April 1, 1990 Casa Grande, Arizona Serial rapist and killer Robert Ben Rhoades (pictured) is arrested Rhoades, later dubbed “The Truck Stop Killer,” was a commercial truck driver. As such, his career granted him the opportunity to travel great distances across the country, and the overwhelming majority of his time was spent alone and in… Continue reading “The Truck Stop Killer” Robert Ben Rhoades is arrested
Category: Arizona
“Pied Piper of Tucson” dies from wounds inflicted in prison
March 30, 1975 Arizona “The Pied Piper of Tucson” Charles Schmid dies of wounds sustained 10 days before Schmid (pictured, left) had killed his occasional-girlfriend Alleen Rowe (15) on May 31, 1964, after deciding to kill someone just to know how it felt. Shortly after the killing, he told another occasional-girlfriend, Gretchen Fritz, of the… Continue reading “Pied Piper of Tucson” dies from wounds inflicted in prison
Woman strangles baby she was babysitting
January 1, 1963 Phoenix, Arizona Betty Smithey (20) strangles the 15-month-old baby she was babysitting Four years before the murder, Smithey (then 16) kidnapped a child she was babysitting. She took 18-month-old Mitchell Johnson from his home in Albuquerque, New Mexico, hitchhiking or taking buses along the way. She and the toddler were found in… Continue reading Woman strangles baby she was babysitting
Man sets fire to, kills his 2-year-old daughter
December 2, 1999 Near Apache Junction, Arizona Shawn Ryan Grell drives his 2-year-old daughter to a remote location, douses her with gasoline, and sets her on fire For reasons that remain unclear, Grell signed his daughter, 2-year-old Kristen Salem, from her daycare, drove around the Mesa, Arizona area with the toddler in his vehicle, purchased… Continue reading Man sets fire to, kills his 2-year-old daughter
Two women killed, one of whom is dismembered, and packed to be transported out of state to hide their murders
October 16, 1931 Phoenix, Arizona Two women are killed, allegedly by a jealous woman, before being stuffed in luggage to be transported to Los Angeles The victims were Agnes Anne LeRoi and Hedvig Samuelson, friends of Winnie Ruth Judd. The three apparently all had eyes for businessman Jack Halloran who was a known philanderer. On… Continue reading Two women killed, one of whom is dismembered, and packed to be transported out of state to hide their murders
