True Crime On This Day January 24th

Last Updated on September 20, 2022 by Ben Oakley

January 24th

On January 24th in true crime, murder in Georgia, Arizona, and South Dakota, prisoners marry, macabre discovery and the red brigades.

1978

In Ireland, Rose Dugdale and Eddie Gallagher became the first convicted prisoners to marry in prison since the establishment of the Republic of Ireland.

Rose was brought up in a wealthy household but rebelled against her class to become a militant in the IRA.

She took part in robberies and a bomb attack on a police station using a hijacked helicopter. She was already pregnant with Eddie’s child when she was sentenced.

1979

In Richmond, Georgia, 49-year-old William Kenny Stephens shot dead 38-year-old police officer and investigator Larry D. Stevens. Stephens was arrested the same day and later sentenced to death for the murder.

In 2000, after numerous retrials, the death sentence was commuted to life due to mental incapacity at the time of the murder.

1980

In Maricopa County, Arizona, 22-year-old Scott Schwartz was brutally murdered by three men. Darrick Leonard Gerlaugh, Joseph Encinas, and Matthew Leisure, had decided to hitchhike and the kill whoever offered them a ride.

They ordered Schwartz to a remote location where they attacked him. They drove their car over him and positioned the wheel on Schwartz’ body before revving it to full power.

Gerlaugh and Leisure then stabbed him 40 times with a screwdriver before hiding the body in a nearby field. They were all arrested shortly after and charged with the murder.

Encinas and Leisure were sentenced to life in prison. Gerlaugh was sentenced to death and executed by lethal injection on February 3^rd 1999.

1981

In Martin, South Dakota, 17-year-old Tim Caffrey murdered his adoptive father, William Caffrey, by shooting him in the head.

He then stole his money and tried to leave the area but was arrested a few hours later. In an interview with police, he admitted to having an argument with William before reaching for a gun.

Despite being a few months shy of 18-years-old at the time of the murder, he was transferred from a juvenile court to an adult one. He was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

It was later reduced to 237 years in prison. In 2011, 30 years after the murder, Tim was paroled from prison.

1982

In Fort Lauderdale, Florida, the decomposing remains of an unidentified white male in his fifties, were discovered on the banks of the New River.

He was found by hikers near the 400 block of Southwest Seventh Avenue. An autopsy showed that he had drowned and had died at any time from three months to a week earlier.

Despite having distinguishing tattoos that were made public, the identity of the man remains a mystery. Investigators have long suspected foul play. The case remains open and unsolved.

1983

In Italy, 25 members of the Red Brigades were sentenced to life imprisonment for the 1978 kidnapping and murder of former Italian Premier Aldo Moro.

He was abducted in March 1978, and five of his bodyguards were killed during the attack. When negotiations between the Red Brigades and authorities failed, Moro was executed. His body was found in a red Renault 4 in May 1978. Moro had been murdered by the group as a way to undermine the Italian state.

The Red Brigades were an armed organisation and guerrilla group who were seeking to create a revolutionary state through armed struggle. They were active from 1970 to 1988.

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