14 Infamous Serial Killers That Terrorized The 1970s

In the 1970s, a wave of psychopathic predators unleashed terror across the world, collectively claiming over 600 lives. These notorious serial killers operated in various countries, changing the public’s perception of crime and human nature. Their violent actions exposed flaws in law enforcement systems, often allowing these criminals to evade capture for years, sometimes decades.

Psychologists have long debated the factors that drive individuals to become serial killers, and many agree that childhood trauma plays a significant role. Peter Vronsky, a historian of serial killers, explained:

“Many serial killers are survivors of early childhood trauma—physical or sexual abuse, family dysfunction, emotionally distant or absent parents. Trauma is the single recurring theme in the biographies of most killers.”

These individuals committed heinous acts that are both difficult to comprehend and even harder to accept. Here are some of the most infamous killers from this dark chapter in history.

Joachim Kroll (Germany)
Years active: 1955–1973
Number of victims: Convicted of eight murders, confessed to 14

Joachim Kroll, known as the Ruhr Cannibal, found his criminal urges while working on a farm, deriving pleasure from killing animals. He eventually turned his twisted fantasies toward humans, becoming a serial killer and necrophiliac. Kroll would murder his victims, sexually assault their corpses, and then return home to repeat the acts with dolls.

He was also a cannibal, claiming he ate his victims to save on the cost of meat. Kroll was finally caught when he told a neighbor that his toilet was clogged with “guts,” which led police to the body of four-year-old Marion Kettner. He was sentenced to life in prison and died of a heart attack in 1991.

José Paz Bezerra (Brazil)
Years active:1970–1971
Number of victims: Convicted of seven murders, confessed to 24

José Paz Bezerra, known as the Monster of Morumbi, targeted women who reminded him of his mother. After enduring a difficult childhood, Bezerra developed a hatred for women, which fueled his killing spree. He would charm his victims, lower their defenses, then bind, gag, sexually abuse, and murder them.

Bezerra’s crimes came to an end when his girlfriend reported him to the police. Despite being convicted of numerous murders, he was released from prison in 2001 after serving the maximum 30-year sentence in Brazil.

Pedro Rodrigues Filho (Brazil)
Years active: 1967–2007
Number of victims: Convicted of 71 murders, confessed to 100+

Pedro Rodrigues Filho, dubbed “Little Pedro the Killer” and the “Brazilian Dexter,” claimed to have murdered more than 100 people, often targeting criminals. His father was one of his victims, as Filho sought revenge after his father killed his mother. Remarkably, Filho continued killing while incarcerated, with 47 murders occurring during his time in prison.

Despite his violent history, Filho was released in 2007 and later started a YouTube channel. He was unapologetic about his crimes, stating he could not sleep without killing.

Pedro López (Colombia)
Years active: 1969–2002
Number of victims: 110–350

Pedro López, the Monster of the Andes, is one of the most prolific serial killers in history. He confessed to murdering more than 110 young girls in Colombia, Peru, and Ecuador, though some reports claim the number could be as high as 350. In 1980, he led authorities to over 50 graves of his victims.

After being captured and released multiple times, López was last seen in 2002. Despite his horrific crimes, he was released from prison after just 14 years. His whereabouts remain unknown, and some believe he may have continued killing.

Samuel Little (United States)
Years active: 1970–2005
Number of victims: 60 confirmed, confessed to 93

Samuel Little believed to be one of the most prolific serial killers in U.S. history, was responsible for at least 60 confirmed murders. A former boxer, Little’s method of knocking out and strangling his victims left few traceable signs of struggle, allowing him to evade capture for decades.

Little preyed on vulnerable women, often sex workers, and confessed to 93 murders before he died in 2020. According to the FBI, his confessions were deemed credible, and he remembered every detail of the killings except the exact dates.

Randy Steven Kraft (United States)
Years active:1971–1983
Number of victims: 16–67

Known as the “Scorecard Killer,” Randy Steven Kraft was convicted of murdering 16 men, though investigators believe he may have killed up to 67. Kraft kept a coded list of his victims, using nicknames or initials to reference them. His victims were mostly Marines, and Kraft often tortured them with cigarette burns and removed their genitals before killing them.

Despite his heinous acts, Kraft showed no remorse during his trial and remains on death row in a California prison.

Gennady Modestovich Mikhasevich (Russia)
Years active: 1971–1985
Number of victims: 36 confirmed, 55+ estimated

Gennady Modestovich Mikhasevich murdered at least 36 women in a spree that lasted more than a decade. His killing spree was triggered by the breakup with his girlfriend. Despite his crimes, Mikhasevich was able to maintain a facade of normalcy, even gifting his wife stolen jewelry from his victims.

The police initially overlooked him as a suspect, resulting in the wrongful conviction of 14 innocent people. Mikhasevich was eventually executed in 1987 after finally being caught.

John Wayne Gacy (United States)
Years active: 1967–1978
Number of victims: 33+

John Wayne Gacy, one of America’s most notorious serial killers, murdered 33 young men, most of whom he buried in the crawlspace of his home. Gacy’s charm and involvement in his community allowed him to avoid suspicion for years. While known for his clown persona “Pogo the Clown,” there is no evidence he committed his murders while dressed in costume.

Gacy was executed in 1994 after being convicted of his crimes, leaving a legacy of horror and betrayal.

Daniel Camargo Barbosa (Colombia)
Years active: 1971–1983
Number of victims: 72–180

Daniel Camargo Barbosa’s killing spree targeted young girls, whom he sexually assaulted and murdered. After a brief stint in prison, Barbosa escaped and continued his crimes. He eventually landed on an “inescapable” prison island but managed to survive a canoe escape and continue his killings in Ecuador.

Barbosa was caught again in 1988 and sentenced to just 16 years in prison, a sentence shockingly light for the lives he had taken.

Ted Bundy (United States)
Years active: 1974–1978
Number of victims: 20 confirmed, 36+ suspected

Ted Bundy is often considered one of the most infamous serial killers in American history. His good looks and charm helped him evade suspicion while he lured women to their deaths. Bundy used deception, including fake injuries and police impersonation, to isolate his victims before raping and killing them.

Bundy’s reign of terror ended with his capture and eventual execution in 1989. Even in his final moments, Bundy showed little remorse, requesting that love be sent to his friends and family before his execution.

Carl Eugene Watts (United States)
Years active: 1974–1982
Number of victims: 14–100+

Carl Eugene Watts also known as Coral was intellectually challenged with an IQ of 72 and was diagnosed with meningitis. But these didn’t stop him from killing more than 80 women and even more, claiming they had “evil in their eyes.” It was hard for the police to catch him because he targeted different locations.

Watts was charged for his last two surviving victims through a plea deal in Texas. He was sentenced to 60 years for burglary with intent to commit murder and received immunity for 12 additional murders. However, his sentence was shortened by more than 35 years because of good behavior and mandatory release laws. He died of prostate cancer in a Michigan prison in 2007, ending his gruesome promise to “kill again if they ever release me.”

Peter Sutcliffe (England)
Years active: 1974–1978
Number of victims: 22+

Sutcliffe began his killing spree as the Yorkshire Ripper in 1975, murdering 13 women and attempting to kill seven more over five years. He targeted sex workers since they were easy targets and they were hard not to miss.

Law Society Gazette stated that Sutcliffe suffered from paranoid schizophrenia. He worked as a
gravedigger, he would hear a voice telling him to get rid of sex workers. According to Prosecutor Michael Havers “Some [victims] were prostitutes, but … some were not.” His last six victims were women who were not into prostitution.

Sutcliffe evaded capture for a long time due to a backlog of 36,000 documents awaiting processing. He was questioned and released by detectives 11 times before his eventual arrest.

Initially diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, he was admitted to Broadmoor Hospital. However, he was later considered sufficiently sane to be transferred to prison. Sutcliffe passed away in 2020 from COVID-19.

Mikhail Novosyolov (Russia)
Years active: 1977–1995
Number of victims: 22

Novosyolov is well-known as the “Necrophile Rebel, ” though he prefers to be known as a “rebel.” After his release from prison in 1977, he hired a sex worker but he failed to perform sexually. She taunted him which led him to kill her.

Over the next few years, Novosyolov had 22 murder victims ages 6 and 50, and 9 rape victims who were all children. He used brutal methods, such as electrocution, to kill his victims. To avoid suspicion and capture, he faked his accents and held three passports under different names. He justified his murders by saying he deserved sex and admitted that he preferred dead partners, even referring to them as “cabbage soup” that gets better over time. Novosyolov is currently staying in a psychiatric hospital.

Andrei Chikatilo (Russia)
Years active: 1978–1990
Number of victims: 52 convicted, 56+ claimed

The Canberra Times stated that Andrei Chikatilo killed 53 people in 10 years. Most of his victims were said to be young boys and girls. Chikatilo presented himself as a grandfatherly figure, teacher, and Communist Party member, keeping his true identity hidden and any suspicions at bay.

Tagged as the “Forest Strip Killer” he later admitted to raping, killing, and cannibalizing his victims to make up for his sexual inadequacy. What triggered his horrible acts was his wife asking friends to help him with his erectile dysfunction during sex.

Because crime was considered a capitalist problem in Communist Russia, the press rarely reported these incidents. As a result, Rolsov residents never received a warning that a serial killer was lurking in their midst for five years. Chikatilo took this to his advantage. Before he was caught, authorities even executed an innocent man in an attempt to alleviate public fears.

Chikatilo was finally caught, received his verdict, and executed in 1994.