richard cottingham trophy room

Soon after their arrival then man tried to escape but was apprehended shortly thereafter. A firefighter grabbed one in hopes of saving a life. Richard was also connected to the murder of Valerie Street in New Jersey. He later admitted that his psychopathic hobby for hunting sex workers in Times Square 'as a game.'. Deedah Goodarzi, a sex worker who Cottingham killed and dismembered. In addition to killing sex workers, Richard Cottingham had also killed a number of girls and women in New Jersey. [4][5], After his graduation, Cottingham worked for Metropolitan Life, where his father was a vice-president, starting in the mail room at the firm's Manhattan headquarters and eventually became a mainframe computer operator upon taking computer courses. He pleaded innocent and for decades insisted he was being "framed", until admitting in 2009 that he had actually perpetrated those five murders. But the question remained: Who was Richard Cottingham? Richard would become increasingly more deranged as time went on. And less than a month after that, firefighters made yet another gruesome discovery near Times Square. Richard kept things like jewelry and trinkets as souvenirs from the slayings. After his arrest, NYPD drew comparisons to the numerous unsolved sexual assault cases with similar hallmarks to the New Jersey crimes. Growing up, he had trouble making friends, and after graduating high school, he worked for his fathers insurance company. Police arrested 33-year-old Richard Cottingham at the scene. Cottingham slipped the noose of law enforcement by deliberately preying on marginalized sex workers during a time when crime-ridden New York City descended into lawlessness. Richards criminal activity continued in 1969 when he was convicted of driving while intoxicated in New York. Walter Leporati/Getty ImagesPornographic films are advertised in Manhattans Times Square in January 1971. On August 21, 1972, he is charged and convicted of shoplifting at a Stern's department store in Paramus, New Jersey, and was sentenced to pay a $50 fine or ten days in jail. Tow Guys Towing. Had he killed more? Leslie Ann ODell recalled what had happened and how things escalated so quickly. Then in exchange for immunity from prosecution, he confessed to murdering three New Jersey schoolgirls. [4], On October 3, 1969, Cottingham was charged and convicted of drunk driving in New York City and was fined $50 (equivalent to $400 in 2021). Cops eventually tied him to the crime when they found Reyner's necklace among his 'trophies.' During the session the man would insist, "You have to take it. They bodies also had their hands removed. Around dawn, they checked into the same Hasbrouck Heights Quality Inn where he had left Valerie Street's handcuffed body under a bed to be discovered by a housekeeper. As the smoke cleared, the firefighters realized theyd stumbled onto a gruesome crime scene. When she was found, she'd suffered beatings to her head and body, but her ultimate cause of death was suffocation. Its unclear what he was stealing, if he was short on money or so there was no trail of him purchasing a specific item. Richard Cottingham, 74, is currently in state prison on a life sentence for other murders. He would commute daily to New York for his job, but once in a while, when the mood struck, Richard would not go home after work. It wasn't until she endeavored to reconnect with her biological mother in 2002, that she discovered the disturbing truth of her violent demise through old newspaper clippings. Nobody at the time suspected that Cottingham's killing spree had began over a decade earlier with the murder ofNancy Vogel in 1967 and five New Jersey high school girls in 1968 and '69. Known for being particularly cruel, Cottingham earned the nickname "The Torso Killer" because he would sometimes mutilate the body of his victims, leaving . He was sentenced to 173 to 197 years, which he is currently serving at Trenton State Prison in New Jersey. Starting in 2014, Cottingham confidentially admitted to Detective Robert Anzilotti of the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office (BCPO) to being the perpetrator of the murders of three teenage females between 1968 and 1969. NYPD realized they had a serial killer on their hands in December 1979, after they uncovered the charred, mutilated remains of two women at the Travel Inn Motor Hotel in Times Square. Investigators were again able to quickly link this murder with many others due to the killers M.O. He had also stabbed her and bit almost right through her nipples. Jacalyn "Jackie" Harp, aged 13, was randomly ambushed as she walked home in the evening of July 17, 1968, from school band practice in Midland Park and strangled with the leather strap of her bag. He will spend the rest of his years behind bars with the hope that he will never have the chance to act on his horrific urges again. Most recently, in April 2021, Cottingham confessed and pleaded guilty to the double kidnapping and murdersof Lorraine Marie Kelly, 16 and Mary Ann Pryor, 17 in 1974. She had been cut about the chest and legs, beaten with a blunt instrument, and covered in bites and bruises, A picture taken of the New Jersey Courts virtual hearing in April 2021, when Richard Cottingham pleaded guilty to two 1974 murders, finally closing the cold case deaths of teenage friends who had left home for a trip to the mall and never returned. You're in complete control of somebody's destiny. Richard Francis Cottingham was born on November 25, 1946, in the Mott Haven neighborhood of the Bronx in New York City, the first of four children. A few months later, on May 5, 1980, a housekeeper at a Quality Inn in New Jersey found the body of 19-year old Valerie Ann Street stuffed under the bed. Cottingham was not charged with this murder until June 2022, when he was implicated by DNA.[10]. [6] In 2022, Cottingham officially confessed to the 1970 murder of Lorraine McGraw, under a non-prosecution agreement. In a strange turn of events,Deedah Goodarzi's biological daughter, Jennifer Weiss has forged an unlikely friendship with the man who strangled and beheaded her mother in 1979. Unfortunately that would not be the case. [1] He was nicknamed the New York Ripper, the Torso Killer and the Times Square Killer, since his crimes often targeted prostitutes and included mutilation. When she left, they believed that Cottingham posed as a security guard and accused her of shoplifting to get her to stop, then abducted her. The missing body part were never found, but once x-rayed one victim was identified as Deedeh Goodarzi, 22, an immigrant from Kuwait who was working as a prostitute. He seemed nice enough. [3], Cottingham was arrested on several lesser charges throughout his killing spree. Prison records indicate that Richard, now about 74 years old, remains incarcerated at South Woods State Prison in Bridgeton, New Jersey. Leaving some without hands or heads, he soon earned the moniker of The Times Square Torso Killer or The New York Ripper.. Cottingham offered to give O'Dell a massage and she rolled onto her stomach. Richard Gere's wife Alejandra shares new photos of 73-year-old actor as they celebrate her 40th birthday in Mexico - after he was hospitalized with pneumonia Richard Gere is 'mostly recovered . In his possession police found a murder kit which consisted of handcuffs, leather gags, slave collars, knives, pistols, and pills. Neither complainant appeared in further proceedings, however, and the case was dismissed. When hotel staff investigated further, Leslie Ann O'Dell cracked open the door and quietly signaled for help. To date, the Torso Killer himself claims that he could have as many as 100 victims. Like the other victims, she to had been bound with handcuffs and tortured, her body would be found covered in bite marks. This case was soon linked to his previous murder victim, Helen Sikes, letting police know they were dealing with a serial killer. FROM THE FOUNDER. Things started well, a nice massage to relax things. But just a week later, police were able to apprehend him back at the Quality Inn when his would-be victim Leslie Ann ODell screamed for help. Richard would start to come out of his shell socially when he entered high school, attending Pascack Valley High School. 'It's God-like, almost. All was quiet and one can be certain that it was probably looking like an average, quiet night. Former FBI agent and criminal profiler Candice DeLong delves into Richard Cottingham, the Torso Killer. Richard was born in Bronx, New York, in November 1946. Maryann Carr was also brutally beaten, but police could not positively link the crimes. [13][14] Anzilotti had spent 15 years interviewing Cottingham, working toward the confession. Who Were Richard Cottingham's Victims? Richard Cottingham was born on November 25th, 1946 in the Bronx, New York. ODell, whod survived her encounter with the Torso Killer, described how he tortured his victims. Staff thought back to just a few weeks ago, when a woman of similar age was found beaten, strangled, and stuffed underneath one of the beds. Richard then dumped the bodies in a wooded area in Bergen County, New Jersey. After this look at Richard Cottingham, The Torso Killer, read up on Ed Kemper, the Co-Ed Killer, and Rodney Alcala, the Dating Game Killer. Then, read the stories of Jack the Rippers victims. I think it was just an evolution in his killing.. Valerie Street's body was covered in bite marks and brutally beaten in a chillingly similar manner to the murder of 26-year-old Maryann Carr, that had occurred in the same motel three years earlier. [2], In 2010, he pleaded guilty to the 1967 murder of Nancy Vogel. The first killing was that of Valerie Ann Street. Surviving that attempt and two others, he was held under $250,000 bond while detectives built their overwhelming case against him. Police had no suspects and the case quickly grew cold, collecting dust in a file for years. Cottingham pleaded guilty to 2nd-degree murder in the case of Diane Cusick. Richard would soon meet his future wife, and the two were married on May 3rd, 1970. Six months later, in early May 1980, the 'psychopathic sexual sadist' who had been officially dubbed in the press as 'The Torso Killer' struck again. Police would eventually link Richard to the case because of a fingerprint found on the set of handcuffs. WickedWe is reader supported, some products displayed may earn us a commission if you purchase through our links. One week later police were called to the same motel, but this time it was for a disturbance. New Jersey Department of CorrectionsRichard Cottingham has confessed to a number of other murders in recent years. I am proud of the growth and achievements of JRMA and the community of talented architects, engineers, and project . Did he intend on killing this poor girl? Richard Cottingham wasconvicted of five murders and numerous counts of kidnapping and sexual assault using evidence found in his 'trophy room' combined with a matching fingerprint left on handcuffs used in the murder of Valerie Street. It wasn't until the advancements in DNA and forensic processing made it possible for investigators to run samples of inmates that they realized how many cases were connected to the killer. [Cottingham] told me to shut up, that I was a whore and I had to be punished, ODell testified. Crystal Ponti. This time it seems the police were able to link this crime. Police believe that Cusick left the dance studio where she taught and went into the nearby mall to buy some shoes. He returned back to the hotel to soak the crime scene in lighter fluid and set the room ablaze. In this image taken from a New Jersey Courts virtual hearing, Richard Cottingham, center, known as the "Torso Killer," pleads guilty April 27, 2021, to two 1974 murders, finally closing the cold case deaths of teenage friends who had left home for a trip to the mall and never returned. Richard also had a self-described obsession with bondage and had had numerous extramarital affairs. The cases had overwhelming evidence against Cottingham in the way of receipts with his writing, linking him to the hotel rooms, fingerprints, and testimony from three different survivors. In April 1978, Cottingham's wife filed for divorce on the grounds of "abandonment" and "mental cruelty" (refusing to have sex with her after the birth of their third child, staying out until early morning, and leaving her with insufficient household funds). A serial killer known as the "Torso Killer" already convicted of 11 homicides admitted on Monday that he also killed five women on Long Island in the late 60s and early 70s. Leslie told the authorities that Richard picked her up in New York City, New York, and brought her to the motel in New Jersey. The victim's hands were tightly handcuffed behind her back and police would later lift a fingerprint matching Cottingham, the only fingerprint successfully found from any of his known murders. Graduating, landing a solid job, marriage and having multiple children. Irene Blase, aged 18, vanished on April 7, 1969, in Hackensack and was found face down in four feet of water in the Saddle River, strangled with a wire, a cord, or perhaps the chain of a crucifix she was wearing. He was also known to threaten them with a plastic gun and leave it within their reach so they could try to grab it only to find out it was false, severely bite and scrape their nipples, cut around the breasts, and use other forms of torture. Her throat was slashed and she was then set on fire. One slain woman was positively identified througha cesarean-section scar as 22-year-old, Iranian prostitute, Deedeh Goodarzi. His fingerprint was found on the handcuffs on her arms when she was located in a motel. The other headless corpse was never identified. One victim was recognized as Deedeh Goodarzi while the other slain woman remains unknown to this day, Deedeh Goodarzi was a 22-year-old high-end prostitute from Iran whose family immigrated to Long Island when she was a teenager. But beneath the veneer of normalcy was a heinous double-existence as a serial killer. In April 1980, Cottinghams wife had filed for divorce, charging him with extreme cruelty and refusal to engage in marital sex since late 1976. Thankfully, Cottinghams reign of terror would not last forever. Investigators were again able to quickly link this murder with many others due to the killer's M.O. The man listened and suggested he could drive her to a different bus terminal in New Jersey to get her back home, away from her abusive pimp. The daughter of one of serial killer Richard Cottingham's victims is helping to close other murder cases to which he is connected by using her relationship with him. With that horrific incident still lingering in their minds, they decided to phone the police. The Full Story Of The Hamilton-Burr Duel And The Tragic Death Of Alexander Hamilton, The Full Story Behind Columbine High School Shooters Eric Harris And Dylan Klebold, What Stephen Hawking Thinks Threatens Humankind The Most, 27 Raw Images Of When Punk Ruled New York, Join The All That's Interesting Weekly Dispatch. A killing spree that lasted a few months eventually led to his arrest in May 1980, bringing to the fore previously unconnected murders as well. Cottingham's confirmed killings resulted in nine convictions and a further eight confessions under non-prosecution agreements, leading to him serving multiple life sentences in New Jersey prisons. He would grow up in a typical catholic household. [21] Cottingham was apparently "forensically aware" in the era before DNA analysis. union square hospitality group gift card; clubhouse baseball baseball; forest service lease cabin for sale utah. Biting, raping and beating the girl. He has officially been charged with 11 murders but says he's killed over 100 women, Netflix's new 'Crime Scene' docuseries examines the notorious case of Richard Cottingham who left a bloody trail of victims between 1967 and 1980. When police arrived they caught a man trying to flee the room. But Cottinghams depravity was much deeper than police realized at the time of his arrest. After the abduction of Leslie Ann ODell, authorities were able to quickly build a case against the deranged suspect. Cottingham primarily sought prostitutes who were petite blondes in their late teens to mid-twenties. She had been given one hell of a beating and her killer had eaten away at her nipples, almost severing one. Its also unclear whether or not he continued to do so. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. Though Anzilotti has retired, the detective believes that Richard Cottingham could be responsible for dozens of other unsolved cases. Neither man has claimed to have been aware of the other, nor is there any evidence they were familiar with each other prior to their respective arrests. Richard Cottingham, now 78, is a former computer programmer linked to at least 12 murders from the 60s and 70s. At one point, Leslie grabbed Richards gun and pointed it at him, only to realize that it was fake. He chose "Times Square Killer" Richard Cottingham not because he's a household name, but because he isn't. "He's interesting in the annals of serial killing, because . [15] In December 2022, Cottingham was convicted of Diane Cusick's 1968 murder and, under a non-prosecution agreement, officially admitted to killing another four women during 19721973 in Long Island, New York: Mary Beth Heinz, Laverne Moye, Sheila Heiman, and Maria Emerita Rosado Nieves. The police apprehended Richard Cottingham while trying to flee. He would continue this line of work until his arrest. Richard Cottingham, now 78, is a former computer programmer linked to at least 12 murders from the 60s and 70s. He brought Cottingham to his office and offered him pizza and card games. Among S&M books and pornographic artwork wereMaryann Carr's apartment key and jewelry that belonged to his other victims. The young lady explained how she had arrived in New York earlier that week and was quickly taken advantage of, becoming victim to the number of pimps in the area and trafficked into sex work. Recently, her daughter that she gave up for adoption while turning tricks has made headlines for forging an unlikely friendship with Richard Cottingham in prison, Richard Cottingham earned his moniker as 'the Torso Killer' after he raped and murdered two women in a Times Square motel before setting their decapitated torsos ablaze. He mainly stayed at home where he started to develop an obsession with bondage pornography. 'It was pretty much the hotel room from hell,' said detective Malcolm Reiman in the documentary. The 2023 SAG Awards were handed out over the weekend in L.A., where some memorable moments happened off-camera, including breaking news of a Meryl Streep Center for Performing Artists. He is currently being held at the New Jersey State Prison in Trenton, NJ, and is not eligible for parole. Inside they found the bodies of 22-year-old sex worker Deedeh Goodarzi[9] and an unidentified woman estimated between 16 and 22. Both girls were strangled to death. I was able to get almost any woman to do whatever I wanted them to do, psychologically,' said the sinister 75-year-old in a recent jailhouse interview with journalistNadia Fezzani. . All That's Interesting is a Brooklyn-based digital publisher that seeks out stories that illuminate the past, present, and future. Once inside, Richard would bind both females and torture the two for hours. Her legs had also been hacked off, and were eventually found a block away from the rest of the body. Cottingham was apprehended in the hallway by arriving police officers. The Torso Killer seemed to be escalating fast. At him, only to realize that it was probably looking like an average, night. While detectives built their overwhelming case against the deranged suspect former computer programmer linked to his office and offered pizza. And she was located in a wooded area in Bergen County, New Jersey artwork Carr... 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