The Encyclopedia of Serial Killers (98 page)

progress of a grisly pattern at 25 Cromwell Street. Two Bill Letts opposed his daughter’s relationship with months later, the Wests kidnapped 15-year-old Carol Fred West, but his threats proved ineffective. West was Cooper, abused her sexually, then strangled and dis-sentenced to prison in 1969 for his till-tapping exploits, membered her before burying her in their cellar. On but Rosemary stood by him; the couple were already December 27, 1973, Fred snatched Lucy Partington, a expecting their first child. Heather West was born in 21-year-old college student, from a Gloucester bus stop.

1970, increasing Rosemary’s resentment of the burden She was raped and tortured for a week before she posed by Charmaine and Anne-Marie. Eight-year-old joined the other victims in a basement grave. Fred clum-Charmaine disappeared in June 1971, with Fred still in sily cut himself while truncating Lucy’s remains and jail, Rosemary explaining that mother Rena had come was forced to visit a hospital emergency room for to claim her eldest child while leaving Anne-Marie stitches on January 13, 1974.

behind. Rosemary committed the murder, but Fred left The latest victims were reported missing by their prison on June 24, in time to bury the small corpse families, but police had no clue to their whereabouts for beneath their home at 25 Midland Road. Before plant-nearly two decades. Meanwhile, the Wests continued ing the child and pouring concrete over her grave, he their experiments in bondage, rape, and murder. A removed her fingers, toes, and kneecaps.

Swiss hitchhiker, 21-year-old Thérèsa Siegenthaler, Despite the birth of her child, Rosemary’s parents joined the growing list of victims on April 16, 1974.

still tried to reclaim her from West, but she balked at Fifteen-year-old Shirley Hubbard was kidnapped on leaving her married lover. Her passion was tempered November 14, 1974, followed by 19-year-old Juanita with fear, it seemed. Rosemary once told her parents, Mott on April 11, 1975. All found their way to the

“You don’t know him. There’s nothing he wouldn’t basement graveyard, dismembered and buried with no do—even murder.” Fred also invited various men to the public link to the Wests. At least one victim beside Midland Road house, where he watched them have sex Anne-Marie survived the basement dungeon. Known with Rosemary. Rena, meanwhile, had returned to only as “Miss A” in court documents, she was lured investigate Charmaine’s disappearance, prompting Fred home by the Wests sometime in 1976, then raped by to strangle her in August 1971. Once again he dismem-Fred and sexually assaulted by Rosemary. Reporting the bered the body, retaining its fingers and toes before he incident to police years after the fact, Miss A also buried the rest in a field near Much Marcle. Fred and described two other naked female victims in the cellar, Rosemary married in January 1972 and continued their neither of whom is publicly identified.

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WEST, Frederick and Rosemary

Rosemary produced another daughter, Tara, in

land Road home. In time, he spoke of 20 other

December 1977. A short time later, Shirley Robinson, an unnamed victims, taunting police with an offer to reveal 18-year-old bisexual prostitute, moved into 25 Cromwell their corpses at a rate of one per year.

Street, cheerfully accommodating the desires of both Rose feigned shock at Fred’s confessions, but police Fred and Rosemary. Fred soon impregnated Robinson, believed she had full knowledge of the crimes and may while Rosemary carried the child of a West Indian visitor.

have been a willing participant. The strongest case was Fred was proud of the double pregnancy, but Rosemary that of Charmaine West, murdered while Fred was serv-grew jealous of Robinson and demanded her removal.

ing time in jail. Initially charged with sex crimes on Fred complied, slaying Robinson in June 1978, dismem-April 18, 1994, Rosemary maintained a pose of out-bering her and the fetus she carried. Deeming the base-raged innocence. At their first joint hearing, she shied ment plot full to capacity, Fred buried his latest victims in from Fred’s touch and told police he sickened her.

the garden outside. Rose delivered her mixed-race Although Fred had started the charade, public rejection daughter, named Louise, in November 1978, bringing wounded him. Charged with 12 murders on December the total number of children at home to six.

13, 1994, he wrote to Rosemary: “We will always be in The next known victim on Cromwell Street, 17-year-love. You will always be Mrs. West, all over the world.

old Alison Chambers, was tortured, murdered, and dis-That is important to me and to you.” She failed to membered in September 1979. She joined Shirley answer, and Fred grew despondent. On January 1, Robinson and her unnamed child in the garden grave-1995, he hanged himself in prison, using strips of bed-yard. Anne-Marie soon left home to live with a sheet as a noose.

boyfriend, whereupon Fred shifted his incestuous atten-Robbed of their prime suspect, prosecutors charged tions to Heather and Mae, beating them when they Rosemary with 10 counts of murder (excluding victims resisted. He still had time for Rosemary, as well, siring Rena West and Ann McFall). Her trial convened on another son, Barry, born in June 1980. Two more chil-October 3, 1995, with prosecution witnesses including dren followed—Rosemary Jr. in April 1982 and

Caroline Raine, “Miss A,” and daughter Anne-Marie.

Lucyanna in July 1983—but neither was Fred’s biologi-Their testimony established Rosemary’s sexual sadism cal offspring. No further victims are identified from that beyond reasonable doubt, though none had witnessed period, though police believe the Wests probably con-any homicides. Still, Raine’s memory of threatened bur-tinued their predatory lifestyle. At home, Rose grew ial on Cromwell Street made the link, supporting prose-increasingly violent and irrational, raging and beating cutor Brian Leveson’s contention that Rosemary could the children without apparent cause.

not have been oblivious while Fred filled their basement Heather West spilled details of her sordid life to and garden with corpses. Rosemary’s plea of monumen-friends in 1986, but no one thought to notify police tal ignorance fell on deaf ears, as the court convicted about the ghoulish goings-on. Fred and Rosemary her on all counts, imposing 10 life sentences. The silenced Heather forever on June 19, 1987, adding her

“House of Horrors” on Cromwell Street was demol-dismembered remains to the garden boneyard while ished in October 1996, paved over in July 1997 as an informing the rest of their children that Heather had unassuming pedestrian walkway. (Plans for a memorial left home. Unknowingly, son Stephen helped to dig his garden were rejected, in fear that the place might attract sister’s grave. That secret remained inviolate until Feb-murder GROUPIES.) On July 30, 1997, Home Secretary ruary 1994, when police arrived with excavating tools Jack Straw rejected Rosemary’s appeal, decreeing that and carried Fred away to jail.

she should remain in prison for the rest of her life.

In custody, on February 25, Fred West admitted Elsewhere, grim tragedy stalked other members of killing Heather and burying her in the garden. “The the West family. Fred’s brother, 54-year-old John, was thing I’d like to stress,” he said, “is that Rose knew jailed in autumn 1996 on charges of raping a niece nothing at all.” Discovery of a third human leg in the more than 300 times. On November 29, he followed garden brought detectives back to question Fred again.

Fred’s lead, hanging himself in jail. Anne-Marie West He pointed out the graves of Shirley Robinson and Ali-attempted suicide in November 1999, leaping from a son Chambers, then reluctantly directed searchers to his bridge near Gloucester, but bystanders pulled her from basement body cache. In some cases, West had not the river in time to save her life. Brother Stephen, jilted bothered to learn his victims’ names. He called Thérèsa by a girlfriend, tried to hang himself in January 2002, Siegenthaler “Tulip,” in the mistaken belief she was but the rope snapped and spared him.

Dutch, and dubbed another victim “Scar Hand,” for a On March 5, 2000, Rosemary West launched a new burn that caught his eye. As talks proceeded, Fred sent appeal, claiming to possess photographic proof that officers to the Much Marcle fields where Rena West and Fred had killed alone, without her help. Those pictures Ann McFall were buried, then on to his former Mid-never surfaced, but police raided the home of a London
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“WEST Side Rapist”

pedophile on March 17, 2000, seizing pornographic breathe a little easier. In time, they would forget, but videotapes that included footage of Rosemary sexually homicide detectives would continue searching for their abusing children. One investigator called the tapes “the man across a decade, covering the same ground end-grossest and vilest type you can imagine. It features lessly without result. A possible solution to the case has Rose committing grossly indecent acts on young girls.

been suggested in the person of Brandon Tholmer, con-Several are under age and one of them looks to be only fined for three years to a state mental hospital after rap-about five.” Detectives labored in vain to identify those ing a 79-year-old woman in October 1975. Tholmer victims, one Scotland Yard spokesman telling reporters, lived in the area and committed home invasion crimes

“They may have been murdered. Fred West spoke of similar to those of the West Side Rapist. Eleven years more than 20 before he killed himself, so it is important later, in 1986, Tholmer—then 37—was sentenced to life to find out who the girls are on the film. Most of their in prison for the rape-slayings of four elderly women victims were in their teens but we are now wondering if since 1981. To date, no evidence has been produced they could have been involved in the abduction and connecting Tholmer with the earlier series of murders, murder of small children.”

and the West Side Rapist remains officially unidentified.

That mystery remains unsolved today, but Rosemary gave up the last of her appeals on September 30, 2001.

A formal statement, issued via her attorney, declared: “I
WILDER, Christopher Bernard

do not believe that even if I was released that I could Born March 13, 1945, Christopher Wilder was the ever relax or feel free, be left alone or have any peace of product of an international marriage between an Amer-mind. More importantly, I would not be able to resume ican naval officer and an Australian native. A sickly a normal relationship with my family.” Rosemary apol-child from the beginning, Wilder was given last rites as ogized to Anne-Marie, claiming that “I would love to an infant. Two years later, he nearly drowned in a be reconciled and have contact with her.” In respect to a swimming pool; at age three, he suffered convulsions planned TV documentary on her case, Rosemary said, while riding with his parents in the family car and had

“It can only open old wounds or delay any healing to be resuscitated.

process for the victims’ families.”

By his teens, the boy had problems of a different sort. At 17, in Sydney, Wilder and a group of friends were charged with gang-raping a girl on the beach. He

“WEST Side Rapist”

pled guilty to carnal knowledge and received one year’s Within a single year, between November 1974 and probation, with a provision for mandatory counseling.

October 1975, a vicious prowler terrorized the west The program included group therapy and electroshock side of Los Angeles, raping 33 women and killing at treatments, but it seemed to have little effect.

least 10. While all of his victims were elderly, ranging in Wilder married at age 23, but the union lasted only a age from 63 to 92 years, the incessant attacks spread an few days. His bride complained of sexual abuse and aura of fear citywide, boosting gun sales and turning finally left him after finding panties (not her own) and neighbor against neighbor as dark suspicions flour-photographs of naked women in a briefcase Wilder car-ished. In the end, he slipped away without a trace and ried in his car. In November 1969, he used nude pho-left police to search in vain for clues to his identity.

tographs to extort sex from an Australian student The first to die, on November 7, 1974, was 72-year-nurse; she complained to the police, but charges were old Mary Scialese, followed the next day by Lucy ultimately dropped when she refused to testify in court.

Grant, age 92. On November 14, the slayer claimed Lil-Australia was growing too hot for Wilder, so he lian Kramer, 67, rebounding on the night of December moved to the United States. Settling in southern Florida, 4 to kill 74-year-old Ramona Gartner. A new year he prospered in the fields of construction and electrical brought no respite from the violence, with 71-year-old contracting, earning (or borrowing) enough money to Sylvia Vogal murdered on March 22, 1975. Una

finance fast cars and a luxurious bachelor pad, com-Cartwright, age 78, was slaughtered on April 8; 75-plete with hot tub and a private photographic studio.

year-old Olga Harper was killed two weeks later. Mur-The good life visibly agreed with Wilder, but it did not dered on May 22, 86-year-old Effie Martin was the fill his other, hidden needs.

eighth fatality in 23 attacks. Her death was the eighth In March 1971 at Pompano Beach, Wilder was

fatality in 23 attacks. Her death was followed by the picked up on a charge of soliciting women to pose for September homicide of Cora Perry, 79, and the slaying nude photos; he plea-bargained down to disturbing the of 63-year-old Leah Leshefsky on October 28.

peace and paid a small fine. Six years later, in October By New Year’s Day, two months had passed without 1977, he coerced a female high school student into oral a new assault, and residents of West L.A. began to sex, threatening to beat her if she refused, and he was
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WILDER, Christopher Bernard

jailed a second time. Wilder admitted the crime to his the state line to Bainbridge, Georgia. There, in a cheap therapist, but confidential interviews are inadmissible in motel, he raped her repeatedly and tortured her with court, and he was later acquitted. On June 21, 1980, he electric shocks, smearing her eyelids with Super Glue.