True Crime On This Day July 25th

July 25th

On July 25th in true crime, Kidnapping, murder, serial killers, deadly prison riots, Atlanta murders, cold cases, and mysteries.

1978

In England, 13-year-old Candice Williams was found brutally murdered in a stairwell of a block of flats in Erdington.

Despite a police room being set up for the investigation, the case remained unsolved until 1992 when developing DNA technology caught the culprit.

Patrick Joseph Hassett, who was 19-years-old at the time, was convicted and sentenced to life.

1979

In Atlanta, Georgia, 13-year-old Alfred Evans went missing, only for his body to turn up on the 28^th along with that of 14-year-old Edward Smith who disappeared on the 21^st.

The death of Alfred Evans was attributed to 23-year-old Wayne Williams, but no conviction has yet been made.

1980

In St. Charles, Missouri, Mary Fleming was murdered in her apartment after being stabbed and having her throat cut from ear to ear.

She had been killed by serial killer Anthony J. Larette. He was seen rushing away from the apartment block shortly before Fleming staggered on to the street, where she died of her injuries.

Larette was arrested later in the year, after a friend of his called the investigation, suspecting him of being involved. Larette was charged with Fleming’s murder and later sentenced to death.

He confessed to more crimes while on death row and investigators linked at least three more murders to him but it is suspected there were as many as 12 victims. Larette was executed by lethal injection on November 29^th 1995.

1981

In Naples, Italy, 60-year-old Christian Democrat politician Ciro Cirillo was released after 89 days in captivity.

He had been kidnapped by the Red Brigades on April 27^th, due to his appointment as right-hand man to the leader of the Doroteo faction of the Christian Democrats, Antonio Gava.

Cirillo was released after a substantial ransom had been paid by Camorra mob boss Raffaele Cutolo. Cirillo died aged 96-years-old on July 30^th 2017.

1982

In Rostov Oblast, Soviet Union, 14-year-old Lyubov Volobuyeva was brutally murdered by Russian serial killer Andrei Chikatilo, AKA: The Red Ripper.

Her remains were found on August 7^th. Chikatilo was captured in 1990 and found guilty of 52 murders despite confessing to 56.

He had enjoyed playing with the blood of his victims and confessed to tearing at the victim’s genitalia, nipples, tongues and lips with his teeth.

He chewed upon the uterus of his female victims and the testicles of his few male victims. But he still maintained that he never ate them, he simply chewed and discarded.

He was sentenced to death for each and every one and executed by shooting on February 16^th 1994.

1983

In Colombo, Sri Lanka, the Welikada Prison Massacre began and lasted two days, leaving 56 people dead, including three prison deputies.

One of the inmates killed in the violent riots was former Tamil separatist leader Selvarajah Yogachandran, AKA: Kuttimani, who had carried out the largest robbery in Sri Lanka, a year earlier.

He had planned the robbery of an armoured truck in order to fund the rebel movement. The operation was jointly planned with the Tamil Tigers.

They attacked the truck as it was taking cash from Neervely to Jaffna. The gunmen killed the guards and escaped with 7.9million (SLR) (Approximately $400,000 USD at the time).

A nationwide manhunt ensued and the attackers were caught eleven days later. Kuttimani was sentenced to death but killed during the riots. No one has ever been convicted of crimes relating to the riots.

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