20 Horrific True Crimes That Will Keep You Up At Night (2023)

Let’s be honest, we all enjoy a little bit of horror especially when it comes to stories and movies, don’t we? But what if it’s taken to another level where it actually scares the hell out of you, will you still come forward to try it? This, of course, involves real life stories, especially chilling tales of gruesome murders, after all, what can be scarier than knowing that some of these killers are still out there and that there are no boundaries to how scary humans can be.

So, how far can you endure the chills down your spine, we are here to test. If you are weak at heart, back off right away because today what we have here is not for everyone. We have gathered twenty-five most creepy stories to get you an extreme adrenaline rush and long lasting goosebumps. Dim your lights but don’t turn them off. Get inside your sheets, take a deep breath and begin today’s creepy ride.

20. The Candy Man Dean Arnold Corll

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Dean Arnold Corll, along with his teenaged accomplices was responsible for the kidnapping, raping, torturing and murdering of at least 28 boys in the years between 1970 to 1973 in Houston, Texas. He was known as the Candy Man because he owned a candy shop and would allure kids using candies and then abduct them. He’d coax them in his van by tempting them about some false party or offer them free rides to their homes. When somebody resisted, he’d force drugs through candies or grab them. After raping his victims he’d kill them by often strangling them or shooting them using a .22 Caliber pistol and bury them after wrapping their bodies in plastic.

19. David Son of Sam Berkowitz

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Now that is one name that you don’t expect to be associated with a serial killer. David Richard Berkowitz is an American serial killer who is also known as the Son of Sam and the .44 Caliber Killer. He committed several shooting attacks in the span of one year. His victims include seven injured people and six who ended up dead. He even went on to threaten the NYPD (New York Police Department) through several letters but he was soon caught and sentenced to six consecutive life sentences. He confessed that he was a part of a satanic cult and was carrying out ritualistic murders. He even went on to say that his neighbor’s dog was possessed by a demon and that it was the dog who asked David to carry out the killings.

18. The Night Stalker Richard Ramirez

Via thedailybeast.com

Ricardo Leyva Muñoz Ramírez was known by multiple different aliases among which the famous ones were The Night Stalker, The Walk In Killer and The Valley Intruder. He was responsible for killing somewhere between thirteen to seventeen people. Initially, he’d walk into the house of his victims and kill them in a simple manner but by the end of his killing spree, his methods had turned into more gruesome ones. One of his victims had a T carved on her left breast and her eyes were taken out by him. Another victim had a pentagram drawn with lipstick on her thigh. Some of them had their throats sliced open after they had been sodomized. When investigating his madness, it was found that his cousin Mike, had shown Richard pictures of tortured humans especially beheaded women. Moreover, when Richard was thirteen, he saw Mike kill his wife and Richard ended up in a pool of blood of Mike’s wife.

17. The Entire Family Of Serial Killer Called Bloody Benders

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(Video) These True Crime Cases Will Keep You Up All Night

The Bloody Benders were a family of serial killers who lived in Labette County, Kansas and performed killings during the years between 1972 and 1978. They were a family consisting of John Bender, his wife, and two kids who would seem like any other normal family on the outside, however, the Benders had a way of inviting people to their place for dinner. They had a special chair which was placed on a trap door and they would make the victim sit on it. The wife had skills to keep the guest distracted, allowing the husband to strike the guest with a hammer and the kids to slit open the guest’s throat. The trap door was then opened in order to dump the body which was later on buried in a far away location.

16. John Wayne Gacy The Murdering Clown

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John Wayne Gacy Jr. was an American serial killer and rapist who lived in Chicago. He carried out his killings between the years of 1972 and 1978. He used to dress up as a clown to visit fundraisers and kid‘s parties to perform for the little ones, however, little did parents know that there was a sadistic monster hidden behind the jolly looking clown. He abducted around thirty-three teenaged boys and young men. After sexually assaulting and killing them, he’d bury the bodies in his home in the crawl space and out on his property. He was executed in May 1994 for his heinous crimes.

15. The Serial Killer Who Inspired All The Horror Movies

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Edward Theodore Gein was an American murderer and body snatcher who was also known as The Butcher of Plainfield. He killed two women in a span of three years. He is regarded as one of the most horrible killers in the history of mankind since he used to visit graveyards to dig out bodies and make trophies and other stuff to decorate the house from the bones, flesh, and skin. When his home was searched, the authorities found such horrific sights in there that it would make anyone shiver in horror. There were chairs covered in human skin, a lampshade made from facial skin, ten women’s heads peeled off on the top, bowls made of skulls, noses, two heads in bags, a belt that was made from female nipples and nine vulvae placed in a box. Many horror movie characters are inspired from him such as Norman Bates, Leatherface and Buffalo Bill.

14. Murdering Victims For Satanic Ritual

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Robin Gecht was an American killer who murdered eighteen people in the time span between May 23, 1981, to October 8, 1982. Robin made a group of homicidal associates and together they were known as the Ripper Crew or the Chicago Rippers. They often drove on the streets of Chicago in search for prostitutes whom they could easily abduct. After abducting them in their vans, they would bring them to the Gecht’s apartment where they’d sacrifice them in a horrible satanic manner. They’d cut off their breasts and eat them while Gecht would read from The Satanic Bible. They also claimed to rape the victims.

13. Real Life Boogeyman Albert Fish

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Hamilton Howard Fish was a serial killer who was also known as the Gray Man, The Werewolf of Wysteria, The Brooklyn Vampire, The Moon Maniac, and The Boogey Man. He began killing in 1920 and his victims were mostly African- Americans and mentally disabled kids. His weapons included: butcher knife, meat cleaver and bone saw. One of the most brutal murders he committed was that of Grace Budd who was only ten years old. Six years after killing her, Fish wrote a letter to her mother telling how he killed her. He choked her to death and then cut her parts, cooked them and ate it. He even went on praising the taste of flesh, telling her it took him nine days to finish it.

12. Dr. Henry Holmes Who Murdered Hotel Guests

(Video) 8 Creepiest True Crime Stories

Via thestar.com

Herman Webster Mudgett was an American serial killer who was more notorious during the 19th century. He’s commonly known as Dr. Henry Howard Holmes or H. H. Holmes. He owned a hotel in Chicago and his guests were the victims. Not only were the guests his victims but also his female employees. He would often employ creative methods of killing his victims as he would lock them in rooms filled with gas. This would be done in the bank vault he had next to his room where he would carry out the gruesome act and let his guests suffocate. There was a secret chute in the hotel that would transfer bodies from the bank vault to the basement where he’d remove the flesh and skin from the bones and sell the skeleton to local medical schools.

11. The Charming Serial Killer Ted Bundy

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If there is one serial killer name that a lot of people seem to be familiar with its Ted Bundy. Theodore Robert Bundy was an American serial killer who would rape and torture young women and then kill them in cold blood. He also happened to be a necrophile. He had well over thirty victims and his reign of terror lasted throughout the 1970s. By the looks of him, it was hard to think of him as a killer. He would exploit women using his charm and good looks. Once their trust was earned, he’d take them to a place to forlorn and murder them there. Later on, he’d have sex with the dead bodies regardless of whether they were rotten or fresh. At home, he kept around twelve beheaded heads as keepsakes. In the end, he probably got what he deserved after he was executed via an electric chair at Raiford Prison, Stark, FL.

10. The Gruesome Good Hart Murders

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The Robison family murders, also known as the Good Hart murderswere the mass murders of Richard Robison, his wife Shirley Robison, and their four children; Ritchie, Gary, Randy, and Susan on June 25, 1968. All members were shot using .22 caliber and .25 caliber guns by an intruder and investigators also told that a hammer was used to assault Susan and Richard. Nobody to date knows who the actual killer was. Although fifteen months investigation laid suspicion on Richard’s employee Joseph R Scolaro who tried to lie during investigations but later on committed suicide. He left behind a note that said he did lie but didn’t murder anyone.

9. The West Mesa Bone Collector

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The West Mesa Murders case alludes to the killing of 11 women who were found years later in 2009, buried in the desert of New Mexico, United States. The investigations of the case did no good and it still remains a mystery as to who actually killed them. It’s suspected that it was a serial killer. The remains of the victims were found by a developer who was building a storage wall on the site. All the women were killed in the span from 2001 to 2005. The serial killer is still on the loose and we can only hope that he doesn’t go scot free.

8. Story Of The Frankford Slasher

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The usual theme of serial killers continues with this fellow as well which involves murder, sexual assault and a whole bunch of other crazy and horrible stuff. Leonard Christopher was the name of this American serial killer who performed crimes In the neighborhood of Frankford in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was also known as The Frankford Slasher. He killed eight to nine people in the span from 1985 to 1990. He was known to first sexually assault his victims and then murder them. As a result of his crimes, he was sentenced to life in prison.

7. Mysterious Watcher Makes New Jersey Family Flee

Via dailymail.co.uk and haphazardstuffblog.com

The Watcher, as named by the media and the watcher himself is an unknown person or entity who claims to be the owner of a house in New Jersey. It all started when a couple moved into the house and started receiving mysterious letters from The Watcher. The letters contained sinister remarks and threats for the couple to leave. The lines written in the letter are sure disturbing and strange especially the mention of young blood. Some of the mentions from the letters are:

‘It is now my time; Why are you here? I will find out; Now that they have it to flaunt it, they pay the price…’

‘I asked the Woods to bring me young blood.’

One of the other three letters said: ‘Who am I? I am the Watcher and have been in control of [the home] for the better part of two decades now.

The former residents of the house also received the same letters when they were present there but they kept it from their customers because they wanted to get rid of the house so bad.

6. A House Full Of Animal Carcasses

Via wtvr.com

It was in 2011 when the Bretzius family decided to get themselves a new house. Before moving in, they had a good look at both the interior and exterior of the house but later on when they finally moved in, things went bad for them real quick. They found dead animals stuffed in the walls of their new house. Not just this, the dead animals were wrapped in old newspapers from the 1930s to 1940s and different spices. It was said that these animals were used in a kind of magic to heal ailments at that time. It was even said that their house was possessed. Nevertheless, the family got the house renovated and continued to live there. Quite a brave move if you ask us!

5. The Infamous Zodiac Killer

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The Zodiac Killer claims have to taken thirty seven lives, among which five are said to be confirmed dead. He was a serial killer who took lives in the span of 1960s to 1970s. He committed the most gruesome murders at Lake Berryessa, in Napa County, California, on September 27, 1969. His victims that time were two Pacific Union College students who saw him advancing towards them wearing a black hood, sunglasses and a white bib. He then ordered the girl to tie her boyfriend with the help of clothesline while he claimed to be a convict who just escaped. She complied after which he tied the girl up as well and stabbed both of them repeatedly until they died. The really scary part about this whole story is that the identity of the Zodiac Killer remains unknown to this day.

4. Eight Months Pregnant Wife Is Murdered By Husband

Via intouchweekly.com

(Video) 65 Disturbing Videos, Images and Stories To Keep You Up ALL Night...

Scott Lee Peterson is an American killer and a prisoner. He’s convicted of murdering his wife, Laci Peterson, who was eight months pregnant, in Modesto, California, in 2002. She was expected to deliver a baby boy next month whom they planned on naming Conner. But she went missing on 24^th December 2002. He, initially, made up a story of her disappearance but soon enough brought suspicion upon himself. Investigations carried on and on April 14, 2003, a fetus was found in San Francisco Bay where Peter was seen boating on the day of the disappearance. Next day Laci’s torso without hands, feet, and head appeared at the same place. This lead to Scott being arrested and now he’s on death row in San Quentin State Prison, California. He was sentenced death through lethal injection.

3. Lizzie Borden Kills Both Father And Stepmother

Via biography.com

Lizzie Andrew Borden, an American woman who killed her father and stepmother in Fall River, Massachusetts in 1892 and was prosecuted for it. She was her father’s only child. She was mostly unhappy with her father’s treatment, like he killed her pigeon which she was very fond of, using an axe for he thought it attracted intruders into his barn. He got married to her stepmother Abby after the death of her real mother, that infuriated Lizzie and she refused to call Abby her mother. Reaching her cracking point, Lizzie took an axe and struck her father’s head 10 times in his sleep, splitting his one eyeball into half. She then went for her stepmother and killed her with the same tool by nineteen strikes. She was arrested but then let go for the evidence was not enough. Lizzie lied throughout the investigation. Police, later on, found axes and hatchets in their basement.

2. Christa Pike Murdered Fellow Classmate

Via wbir.com

Christa Gail Pike is the youngest woman to be sentenced to death for killing her class fellow. She was 18 when she murdered her. Christa loved Tadaryl Shipp, whom she met through a program that helped low-income kids. Another fellow student Colleen Slemmer began talking to Shipp too much and that infuriated Christa. She then conspired against her with her friends, including Shipp and brought her to a vacant steam plant where Slemmer was brutally tortured for thirty minutes by them. They carved a pentagram on her chest, sliced her up and lastly, Christa crushed her skull with an asphalt slab and took a piece of skull to show it to her class fellows, next day. Later on, all of them were arrested.

1. Ricky Kasso Murders 17 Year Old Friend

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Richard Allan Kasso Jr., 17, murdered his 17-year-old friend Gary Lauwers along with two friends in Northport, New York, on June 16, 1984. At the time of the murder, he along with friends and Lauwers was high on Mescaline. They were in the woods, practicing occult stuff. Long before this, Lauwers had stolen PCP from Kasso and ever since that, they had bad blood. While making fire, Kasso teased Lauwers about how they should make fire using Lauwers hair, which led to a fight. For two to three hours, Kasso and his friends stabbed Lauwers thirty-six times, burned his body, took out his eyeballs and stuffed his throat with rocks. While they were covering his body with branches, thinking him to be dead, Lauwers woke up and they attacked him again until he was confirmed dead. Later on, Kasso and his friends were arrested. Two days later Kasso hung himself in the jail.