at four serial killers who were never caught.
The Colonial Parkway Killer
If you’ve ever been on a road trip and late one night, you really, really had to pee, and you saw a rest stop and thought to yourself, “I’ll just go there,” don’t. Use that empty Gatorade bottle instead. There’s a reason that rest stop looks terrifying at night … because it is.
According to the Huffington Post, between 1986 and 1989 a serial killer targeted couples traveling on Virginia’s Colonial Parkway late at night. Okay, so most of the victims weren’t attacked at rest stops, but they were all traveling on the scenic road that connects some of Virginia’s most popular landmarks. Some of the victims’ cars were abandoned with the driver’s side windows rolled down and the glove boxes opened, as if the victims had been approached by someone they thought was law enforcement and they were getting ready to hand over their car’s registration.
Eight people died along the Colonial Parkway, always in pairs and roughly one each year until the killings abruptly ended in 1989. And even though the FBI has a list of 130 suspects, it’s still no closer to apprehending the Colonial Parkway killer.
Get 20% off your first Hunt A Killer box with code TCNSTHE I-70 KILLER
In April 1992, a 26-year-old clerk was shot to death in the Indianapolis store where she worked. Three days later, two female store clerks were shot at a Wichita, Kansas, bridal shop. Three weeks after that, the victim was the 24-year-old manager of a boot shop in St. Charles, Missouri. Each of the three crime scenes was in a different state, but they were all in shopping malls off Interstate 70. All the victims were murdered with the same gun, probably a semi-automatic .22-caliber pistol.
In May of that same year, the killer murdered a 37-year-old woman working at a gift shop in a mall. He’d also killed a 40-year-old man working at a ceramics store. In 1993 and 1994 there were three more murders in Texas, which police have also linked to the I-70 killer.
So besides the obvious lesson here, that you should never take a job as a store clerk at a shopping mall located just off Interstate 70, you should probably also not be a brunette female working as a store clerk at a shopping mall located just off Interstate 70. According to Vox Magazine, five of the first six victims were brunette women, and the sixth might have been mistaken for a woman because of his ponytail.
The killings stopped after 1994, but no one has ever been definitively identified as the I-70 killer.
THE WEST MESA BONE COLLECTOR
There are lots of very good reasons not to become a lady of the night, but one of the best is that they’re often targeted by serial killers, mostly because they are less likely to be missed by friends and family. Also, going places with strange men is kind of a part of the job description.
According to the City of Albuquerque, that was pretty much the rough outline of the Bone Collector’s plan — this modern serial killer buried at least 11 women and girls in a mesa on the outskirts of Albuquerque, New Mexico between 2001 and 2005. All but one of the victims was involved prostitution, and the one who wasn’t was in the company of a person who was involved in prostitution. The remains of the 11 women (plus an unborn baby, for extra awfulness) weren’t discovered until 2009, which means the killer either decided to give up his hobby or he moved away and set up serial killer shop somewhere else.
So don’t sell yourself, don’t work in a mall off Interstate 70, don’t be a brunette, and don’t kiss anyone in a parked car. That pretty much covers it. So far.
CONNECTICUT RIVER VALLEY KILLER
In 1997, a paraplegic named Gary Westover made a startling deathbed confession. Years earlier, he’d been forced to witness the abduction and murder of a woman in Vermont. He gave some details and the names of the murderers to his uncle, who dutifully handed the information over to law enforcement. Then law enforcement dropped the ball.
Westover and his uncle are both dead now, and no one can find the information that might have helped identify a serial killer, or in this case, serial killers. Called “The Connecticut River Valley Killer,” this person or persons murdered at least seven people between 1978 and 1989. The women were stabbed to death, and their bodies were usually dumped in the woods.
According to the Tampa Bay Times, there are suspects — in particular, a man named Michael Nicholaou, who killed himself, his estranged wife, and his step-daughter in 2005. Nicholaou had been under some suspicion for the disappearance of his first wife in 1988. And the killer’s last victim — the only one who survived — saw a photo of him and identified him as her attacker. But just like so many other cases of retired serial killers, there’s really no way to know for sure. The only known piece of evidence that might definitively connect Nicholaou to the Connecticut River Valley killings is the one Gary Westover gave to the police — the one that no one can seem to find. Nice work, authorities.
TCNS is sponsored by Pod Decks. Pod Decks are the hottest new tool for podcasters looking to have more meaningful conversations or gamify their podcast. Simply shuffle up, ask a question, and let the content roll. Order yours today at poddecks.com and use code TCNS for 10% off your order.
NOTE: This article contains affiliate links, which will earn the site a commission if the product is purchased.
If you enjoy our writing, please consider leaving a small donation. Your support helps keep the lights on and allows us to hire more writers and grow our site.
 |  |  |
