Serial killers are some of the most infamous criminals in history. They have captivated our imaginations for decades, and their stories have become the stuff of nightmares. So, today from the World’s #1 Source of Research-Based Content, The Daily Top 10 we will share with you the Top 10 Most Famous Notorious Serial Killers in the USA.
From the most notorious to the lesser known, these ten serial killers have left their mark on the USA and beyond. With their disturbing behaviors and shocking crimes, they have become symbols of terror and evil. Whether it was due to their cunning and intelligence or their sheer brutality, these criminals have left an indelible mark on our collective memory.
Whether you find yourself fascinated by the psychology of serial killers or simply horrified by their actions, this list of the Top 10 Most Famous Notorious Serial Killers in the USA is sure to spark your interest.
Who is the Most Famous Notorious Serial Killer in the USA?
Serial killers have been a part of American culture since the 1800s, and their stories are deeply embedded in our history and collective consciousness. In this article, we take a look at the Top 10 Most Notorious Serial Killers in the USA, exploring the heinous crimes they committed, their motivations, and the legacy they left behind. If you are brave enough to read about serial killers, you will be interested to know the Top 10 Best and Scariest Horror Movies of All Time.
Before we identify the Most Famous Notorious Serial Killer in the USA, let’s see who is on the rest of our list first!
TOP 10: Gary Ridgway
Gary Ridgway is known as the Green River Killer and later he was known as the deadliest convicted serial killer. According to News Week, he claims to have killed over 80 women in Washington in the 1980s and 90s, but he pled guilty in 2003 to killing 48.
His first believed victim was said to be a 16-year-old girl, and he raped and killed over 40 women within two years. Although he was a suspect in several different killings over the years, DNA technology was unable to connect him, and he reportedly even passed a polygraph test. But in 2003, he was given a plea deal and was sentenced to 48 life sentences, though he said he killed more than 80 women, as mentioned in Crime and Investigation.
TOP 9: Dean Corll
Dean Corll was an American serial killer and pederast who made a name for himself as the culprit behind the Houston Mass Murders. According to Criminal Minds, Corll killed abducted, raped, tortured, and murdered a minimum of 28 teenage boys and young men between 1970 and 1973 in Houston and Pasadena, Texas.
According to All thats Interesting, as Corll was killed immediately before his murders were discovered, the true number of victims he had claimed will never be known. Twenty-seven of Corll’s known victims have been identified, and the identity of a 28th victim whose body has never been found. All of these victims were killed by either shooting, strangulation, or a combination of both. Upon discovery, it was considered the worst example of serial murder in US history.
TOP 8: Belle Gunness
Belle Gunness, who was known as “Hell’s Belle,” is different from the other killers on this list of the Top 10 Most Famous Notorious Serial Killers in the USA. She is known as one of the most notorious women in the USA who has killed at least 14 people, but some believe she may have had up to 40 victims.
So, according to Legends of America, she was America’s most degenerate female serial killer in history, who likely killed both her husband and all of her children.
TOP 7: Richard Cottingham
Richard Francis Cottingham is a Notorious American serial killer and rapist who murdered at least 17 young women and girls in New York and New Jersey. His confirmed killings include nine convictions and a further eight official confessions under non-prosecution agreements.
According to News Week, he was given the name Torso Killer because he often cut off his victims’ heads and hands. In 1984, Cottingham was found guilty of five murders and sentenced to 200 years in prison and has since confessed to many more. Some believe his victim count lies around 80 to 100.
TOP 6: David Berkowitz
David Berkowitz brought fear and terror to New York City in 1976/1977 and he was the cause of one of the largest manhunts in NYC history. According to Britannica, this Notorious American serial killer murdered six people in New York City in 1976–77.
He was arrested in 1977 just 11 days after his last murder following a large manhunt and confessed to the killings. Berkowitz is currently serving a sentence of 365 years in a New York prison.
TOP 5: Jeffrey Dahmer
Jeffrey Dahmer, also known as the Milwaukee Cannibal or the Milwaukee Monster, was a Notorious American serial killer and sex offender who killed and dismembered seventeen men and boys between 1978 and 1991. His victims were usually black, Latino, or Asian men and boys.
For 13 years, he lived primarily in the Midwest and most of the men who were killed by him were young, gay African Americans who Dahmer lured back to his home, promising to pay them money to pose nude for photographs. Dahmer would then drug and strangle them to death, generally mutilating, and occasionally cannibalizing, their bodies. He confessed to 17 murders total and was sentenced to 15 life terms, but according to History, Dahmer was killed in prison by another inmate in 1994.
TOP 4: Sam Little
Serial killer Samuel Little is the 4th Most Famous Notorious Serial Killer in the USA. Having gone undetected for decades, Little confessed to killing 93 victims in 19 states between 1970 and 2005. According to the FBI in 2019, law enforcement had been able to verify 50 of the confessions; most of his victims were marginalized, young Black women.
According to News Week, he had been serving a life sentence at a state prison in Los Angeles County when he died in 2020 at the age of 80.
TOP 3: John Wayne Gacy
John Wayne Gacy is the 3rd Most Famous Notorious Serial Killer in the USA. He is a notorious American serial killer and sex offender who raped, tortured, and murdered at least 33 young men and boys.
According to Britannica, he received international media attention for his sociability and his performance as a clown at charitable events and children’s parties. He pleaded innocent because of insanity, but the jury rejected the psychological evaluations, and Gacy was found guilty of all 33 murders. He was executed by lethal injection in 1994, according to News Week.
TOP 2: Ted Bundy
Ted Bundy was a Notorious American serial killer who kidnapped, raped, and murdered numerous young women and girls during the 1970s and possibly earlier. According to Biography, after more than a decade of denials, he confessed to 30 murders committed in seven states between 1974 and 1978.
Having been described as intelligent and charming, he used his good looks to lure his victims. Some have estimated he could be responsible for hundreds of deaths. Ted Bundy was executed in Florida’s electric chair in 1989 and his case has since inspired many novels and films about serial killers.
TOP 1: Dennis Rader
Dennis Rader is a Notorious American serial killer known as BTK, the BTK Strangler, or the BTK Killer. Between 1974 and 1991, he killed ten people in Wichita and Park City, Kansas.
Every Serial Killer has a different way of style to murder people. According to Freshers live, this BTK killer sent letters to the media and police before killing a person. He feared the police and people a lot. He executed 10 murders between 1974 to 1991. After a long gap, Dennis Rader sent taunting letters to the police in 2004, which led to his arrest in 2005. Accordingly, Dennis Rader is the Most Famous Notorious Serial Killer in the USA.
Who are the Most Famous Notorious Serial Killers in the USA?
Serial killers often have an insatiable drive to kill, and they often become infamous in the media. The United States is no exception to this, having some of the most well-known serial killers in history. Their stories demonstrate the dark side of human nature, and their crimes still haunt the public today.
Here is the list of the Top 10 Most Famous Notorious Serial Killers in the USA:
- Dennis Rader
- Ted Bundy
- John Wayne Gacy
- Sam Little
- Jeffrey Dahmer
- David Berkowitz
- Richard Cottingham
- Belle Gunness
- Dean Corll
- Gary Ridgway
Our list explores the Top 10 Most Famous Notorious Serial Killers in the USA the world has ever known. But make sure this is just for your knowledge and not for any motivation. If you need to be impressed by a great person or need a role model for your life, just check out our list of the Top 10 Best and Most Inspiring People in Indonesia. For all of that and more subscribe to our Newsletter!
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