"The Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run"
Torso Murders/Theories
Was this some form of retaliation from Al Capone and friends directed at Eliot Ness?
When Ness came to Cleveland he was an outsider with a big name who proceeded to "clean up" the police department. Was this possibly a way to embarrass him? A case that could not be solved?
It's been said that these crimes were just random and almost a normal way to get rid of bodies and enemies. If so, why did the body count stop? Was this Organized crimes disposal method and because of the publicity they decided to find other ways to get rid of foes and their bodies?
Jim W. wondered if the victims were already dead before they were dismantled? The short answer is no. It seems then as now really that they kept better track of the dead than the living. There were no cadavers missing and no disturbed graves.
Jim(site owner) thinks: A hobo, or rail rider. Someone who knew the tracks well. Possibly someone who came back from World War 1 and had surgical skills yet never found a place in society or did not want to. There is a connection between Cleveland and New Castle, Pennsylvania (Swamp Murders) by rail as well as Hamilton, Ontario (Canadian Torso) for a stretch.
The victims were always headless, at least if not in parts. Sometimes the the bodies were washed and/or chemically treated. The torsos were cast into open view, waiting to be discovered, often the heads buried, hidden. Let's face it folks, the Mafia doesn't operate in this fashion. Think Jimmy Hoffa.
Reader Dan J. thinks there's a connection having to do with boats or maybe airplanes.
Mary(site owner) thinks: John Doe #3 doesn't belong with the rest of the victims. Reasons: the only Westside victim and the only one who was actually killed at the same sight where he was found. To me, this does not fit in with how the other victims were killed and found. When the Lady of the Lake was found it appeared to be a random, gruesome, stand alone crime. Once other victims were discovered, police still would not include her as the first in the long line of torso victims. Hmmmmm....maybe they excluded the wrong victim!
Jim(site owner) says: In light of what's happened recently in the curious case of one Anthony Sowell, when you look at the list of victims you should realize there might be spaces between victims. In Sowells history there were people he didn't prey upon and if he did, they survived. Sometimes I think the chemistry between prey and predator triggers a response that doesn't happen in other circumstances. I wonder if what we see as a list of victims is only a list of the final act of a play no one ever saw besides the two participants. There are clear overtones of some type of sexual connections among the bodies. We learned from Dahmer (and others) that some victims are more than willing to be victimized. Some people Sowell met ended up meeting their end while some escaped or just walked away, no wiser. I just think that when we see a list with 14 names on it, we should realize it could have been higher.
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