Albert DeSalvo

Arrest

Green Man Crimes

Markers

• In October 1964, a woman reported a man who broke in, tied her to her bed and raped her
• He stopped during the rape and apologized, then left
• A description led to Desalvo, then other victims and witnesses identified him as well

• Desalvo dressed in green clothes and committed sexual assaults around Boston
• He rapped over 300 women in 2 years
• He was finally arrested in October 1964
• Arrested for one of the rapes
• He was sent to Bridgewater State Hospital for evaluation

• Desalvo was abused by his father
• He also watched his father abuse his mother
• His father would bend his mothers fingers back, one by one, until they broke
• This effected Desalvo by corrupting and torturing his mind
• The male role model in his life beat women and had no respect for them, which could of led to Desalvo strangling women
• Desalvo was a deviant as a child, and was always in trouble with the law
• He was in and out of correctional centers and jail
• Only junior high diploma, Low I.Q.
• Obsession with sex, nymphomaniac

Boston Strangler?

Marriage

• Married Irmgard Beck, from Germany
• Had 2 children, one handicapped
• Family man
• Liked by family, friends, and co-workers

Modus Operandi

• While in prison, another inmate, George Nassar, turned Desalvo in for being the Boston Strangler for a money reward
• Desalvo confessed to the murders
• Victims of the Boston Strangler that lived did not identify Albert Desalvo as the Boston Strangler
• Desalvo had a pathological lust for celebrity
• His friends and family did not believe his confession, due to all of his lies and brags

Army

• The Boston Strangler would choose his victims by their age and where they lived
• He preferred elderly, defenseless, women, who lived by themselves in apartments
• Witnesses said he would knock on the victims doors and claim to be an electrician or mechanic sent from the apartment building's land lord to fix or check up on the appliances, ventilation, or electricity
• He would also ransack the apartment to make it look like a burglary, yet nothing was stolen

• After 2nd parole, enrolled in army and did a tour of Germany
• Met his wife in Germany
• Honorably discharged for disobeying orders
• Re-enrolled
• Honorably discharged again, for accusations of molesting a young girl
• Charges dropped

Cont'd

• Later on it was found that Nassar and Desalvo made a deal with the reward money
• Desalvo's wife got part of the money
• Desalvo was never tried or charged with the murders
• The public believed he was the Boston Strangler, even with no facts

Albert DeSalvo

The Boston Strangler

Measuring Man Crimes

Death

• Imprisoned for life at Walpole Prison in Massachusetts due to Green Man Crimes
• On November, 25, 1973, Desalvo was stabbed to death by another inmate at Walpole Prison

• In 1960, Desalvo was arrested twice for robberies
• He committed countless robberies and burglaries
• Let off

Some victims of the Boston Strangler

Childhood

Born 09/03/1931 in Chelsea, MA

Methods Of Murder

In 2013...

• Desalvo's father, Frank, was an alcoholic and beat his wife, Charlotte, and children
• He also brought home prostitute's and had sex with them infront of Albert and his 3 siblings
• DeSalvo was in and out of trouble
• At 12, arrested for robbery, assault, battery
• Desalvo went to correctional facility for 1 year
• 2 years after being released he was sent back due to car theft

• Strangled random women until unconscious and dead
• Usually strangled them with their own nylon stockings or cords in their homes
• Most found with own nylons wrapped around their necks, tied in a bow
• All victims were sexually assaulted, vaginally and/or anally
• Victims ranged from 18-85 years old
• Focused most on 60+ years old
• Generally two murders per month
• Most lived in apartment buildings, alone

• Police detectives followed Desalvo's nephew, Tim Desalvo, and secretly got a DNA sample from him
• They tested it was DNA found on one of victims
• They had previously rested Desalvo's DNA on the victims and it was negative, but his nephew's is positive
• It does not prove he is the killer, but does prove he had sexual relations with the victim shortly prior to her murder

Albert Desalvo Background

• Socialization theory, key influences are found in upbringing, peers, and role models, affected Desalvo
• Biological trait theory, certain human traits affect crime, also affected Desalvo
• Hickey's model would be affective too, there was childhood trauma, but there were no facilitators (drugs, alcohol)

Serial Killers in Criminology

Boston Strangler Video

2013