Ramirez served time on San Quentin's Death Row in Northern California, Dayle Okazaki was shot in her Rosemead condo at 8510 Village Lane, after Ramirez rushed in through the garage, Ramirez was found guilty on October 9, 1985, The Night Stalker was a Satanist and witnessed his cousin murder his wife at just 13 years old, Night Stalker: The Hunt for a Serial Killer. He lived nomadically between San Francisco and Los Angeles County during this time prior to his incarceration. Frequently abused by his father, Ramirez began developing gruesome and macabre interests in his early and mid-teens from his older cousin, Miguel ("Mike") Ramirez, who also taught him some of the military skills that he would go on to use during his year-long killing spree. He shot the sleeping Peter, age 66, in the temple with a .25 caliber handgun, which killed him instantly. The moment that The Night Stalker was identified, he had nowhere to run. In 1988, Ramirez proposed to Lioy, and on October 3, 1996, they were married in California's San Quentin State Prison. [70] Ramirez also repeatedly ordered her not to look at him, telling her at one point that he would "cut her eyes out". The group held Ramirez down and relentlessly beat him until the police arrived and took him into custody. His parents were exposed to nuclear radiation; the US government were conducting nuclear bomb tests near where they lived. Police Say", "Mystery 'second suspect' tied to infamous Night Stalker serial killer", "Night Stalker Suspect Tied to '84 Killing: Fingerprint on Screen Where Glassell Park Woman, 79, Was Slain", "The Night Stalker: Serial Killer Richard Ramirez: "If You Look At Me Again, I'll Shoot You! When he was outside he heard a rustling noise. [89][90] When the couple's 3-year-old son entered the bedroom, Ramirez tied the child up and then continued to rape Sakina. he was eventually convicted for 13 counts of murder, 5 counts of attempted murder, 11 counts of sexual assault, and 14 counts of burglary. Ramirez's father, Julian, had been a former policeman in Juarez, Mexico, who after emigrating to the United States, became a laborer on the Santa Fe railroad, and was said to be prone to fits of anger and a temper that Ramirez said made him "physically abusive to his entire family.". At around 8 am, police were called over a disturbance in the area with few details with indications of a fight. After searching in vain for a knife in the kitchen, Ramirez tried to strangle the girl with a telephone cord. On August 30, 1985, Ramirez took a bus to Tucson,Arizona, to visit his brother, unaware that he had become the lead story in virtually every major newspaper and television news program across California. People may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. He then ran across the Santa Ana Freeway, and attempted to carjack a woman but was chased away by bystanders, who pursued him. [21] Although the husband beat Ramirez at the scene, criminal charges were dropped when the couple, who lived out of state, declined to return to Texas to testify against him. The Night Stalker killed many of his victims on the West Coast between 1984 and 1985most of which occurred in 1985. Ramirez killed at least 14 people and raped and tortured at least two dozen more during the spring and summer of 1985. Assuming it was an animal, James went to investigate the noise but did not notice anything unordinary. [5][6] His father Julin, a Mexican national and former Ciudad Jurez policeman who later became a laborer on the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway,[7] was an alcoholic who was prone to fits of anger that often resulted in physical abuse towards his wife and children. His father, a former Juarez, Mexico police officer, was often angry and physically abused his children, according to the book The Night Stalker: The Life and Crimes of Richard Ramirez by Philip Carlo. Nine months later from Vincow's murder on March 17, 1985, he attacked Maria Hernandez, who managed to escape his . Ramirez Planned To Escape Prison Twice. According to Philip Carlo's biographical crime book (also titled The Night Stalker), Ramirez's family were the only thing that ever made him feel any remorse for what he'd done. [46] He remained in the area for a few more days before heading back to the Los Angeles area. That night, he arrived at the home of James Romero Jr., who had just returned from a family vacation to Rosarito Beach in Mexico. He says that Ramirez's schizoid personality disorder contributed to his indifference to the suffering of his victims and his untreatability. He would have married anyone who would have married him, believed anything he said and done anything for him until he died. [112] While incarcerated, Ramirez openly bragged to a prison officer and other inmates about having killed "more than 20 people". Ramirez then pulled up at a place with "a chain-like fence" and got out of the vehicle with his victim. Lead detectives Frank Salerno and Gil Carrillo, who contributed to Netflix's Night Stalker: The Hunt for a Serial Killer, contacted the manufacturer of Avia Shoes and were able to retrieve the soles. [98] When it was discovered that the ballistics and shoe print evidence from the Los Angeles crime scenes matched the Pan crime scene, San Francisco's then-mayor Dianne Feinstein divulged the information, including the gun caliber,[99] in a televised press conference. Digital Spy participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites. Richard Ramirez received hundreds, if not thousands of letters from girls and women who want to start a relationship with him, even after he got sentenced to death on November 7, 1989, after being convicted of all charges against him, including 13 murders and 11 rapes! [118], After noticing a group of elderly Hispanic women fearfully identifying him as "el matador" (literally "the killer" in Spanish), Ramirez saw his face on the front page of the newspaper La Opinion with a headline calling him "Invasor Nocturno" (Night Invader)[116] and fled the store in a panic. He then demanded cash and more jewelry, and made her "swear on Satan" there was no more. Doreen Lioy, also known as Doreen Ramirez, was one of them. [121][136][137] He had also been affected by "chronic substance abuse and chronic hepatitis C viral infection". The Night Stalker is available on Netflix. Instead of being a diligent employee, he used the opportunity to sneak into the Holiday Inns rooms and steal hotel guests belongings. [100] This leak infuriated the detectives in the case, as they knew the killer would be following media coverage, which gave him the opportunity to destroy crucial forensic evidence. The police press conference after the discovery made it very clear: We know who you are now, and soon everyone else will. [79], At approximately 4:15 am, he broke into the home of the Khovananth family. As a teenager, he fell into the company of a sadistic cousin who was older than him. After this incident, he started developing an interest in Satanism, something that would shape his worldview as an adult. [16][17] By the time Richard had turned 14 in early 1974, he began using LSD frequently. However, the charges against him in the case were eventually dropped due to a lack of concrete physical evidence linking the Higgins murder to the Night Stalker crimes. [75], On July 20, 1985, Ramirez purchased a machete before driving a stolen Toyota to Glendale, California. [136], "The Night Prowler" redirects here. 4. In El Paso, Texas, he was the youngest child growing up. He shot Carns three times in the head before turning his attention to Erickson. When Miguel returned from the Vietnam War, he regaled his young cousin with stories about his gruesome exploits, reported The New York Times. [68] At gunpoint, he bound Kyle and her 11-year-old son with handcuffs, then ransacked the house. Ramirez started his crime spree at the age of 24, and it would last from April 10, 1984, until August 24, 1985. Interested in Digital Spy's weekly newsletter? In 1973, Miguel was arrested for killing his wife, a crime Richard saw with his own eyes, per Carlo. [79] He shot the sleeping Chainarong Khovananth in the head with a .25 caliber handgun, killing him instantly,[80] then repeatedly raped and beat Somkid Khovananth. At 13 years old, Ramirez watched his cousin murder his wife. The Night Stalker Detectives Are Still Renowned for Their Work in the Case, Women Were so Obsessed With the Night Stalker, He Was Nicknamed "Death Row Romeo", You Could Say That "Night Stalker" Richard Ramirez Had a Killer Smile. His four brothers and sisters were called Robert, Ruth, Joseph, and Ruben, and were all born with birth defects due to the fact that their mother worked at a boot factory where she was exposed to chemical fumes while pregnant. Richard Ramirez, a serial kidnapper, burglar, rapist, and murderer, who became known as the "Night Stalker", terrorized Los Angeles residents from the spring of 1984 up until his August 31, 1985 arrest. According to The Crime Mag, Richard Ramirez did injustice to his own oral hygiene from a very early age. As with most serial killers, he suffered from some traumas early on in his life, mainly because of his abusive father. On the night of May 1, 1985, Richard Ramirez drove a stolen Mercedes-Benz and killed two women, Mabel "Ma" Bell, 83, and Florence "Nettie" Lang, 81. In 1989, he was arraigned and found guilty of dozens of heinous charges . Ramirez's father was of Mexican nationality and a former policeman who was addicted to alcohol and used to beat his wife and children and physically abuse them. Ramirez was dubbed the "Night Stalker" by the press after he became a serial killer with the majority of his assaults coming at night in the homes of his victims. By the time he'd turned 12, Richard's older brothers had moved out of the family home. [53] Hernandez played dead until Ramirez left the scene. For over a year, Ramirez crept into houses in the wee morning hours and raped and tortured his randomly selected victims. raped and tortured included children that were as young as six-years-old. Ramirez, who was 25 when he was caught, married Lioy, 41, a freelance teen magazine editor from Burbank, California in 1996. [9], As a 12-year-old, Richard, or "Richie" as he was known to his family, was strongly influenced by his older cousin, Miguel ("Mike") Ramirez,[10] a decorated Green Beret combat veteran who himself had already become a serial killer and a rapist during his time in the United States Army in the Vietnam War. Netflix released the docuseries Night Stalker: The Hunt For a Serial Killer, based on Ramirez's life and crimes, on January 13, 2021. He later became a laborer on the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway. He turned to Satanism after moving to California in the late 1970s and was arrested several times for drug possession, burglary, and auto theft. His brother Robert also started to experiment with substance abuse, and Julian's disciplining of his children started to edge into abuse. ", "How a 13-Year-Old Boy Brought Down L.A.'s Most Notorious Serial Killer", "Shattered Dreams: 'Night Stalker' Victim Fights to Regain His Memory, Rebuild Life a Year After Attack", "The Night Stalker Detectives Are Still Renowned for Their Work in the Case", "Night Stalker: Richard Ramirez's unique Avia shoes helped link the serial killer to at least 8 murders", "How did the police catch the Night Stalker? He repeatedly demanded that she "swear on Satan" that she would not scream during his assaults. He often attacked elderly pensioner couples and at one time raped and murdered a nine-year-old girl. At the age of two, Richard had a dresser fall on top of him, knocking him unconscious. Ramirez was spotted outside of a Mission Viejo, California home on August 24, 1985, where he unwittingly left a footprint before a witness took note of his car and license plate. [30] This, Ramirez's second known murder, established his pattern of breaking into homes, committing particularly vicious murders, and frequently burglarizing his victims either before or after killing them, which was mainly to support his cocaine addiction and pay his rent. It was confirmation of Ramirez's involvement in this rape and murder that ended his marriage to Doreen Lioy. He further mutilated their bodies with the machete before robbing the house of valuables. So when he moved to Los Angeles, he broke into houses to steal goods which he sold to buy more drugs. By the time he started committing his own murders, he used a wide variety of weapons, including handguns, knives, a machete, a tire iron, and a hammer. Of course not! Born on February 29, 1960 in El Paso, Texas, Ricardo Leyva Muoz . After Ramirez was convicted in 1989, he was formally sentenced to death by gas chamber. [66] After raping Lang, he used Bell's lipstick to draw the Satanic pentagram symbol on her thigh as well as on the walls of both bedrooms. The pair are said to have started a courtship, with her visiting the prison and attending his trial. RICHARD Ramirez was an infamous serial killer who was given the nickname "Night Stalker" after his string of heinous crimes. His first known victim was 79-year-old Jennie Vincow, who was sexually assaulted, stabbed and killed during a burglary in her own home. Richard Ramirez, also known as the Night Stalker, terrorized the city of Los Angeles between 1984 and 1985. Ramirez grew up in El Paso, Texas. [19] While still in school, he took a job at a local Holiday Inn and used his passkey to rob sleeping patrons. "[135], Ramirez died of complications secondary to B-cell lymphoma at Marin General Hospital in Greenbrae, California, on June 7, 2013. [111], Ramirez was charged with murder and burglary in relation to Higgins' murder. In 2016, it was revealed that a second suspect's DNA an unnamed man, said to be a convicted felon was also recovered at the scene (via New York Post). His father Julian was beaten extensively by his own father and his grandfather, which made him quiet and withdrawn. He committed his first murder on April 10, 1984, but this wasnt confirmed until a DNA sample taken in 2009 matched that of his. Miguel shot his wife in the face, killing her, said Encyclopedia Britannica. Perhaps one of the most horrific facts about Richard Ramirez is that he used various weapons to attack and murder his victims. Shortly after this horrific incident, Ramirez moved in with his older sister named Ruth, mainly because he finally wanted to escape his abusive father. Later that day, she was found shot to death in her apartment. 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