The Life and Crimes of Gary Ridgway

What if a quiet and unassuming man could hide a very dark, dark secret? A trail of disappearances stretching over decades. Crime, conspiracy, cults, serial killers, and murder all- things that I love to consume and I know you do too, you sweet, aromatic, scrumdiddlyumptious intellectual freak. And today we are talking about Gary Bridgeway, aka the Green River Killer. And the Green River Killer is... is quite literally one of the most notorious serial killers in American history. His confirmed kill count is large, but his unconfirmed kill count is even larger. And he is a very, very sick individual because he relishes in the fact that all his victims will never be found. So without further ado, let's unbuckle our seat belts, go Mach 5 down the highway, slam on the brakes, and bust through this windshield into this sick. Sick. I want to say f*** her but I can't. I guess I can't f*** her. Wait, I have to tell you something and that is that I want you to take advantage of me. 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And it was 1949 and America was experiencing an economic boom following the victory over Nazi Germany. And it was an era of optimism for families that had struggled through the great war. Great Depression. The hand of civilization has changed the scene from desert to habitation and to streamlined structures of a modern era. Beautiful Salt Lake City has become the scenic and industrial center of the Intermountain West. Salt Lake City was largely conservative and rooted in religious values. The area had been settled by Mormons who had traveled west on the Mormon Trail. I played the Oregon Trail as a kid, not the Mormon Trail. What was the-what would the Mormon Trail game be? Just like going around collecting- underaged wives and impregnating them before they can escape. That's rude. Can I say that? Probably not. I didn't mean it. So when World War II ended and men returned home, the women who had joined the workforce to fill roles left by the men who went to go fight the war were encouraged and even pressured to return back to domestic life. And that is where we fucked up ladies. Working sucks. Because post-war America celebrated the nuclear family. Fathers were expected to be the breadwinners and embody a sense of authority. And Gary's father, Thomas Newton Ridgway, was a bus driver. And women were expected to care for the home and the children. Though it was becoming more common for women to work nationwide at this point. And Gary's mother, Mary Rita Ridgway, was part of a minority of women in the workforce. She worked in retail, but the challenges of balancing work and the burden of household duties and raising children must have been difficult for her. And as we will start to see. But despite having two forms of income and an era of prosperity, life could still be trying at these times. There was a significant household shortage as veterans returning home created surge in demand. And so many families struggled to find affordable housing at this time, especially in Salt Lake City, which was sandwiched in a mountain valley with the Wasatch Mountains to the east and north and the Okurr Mountains to the west. I, it's probably not how you say it, but. but it's spelt O-Q-U-I-R-R-H. Anyway, this limited the room for expansion. And blue collar families like Ridgeways had limited options, often living in cramped and outdated apartments, not included for long-term family life. And the Housing Act of 1949 sought to address this housing shortage with federal funding, aiming to clear slums and redevelop urban areas with modern and affordable housing. Though it often displaced low-income families without providing sufficient replacements. It was a bad time. It was a shit time to be alive. And due to these economic limitations and the fierce competition for adequate housing, the Ridgeways relocated to the suburban area south of Seattle. And being near SeaTac, aka Seattle-Tacoma Airport, there were plenty of employment opportunities in the transportation and service industries. Perfect for Gary's parents. But despite these opportunities, the stresses of balancing work and home life affected Gary's treatment by his parents and his childhood was... seemingly quite troubled to say the least. And based on what we learn in later interviews and interrogations, it would seem as though Gary's mother, Mary, was abusive towards Gary as a child. And his father wasn't around much. He worked for the most part. So Mary was in complete control. And she was allegedly very domineering and degrading to him. And despite his best efforts, she picked on him for not doing well in school as well. What did you want to do to your mom here? I wanted her to stop being angry at me for not knowing how to... But she wasn't stopping. No, she wasn't stopping. Was she? No. She kept picking on you. She kept picking on me. Belittling you. Embarrassing you. I mean, that's pretty clear from yesterday. It happened in school too. She sounds like a fucking bully is what it sounds like. And this is kind of where Gary would begin to have very twisted ideas regarding his mother. He would have multiple different fantasies of drastically different kinds. All of which were horrifyingly disturbed. Gary had his sensual fantasies about his mother, for example. As early as 14 or 15 years old, Gary would begin to think about having intercourse with his mom after watching her sunbathe. She aroused him because she would come home from work and go to the backyard to tan. I'd see her out sunbathing and... I feel that she, you know, she would be good to have s*** with. But the fantasy was likely spurred by sensual confusion resulting from her. On the one hand, belittling him, and on the other hand, when he'd wet his bed into his tea. And after he did, his mother would wash his genitals for him. And like getting into those later years, like I get it if you're a kid, but my lord, 13, 14, that's getting a little weird. It's getting a little weird, mom. And psychologists believe that this was only the tip of the iceberg. and likely only one part of a larger pattern of Sejual contact between the two and they would also say that this would humiliate Gary and likely turn into more rage Directed at Mary and Gary apparently just wanted his mom I want to stop. picking on him and eventually his fantasies would twist from having sensual intercourse with his mother to murdering her. You know, I, this, and I can't help but think of Ed Kemper in this, in this, uh, scenario, which if, if you want me to do a deep dive on Ed Kemper, I'd be more than happy to, but my God, talk about mommy issues, man. He, he killed women just because they, he, he would look at them and think of his mom. And then he ended up killing his mom, gotten off her head and just doing stuff to it. I don't want to talk about it, but anyway. Anyway, he thought of hurting her in the past, explicitly mentioning fourth grade. But this was an escalation of those desires. The sensual feelings wouldn't go away entirely, and it would become like a Jekyll and Hyde situation, where there are two desires in him fighting each other, basically. When she's down there, she's a fantasy object. When she's up there trying to get me to read, and she's... the other side of something I hated. His urges were the first signs that something was deeply wrong with Gary. And he would take out his sejual and violent frustrations in other ways. And it started with him throwing rocks at windows and breaking them. And it would progressively worsen over time. He would graduate from throwing rocks at windows to throwing rocks at his brother. And then he'd begin doing another thing that a lot of serial killers do, and that is killing animals. He would start killing animals. He loved killing birds. He killed a lot of them. And he also suffocated a cat and shot puppies to hurt them. He's also gorilla gripping this cat in this photo right here. And it's like, I've never wanted to like pop a kid in the head with a fist so much in my life. But it would escalate even further when he stabbed a kid with a knife when he was 15 or 16. And the victim of the stabbing didn't die. die, thankfully. But Gary stabbed him just to see how stabbing worked because he wanted to stab his mom. And he would always think about stabbing her in the chest, in the heart, and cutting up her face specifically. And somehow, by either a miracle or a curse, Gary made it through high school and graduated in 1969 at 20 years old. And he even married his 19-year-old girlfriend, Claudia Craig Barrows, before joining the Navy and going to Vietnam. And his military service isn't notable or relevant to the story really. He worked on a supply ship and saw combat while transporting supplies upriver. And during his service, when he wasn't aboard the ship and had some time on land, he became fixated on ladies of the night, aka prostituats. I can't say that word on YouTube, so I'm going to call them ladies of the night. And ladies of the night would soon become his favorite target for killings. But at this time in Vietnam, he enjoyed their company and their talents. He was still married to Claudia at the time, so he's already a piece of shit, as we know. And their marriage soon collapsed. She dodged a bullet though, so whatever. And Gary would marry a total of three times. He married his second wife, Marcia Laureen Brown, a year after divorcing Claudia. Guy moves on quick, all right? And though they had a son together, Matthew, Gary and Marcia would divorce in 1981. And Gary and his third wife, Judith, married in 1988. So, a little bit further. time time frame there from remarrying. All while Gary's sexual fantasies would never fade. If anything they were channeled into new fetishes or kinks and two ex-spouses and two ex-girlfriends alleged that he loved to have intercourse outdoors on camping or hiking trips and sometimes would push for intercourse up to three times a day. And Gary seemingly never gave up on hiring ladies of the night. At least in the first two marriages. As in 1980. He had been arrested for choking a lady of the night but was never charged after claiming she'd bitten him first. And he'd continue his pattern of infidelity and supposedly had been very violent towards Marcia leading to their eventual divorce. And in 1982 he was arrested for soliciting a lady of the night. And it's believed that shortly after this he did begin killing. All while having a family and working a regular job as a truck painter. So let's get into the murders. In the summer of 1982, five bodies of young women would appear in or near the Grain River in King County, Washington. And based on the evidence that was found at the crime scene and the locations of the bodies, it became very evident to investigators that they did have a serial killer on their hands. And over the next few years, they would work hard gathering evidence, photos, and following leads in hope of catching this. gang monster. And here are the five victims in order. The first one was Wendy Lee Caulfield. And at the time of her death, Wendy was 16 years old and last seen on July 8th in 1982 in Tacoma, Washington. And her body was discovered underneath the Peck Bridge by two boys riding on their bikes across the bridge floating in the Green River near Kent, Washington. And her cause of death was strangulation using her own clothes. And the next victim victim was Deborah Lynn Bonner. She went missing in July 15th, 1982, and she was 23 years old. She was last seen at SeaTac Airport in SeaTac, Washington, and her body was seen floating in the Green River near Kent, Washington as well. And it's important to note that her body was found in close proximity to the meat packing plant that Gary worked at. How convenient. And victim number three was Marcia Faye Chapman, and Marcia was last seen leaving her home at SeaTac. Washington on August 1st, 1982. And her body was recovered from the Green River on August 15th, 1982. Near, you guessed it, Kent Washington. See a pattern here? We're getting cereal with it right now. And she would be 31 years old at the time, and her cause of death was also... strangulation. And the fourth victim would be Opal Charmaine Mills and her family reported to the police that they last spoke to her on August 12th, 1982 and she would make a call from 194th street and Pacific Highway South in SeaTac and her body would also be pulled out of the Green River in Kent, Washington on August 15th, 1982 and she would only be 16 years old at the time of her death. Like, oh man, I fucking hate it, fucking hate it. And there was actually a sixth victim found in the Green River, except she was dumped much later. And that was Tracy Winston, who was 19 at the time. And she was last seen on September 12th, 1983 at 6 p.m. at North. Gate Mall. And her body was discovered one mile from the bridge that Wendy Lee Caulfield was found under. And if we look at the reports of where the bodies were found near the Green River near Kent, all of these women were taken from SeaTac, specifically along... the Pacific Highway South and are mostly young women. The highway does run through Tacoma so that ties in the first victim found. The police also found all the bodies within the same time frame so it's hard to say whether or not they were murdered at the same time or if they were discovered at the same time without seeing the autopsy reports. Nevertheless, there was a monster living in the greater Seattle area and little did investigators know that Gary Ridgeway was lurking right beneath their noses. And the next set of victims were found. nearby where the first set of victims were abducted. The SeaTac airport and the Taiyi golf course are close to each other and near Pacific Highway South. And their names were Giselle A. LaVorn. At age 19, she would be discovered on September 25th, 1982 in the woods of South 200th Street and 18th Avenue South in Seattle. And she was last seen in Normandy Park on July 17th, 1982. And it's important to note that Normandy Park was was sandwiched between SeaTac Airport and the Green River, right where the previous victims were abducted and dumped. And before she disappeared, Giselle had beautiful blonde hair but when her body was discovered, it appeared her hair had been dyed black for some reason. And the next victim would be Constance Neon. And Constance would be last seen on June 8th, 1983 at 6 p.m. at near South 188th Street and Pacific Highway South, leaving her friend's house. And she was last seen by her boyfriend, Mr. Neon. saying that she was picking up her check at her job and would see him in about 20 minutes. Her car would be later found parked at South 188th Street and Pacific Highway South. And on October 27th, 1983, her body would be discovered on a vacant lot. And she would only be 21 at her time of death. And the next victim would be Kelly Ware. She would be last seen on July 17th, 1983. And she was last seen at a bus stop at 22nd Avenue East and East Mat- Madison Street. And just four months later, her body would be recovered on October 29th, 1983, in the 2500 block of South 192nd Street. And she would be only 22 years old at her time of death. So all these murders are like in such compacted timeframes from the first set to the second set. It's like he just went on a frenzy. And the next victim would be Mary Bridget Meehan. The Western Six Motel would be the last place the 19-year-old Mary was seen. alive on September 15th, 1982 at about 8.30 p.m. while she was just out for a walk. And a few months later, her body would be discovered on November 13th, 1983 at South 192nd Street and 27th Avenue South. So again, just really close proximity. And there would still be a few more victims after this to show up. One of which being Andrea M. Childers. Andrea was 17 years old at the time of her disappearance. And she was last seen at a bus stop on 21st Avenue and Union. Union Street on April 14th, 1983 at about 12 PM. And she would be eight months pregnant at the time. And it would take over six years for investigators to discover her body in the woods near South 190th Street and 24 Avenue South on October 19th, 1989. Just oh, it's just heartbreaking. Like eight months pregnant. I just like there's just a special, not even special. special, just a grimy fucking just nail covered fucking throne that is sitting in hell for Gary Ridgeway. And I just, I just, yeah. And this is when another dumping ground would be found and it was found near baseball fields, just North of the SeaTac airport. And Shonda Leah Summers, Cheryl Lee Wims, and an unidentified corpse would all be found. Shonda was only 17 years old. Cheryl was only 18 and would disappear on her birthday. And Cheryl's sister would also go missing on the exact same day and she would remain missing, which is just heartbreaking. So you have to think like, was it Gary as well? I don't know. And then the unidentified corpse of a white female between the ages of 14 to 18 years old would also be found behind the ballpark at South 146th Street and 16th Avenue South. And police were probably thinking that they had some time to work with, believing that no more bodies would appear. However, they were about to find even more, but this time inside a residential neighborhood. Star Lake was originally a small natural lake, but it was enhanced and expanded over time with modifications to support residential development around the area. And it is also in close proximity to Pacific Highway South, where the other victims were found. So from 1983 to 1985, the bodies of six women were discovered along Star Lake Road, a very scenic road just south of Star Lake. And here is the order in which the bodies were discovered. There was Gail Matthews. She was last seen on April 10th, 1983 on Pacific Highway South at around 6 p.m. and her body would be discovered along Star Lake Road on September 18th, 1983, and she would be only 23 years old at the time of her death. And it was reported that she had entered a truck along Pacific Highway South and was never seen again. And next, there was Dolores Laverne Williams. Dolores was only 17 years old at the time of her disappearance and was last seen near a bus stop, similar to the others, at Red Lion Inn on Pacific Highway South in March of 1983. And on March 31st, 1984, her body would be discovered in the intersection of South 53rd Street and Starlake Road, and she was identified through dental records. And the next victim would be Terry Renee Milligan. On August 29th, 1982, Terry would disappear on Pacific Highway South as well, and her body would appear on April 1st, 1984, two years and one day after she initially disappeared. And she would only be 16 at the time of her death. And Terry had lived a very hard life up until her disappearance. disappearance. She had gotten pregnant in middle school and her family disowned her and she was forced to quit school at a very young age and even move in with her boyfriend at a hotel. And Gary admitted to killing her in November of 2003. And the next victim would be Sandy K. Gabbert. And on April 17th, 1983, at the age of 17, Sandra would be last seen on South 142nd Street and Pacific Highway South. And 11 months later, on April 2nd, 1984, her body would be recovered. at Star Lake Road and 55th Avenue South in an isolated spot. And next is Alma Smith disappearing on March 3rd, 1983 on Pacific Highway South and would be recovered April 2nd, 1984 on Star Lake Road. And Gary even claimed that he took Alma to his home and strangled her there. And the next would be Carrie Ann Royce and she would be missing for two years. Carrie was last seen on May 13th, 1983 and was rediscovered on March. 10th 1985 and her body was dumped in a swamp just off of Starlake Road and she would be only 15 years old at the time of her death. And from 1883 to 1985 Gary moved dumping locations but he kept the abduction area the same. He was likely picking these women up off the side of the highway, offering them rides or maybe even kidnapping them in broad daylight and then killing them and then dumping them in different locations. But from these new victims it was very clear that he targeted them. teenage women. However, as we have come to learn, Ridgway was not dumping bodies in one spot. He had spots literally all over the city. And it became even more clear that he wasn't just killing or abducting one at a time. He had to have been doing it repeatedly every week or even multiple times a day. And this is when a new dumping ground would be found along Highway 18 and I-90. And the victims that would be found there were Tina Marie Thompson, who was last seen along the Pacific Highway South as well on July 25th, 1983. And her body would be found April 20th, 1984 near Highway 18. And next would be Maureen Sue Feeney. And Maureen was last seen September 23rd, 1983 between 5 and 6 p.m. at 1515 East Madison Street in Seattle. And her body was also discovered along Highway 18 on May 2nd, 1986. And she would only be 19 years old. And the next victim would be Cindy Ann Smith on June 29th, 1990. 1987, the partially decayed remains of the 17-year-old Cindy were discovered by three young boys near Green River Community College, about 15 miles south of where she originally disappeared on March 21st, 1984 at around 5 p.m. Well, hitchhiking. Never. Hitchhike. And the next victim where these bodies were dumped was Patricia Barzak. October 11th, 1986, the 19-year-old Patricia was last seen on South... 139th Street and Pacific Highway South. And her body would be found along Highway 18 as well near Seattle International Raceway on February 3rd, 1993, almost seven years after she disappeared. And the next set of victims were discovered near Exit 38 and I-90 from 1984 to 1986. And Exit 38 on Interstate 90 in Washington State is located near North Bend, approximately 38 miles east of Seattle. And this area is extremely remote and far away from civilization. And most people who take this exit are using it to access national parks and hiking trails. And these women were murdered around the same time that the women at Star Lake were being killed and abducted. So he's literally killing women in one spot, dumping their bodies in this other spot, and then abducting women from the same spot and dumping their bodies in a completely different spot. So he's like, he has this whole system and nobody's catching on at this point. point. It is fucking insane. And the victim list just keeps growing and growing and growing. Like in researching it and looking it up, like you see the number, but then you start to read when they went missing and how they went missing and when their bodies were found and who they were. It's just like, it's unbelievable, like truly. But the victims that were found in this specific spot were Delise Louise Plagger, who was only 22 at the time. And she was last seen on October 30th, 1983 at 3 PM at a bus stop. and she would be found on February 14th, 1983, right next to exit 38. And next is Lisa L. Yates. And on March 13th, 1983, the 21-year-old Lisa would be discovered near exit 38 as well. And the next victim is Kimberly Nelson. She would only be 20 years old and she would be last seen at the Ben Carroll Motel on Pacific Highway South at a nearby bus stop on November 1st, 1983, around 11 p.m. And she would be missing for two and a half years. And partial skeletal remains. would be rediscovered three miles from exit 38 on Forest Back Road on June 13th, 1986. And by this point, the local and state police had a real problem on their hands, obviously. Gary was now moving out of Seattle and who knows how long it was until they moved farther west and maybe even out of state. But it seems as time passes, more dump sites will be discovered. Because along Highway 410 near Enumclaw, Washington, roughly 40 miles south of- of Seattle, the body of Debbie Mae Abernathy was found. She would be last seen on September 5th, 1983, and she was only 26 years old. And she would be found March 31st, 1984. And the other victims that were found near Highway 410 were Mary Sue Bellow and Martina T. Athoralee. Mary was only 25 and Martina was only 18. And some of the bodies found at the site were dumped much later, similar to the Green River dump site. Like Marta Reeves. On March 5th, 1990, Marta would call her husband for the final time. Her body would be recovered on September 20th at the end of the logging road between mile markers 33 and 34 off Highway 410. And sometime during February of 1987, Roberta Hayes completely disappeared. She had a troubled life and was even featured in the 1984 documentary called Streetwise, highlighting homeless teenagers on the streets of Seattle. And she was arrested and released by Portland Police. police and was believed to have been picked up by Ridgeway on her way back to Seattle. And three and a half years later, her skeletal remains were discovered at the end of a dirt road near mile marker 36 and a half near Highway 410 on September 11th, 1991. And Pavi Event was also found near Highway 14 as well. She was only 16 years old and was discovered on August 16, 2003. And it was clear that Gary was actively thinking about where he was going to dump his bodies. He was very very calculated to ensure that he would never get caught. And this became very evident with his next set of victims. Denise D. Bush was last seen October 8th, 1982 at 1230 PM at the Moonrise Hotel at South 144th Street and Pacific Highway South. And she was only 23 years old. And Shirley Marie Sherrill, age 19, was last seen in Chinatown eating lunch with a friend in Seattle, October or early November of 1982. And her body was found June 14th 1985 in Tigard, Oregon. Again, 200 miles away from where she was last seen. So he's going out of his way to make sure that he does not get caught. He is such a A fucking monster. Like he had to be thinking about this 24-7. Eventually it was discovered that Ridgeway was just dumping bodies all over the state of Washington. He had so many spots all across the county that police investigators were searching every nook and cranny. there could be a body there, because there very well could be. And so far, there have been nine victims found in various spots all across King County specifically. Linda Jane Rule, last seen near the Seals Motel on Aurora Avenue South in Seattle, September 26th. 1982. Her body was found on a campus of Northwest Hospital on January 31st, 1983 at only 16 years old. Carol Ann Christensen at age 29 was last seen at Barn Door Tavern on May 3rd, 1983 near Pacific Highway South, of course. And she was planning on returning to a tavern for an evening shift after stopping home to see her daughter and husband. And on May 8th, 1983, her body would be found in the woods by a family mushroom hunting. near Southeast 242nd Street and 248th Avenue Southeast in Maple Valley area of King County. And she had been strangled with a bag over her head and she was partially submerged in shallow water and her clothes were put back onto her body backward. And she would also have one shoe on the wrong foot and the other one missing completely. And she had a raw sausage wrapped around her, a wine bottle in her hand, and two gutted fish neatly placed over her chest. You have to just think that he's just like expecting people to find her and just screwing with them in a sick, sick way. Like I don't know at this point, like I don't know. It's just like horrifying. And next was Yvonne Shelley Antosh. She was last seen at the Ben Carroll Motel on Pacific Highway South on May 31st 1983 around 11 p.m. and five months later on On October 15th, 1983, her body would be discovered on Auburn Black Diamond Road, a wooded suburb east of where she disappeared. She would be only 19 years old. Next would be Colleen Renee Brockman. On May 26th, 1984, a 15-year-old Colleen would be found on Jovita Boulevard in Pierce County, Washington. And the next victim is Maria Exeta West, who on February 6th, 1984, was last seen walking around Rainier Avenue South. And on September 8th, 1985, someone spotted and reported a body leaning against a tree in the backwoods of Seaboard Park, Seattle. And it was later identified that she was only 16 years old. But like at this point, he's just placing them to be found. Like he is being meticulous in where he's putting them, but like they're being found. So it's, I don't know. And Patricia Ann Yellow Robe originally ruled as an overdose. Patricia was last seen sometime in January of 1998. And her body would be discovered just off Des Moines Way South in a vacant lot. And during his trial, Ridgway would admit to murdering her. And next would be April Buttram. She was last seen when she actually spoke to police in August of 1983. And her remains would be found on August 30th and September 2nd, 2003. In a wooded area near Snoqualmie, about 26 miles east of Seattle. By searchers sifting dirt through screens. And next would be Mary Jane Molina Marie Malver. On April 30th, 1983, Marie was last spotted at an intersection of South- 216th and Pacific Highway South. And her boyfriend saw her actually getting into a truck and feeling that something was off, tried to follow the vehicle. However, he would lose them in an intersection, unfortunately. And a few days later, he would inform the police that he had found the same truck parked outside a house less than half a mile away. And the property belonged. to Gary Ridgway. And when questioned by authorities, Ridgway denied any involvement in Marie's disappearance. And the police found no reason to pursue the matter further, unfortunately. And it wasn't until 2003, nearly 30 years later, that Marie's remains were discovered in the ravine off 65th Avenue South in Auburn. And to this day, these next four women who Gary admitted to killing still remain missing. And that is Casey Ann Lee, who was only 16 years old. And next was Becky Marrero, who was only aged 19. And she would also disappear December 3rd, 1982 off. Pacific Highway. And next was Kelly K. McGinnis. Kelly was last seen on June 28th, 1983, standing beside a street in the area of the Three Bears Motel on Pacific Highway South. And he claimed to had killed her, but either refused to tell or forgot where he hid the body because he had hid so many at this point. And lastly, there was Patricia Ann Osborne, who on January 24th, 1983, had relatives report that she was missing. And a little later that year, from September to December of 1983, more women went missing and seven bodies were discovered, all who were believed to have been abducted and murdered. And they would all be later identified as victims of Gary Ridgeway. And it's just crazy to believe that Gary Ridgeway was able to get away with this many murders. And while in custody, he even admitted to killing and abducting a woman with his own son in the car. July 18th, I think it was my brother's birthday, that weekend I picked up a woman. And I was like, I don't know. On Pack Highway, and Matthew was next to me in the seat, and she hopped in, and I took her over to the South Airport area, and took her into an area, and my son was there, and I killed her. I'm sure my son didn't see it. But thankfully, his reign of terror wouldn't last much longer thanks to advancements in technology that would expose his true identity to investigators. So like I said before, on April 30th, 1983, Ridgeway did become a sus- for a little bit and that was after the murder of Marie Malver and the boyfriend identifying him and his truck and the police went to go question him but he said he didn't know anything about it and police would leave. But in November police again would speak to him about the murders and he would deny any knowledge of the victims again and authorities lacked any evidence to connect him to any of the crimes. And in 2003 after Ridgeway was already arrested he would actually tell investigators that he stood against offense during his original 1983 questioning to conceal scratches that Malver had left on his arm while trying to escape. Which is so sick and scary. Ridgeway would then say that he burned the scratches with with battery acid to describe them once detectives had left. So Ridgeway is a suspect at this point and has been questioned multiple times. And he would be the last person seen with two of his victims. So when police eventually searched his house and vehicles, he eventually provided police with a saliva sample in 1987. However, the technology at the time wasn't good enough to nail the deaths on him necessarily. So he walked a free man for many, many years. And it wasn't until March of. 2001 that new techniques in forensic testing became available. And investigators reopened the case and examined all the evidence that they had collected over many years, over many, many, many years. And the new tests were known as Polymerase Chain Reaction, otherwise known as PCR tests, and the Short Tandem Repeat, otherwise known as STR tests. And these tests allowed scientists to sequence and copy short fragments of DNA taken from the crime scenes. From rinsing fingernails to swabbing ligatures for the strangulation device from the ropes and cables. And eventually they were looking so deep that they were able to find a few sperm cells and some pubic hairs. Gross. And the teams had created DNA profiles and three different victims where they compared that DNA to a piece of gauze that Ridgway had chewed on all the way back in 1987, which is crazy. Like, thank God for technology. And the DNA match. Meaning Gary Ridgway was their murderer and they had all the evidence that they needed. So on November 30th, 2001, they finally got the bitch. And he was charged for the murders of Cynthia Jean Hins, Marcia Faye Chapman, and Opal Charmaine Mills, and Carol Ann Christensen. Nearly two decades after the- First murder, the King County Sheriff announced to the public that the Green River Killer had been caught. And after the arrest in 2001, it wasn't looking good for little poor Gary. Womp womp, big fucking whoop. And he was charged again. with three more murders. That of Wendy Lee Caulfield, Deborah Lynn Bonner, and Deborah Estes. And the charges were building against him more and more. However, in June 2003, he was willing to make a deal because he's a slimy little b****. A plea deal would begin in exchange for the prosecutor not giving him the death penalty because he's a narcissistic piece of shit. And he would be willing to plead guilty to all the murders that he had committed in King County. And this would include full truth and all information, answering any questions detective had in interviews with prosecuting attorneys, questions answered as well. And on November 5th, 2003, he entered that guilty plea deal of 48 charges of aggravated first degree murder. 48. Oh my god, it's fucking crazy. And in his own statement he said quote unquote, I killed so many women I have a hard time keeping them straight. Piece of shit. And he explained that he never knew the victims, not even their names. However, he is pos- that he killed all of them. The majority in his house and a bunch of them in his truck as well. And his motive? Well he explained that he wanted to kill as many of them he thought were ladies of the night as possible. He hated them because he never wanted to kill them. wanted to pay for intercourse. And since they were so easy to pick up, a lot of them weren't reported anyway. So he basically just treated them like actual trash. Little did he know, he was the trash. And he would steal their jewelry and clothes to make them harder to identify, putting their bodies in clusters or groups so he could keep track of all the people that he did kill. And he liked to drive past them to remember as sort of a landmark. And the rest of the documents had him going. going one by one explaining the women that was killed, their locations, name, and where he placed them, slating he was guilty for each. How do you plead to the charge of aggravated murder in the first degree as charged in count 47 for the death of Patricia Yellowrobe? Guilty. And how do you plead to the charge of aggravated murder in the first degree as charged in count 48 for the death of an unidentified person known as Jane Doe B20? Guilty. And he obviously couldn't remember all the murders and it had to be from detectives investigations that he could remember. And the court states that they know that he spent time with law enforcement to provide all the details of the murders that took place. And they asked him if he felt pressured to admit information from intimidation. To which he states, no, idiot. And this meant he was very compliant and knew the gravity of the situation in the obvious hopes of not receiving the death penalty. And on December 18th, 2017, he was arrested. 2003, he was finally sentenced, receiving 48 consecutive life sentences, which, what's 48 times 12? Wait, 12. He's just rotting. He rotted. He's rotting like the little rat he is. And they actually let the victim's families and friends talk to him, giving their testimony to finally get their peace. Speaking to the murder- murderer who caused them so, so much pain and their family members so, so much pain. And a majority of the time, he just sat there like the piece of shit he is with a stone cold face while the victim's families talked about how they hope he rots in hell. Hell yeah. And he suffers a painful and long death that, yes, absolutely. But he finally was brought up to speak in front of everyone, apologizing to the families for everything that he had done, realizing all the victims could have lived long and very happy and fulfilling lives. And the judge of the case was actually interviewed and talked about the families talking to him, thanking him for bringing their family peace. And they also sent him letters continuously just because of the huge impact that he made on their lives. The judge, not. Gary. He would be charged again with a 49th murder on February 18th, 2011. And he admitted to the murder of Rebecca Romero in 2003. However, there wasn't enough evidence to actually charge him on that account until nearly eight years. years later and it was just a way to rub salt into the already 48 life sentences wound. But as time goes on, more and more victims are still identified. Just in December of 2023, police identified another one of his victims, which was no known as Bones 17, known as Laurie Ann Raspotnik. So the fact that the story just isn't over shows the insane impact this insane serial killer has left behind. But his story behind bars seems to be a relatively boring one. But to this day, he will rot in his cell and his health slowly deteriorates. And he is stuck with the idea that one day he will die in those concrete walls and behind those metal bars, like the piece of shit. he is. Perhaps the most shocking part of the story isn't the sheer number of murders that Gary had perpetrated over the decades, but that nobody in Gary's life suspected him of being the monster that he was. You took the lives of 48 women. You snuffed them out. More than 48 women. 71, yes. You killed them all, Ridgeway. You killed them all. We discussed how Gary was married three separate times. And the fact that he convinced three women he was- normal and to marry him and share a home and and have kids with him is beyond me. But of course his home life wasn't perfect given he had divorced two of his wives but Judy his final partner had absolute faith in the man she had spent the better part of two decades with. She described their 17 year marriage as a happy one and had maintained her husband's innocence for quite some time even after he was arrested and he was confessing. So she was just fully Delulu. I think that's the definition of Delulu. And Judy would even say that Gary was the best thing that ever happened to her and even reminisce about camping trips the two had taken. Weekends together, shopping, gardening, and spending time with family, all of which were probably around the burial sites of the 49, potentially 70-ish women that he had murdered. But beyond convincing his wife, Judy, that he was a good family man for so long, Gary also played the role of a loving and supportive father to his son, Matthew Ridgway. And Matthew was born to Gary's second wife. Claudia and in 2021 Matthew, who was now 28 at the time, talked about his memory of his father. To Matthew, Gary was a relaxed man who never yelled. He took his son camping, taught him how to play baseball, and also showed up for school concerts and soccer practices. He described his dad as somebody that was always there for him and he would never remember Gary not being around. So yeah, I don't know. He was somehow was a good dad I guess. I don't know. I don't know. How did he do all that? I just don't know. understand there had to be like 12 of him to like murder all these people and then also be there for the kid and also maintain a marriage. I don't know. And Matthew at the time he was in fourth or fifth grade when his father got arrested and Matthew never believed he could have been guilty of these crimes at the time. He was just one of 500 possible suspects at the time and it just couldn't be him. And Matthew never knew that he was used by his father to lure women to their deaths. The family man facade was a tool in Gary's toolbox to reassure women. He would ease potential victims'worries when picking them up in his truck by showing that he was a father. And when the women got in his vehicle and asked to see his ID and a photo of his son next to his license, they were much calmer. And on the top of his license photo, there were often toys that belonged to his son in his truck and on his dashboard. So the women would see further proof that he was just a family man and there was nothing to be afraid of when in fact he was a fucking psycho killer. But Gary's ability to maintain this double- life is just a chilling reminder of how easily darkness can hide in plain sight. He manipulated his family and those around him, drawing on their trust and predictability of his normal life. His wives and son and co-workers had no idea they were living alongside this absolutely brutal psycho monster. And since his incarceration for the many killings he committed over the several decades, it gained him infamy as one of the country's deadliest convicted serial killers. And he's influenced all forms of- pop culture. From art to film to print, he's being immortalized. That's why I like to just reiterate a thousand times that he is a giant piece of shit and I hate him. So, but a guy named Phil Hansen created a piece of art of Gary's face using portraits of his victims. He used a total of 11,792 images. to construct it which is interesting and given his prolific nature gary has been the subject of many documentaries and films and docu-series episodes a crime documentary murder no apparent motive from 1984 discuss the killings in the sea tac area being indicative of a serial killing operated in the area he was even on unsolved mysteries and he was in the netflix released to show catching killers in 2021 and the very first episode of season one is dedicated dedicated to the Green River Killer, aka Gary Ridgeway. And those might just be the most recent covers of Gary Ridgeway, but there has been many, many more throughout history. Not to mention books as well. The Search for the Green River Killer, The River Man, Ted Bundy, and I Hunt for the Green River Killer, which also Ted Bundy was asked about how to find the Green River Killer. And Ted did say that they should be looking for a guy that's going to keep coming back to the sites where the women were, because that is what Ted Bundy did. What do you know? And a grunge brand from the 80s also named themselves Green River after the serial killer with a song called Come On Down, having the lyrics about the killings in the river from Gary's point of view. And it's, the river runs shallow, the river goes deep, the river calls in your sleep. Dig this baby, now dig this hole, your body's so warm, the river's so cold, you're the one I want to hold. I want to throw up after reading that, personally. But it begs the question as well, is that like... How many other victims are out there? Because by what we're seeing of how many victims he had and how many victims he's confessed to, I'm sure that there's more, which is just heartbreaking. And the fact remains that despite the most famous serial killers being the ones that have been caught and documented, there are believed to be many still active around the world at any given time. And I am so aware of that. The FBI actually estimates that there is around 25 to 50 active in the US alone. And some within the FBI believe... that multiple operate as long haul truck drivers, which in history, we have seen that that is very, very common. But until next time, let me know what other serial killers, cults, conspiracies you guys want me to cover down below. I know I mentioned Ed Kemper. If you want me to do that, let me know. But until next time, I will see you a beautiful face in the next video. Okay. Bye.

And the Green River Killer is... is quite literally one of the most notorious serial killers in American history. His confirmed kill count is large, but his unconfirmed kill count is even larger.

And he is a very, very sick individual because he relishes in the fact that all his victims will never be found. So without further ado, let's unbuckle our seat belts, go Mach 5 down the highway, slam on the brakes, and bust through this windshield into this sick. Sick. I want to say f*** her but I can't. I guess I can't f*** her.

Wait, I have to tell you something and that is that I want you to take advantage of me. No, not like that. Don't be creepy.

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That is crazy. So click the link down in the description below to go to buyraycon.com forward slash K-M-K to get your Raycons today. Thank you to Raycon for sponsoring this video and let's get back to it. So Gary was born in post-war America in the crossroads of the West, AKA Salt Lake City, Utah.

And it was 1949 and America was experiencing an economic boom following the victory over Nazi Germany. And it was an era of optimism for families that had struggled through the great war. Great Depression.

The hand of civilization has changed the scene from desert to habitation and to streamlined structures of a modern era. Beautiful Salt Lake City has become the scenic and industrial center of the Intermountain West. Salt Lake City was largely conservative and rooted in religious values. The area had been settled by Mormons who had traveled west on the Mormon Trail.

I played the Oregon Trail as a kid, not the Mormon Trail. What was the-what would the Mormon Trail game be? Just like going around collecting- underaged wives and impregnating them before they can escape.

That's rude. Can I say that? Probably not.

I didn't mean it. So when World War II ended and men returned home, the women who had joined the workforce to fill roles left by the men who went to go fight the war were encouraged and even pressured to return back to domestic life. And that is where we fucked up ladies. Working sucks.

Because post-war America celebrated the nuclear family. Fathers were expected to be the breadwinners and embody a sense of authority. And Gary's father, Thomas Newton Ridgway, was a bus driver. And women were expected to care for the home and the children.

Though it was becoming more common for women to work nationwide at this point. And Gary's mother, Mary Rita Ridgway, was part of a minority of women in the workforce. She worked in retail, but the challenges of balancing work and the burden of household duties and raising children must have been difficult for her. And as we will start to see. But despite having two forms of income and an era of prosperity, life could still be trying at these times.

There was a significant household shortage as veterans returning home created surge in demand. And so many families struggled to find affordable housing at this time, especially in Salt Lake City, which was sandwiched in a mountain valley with the Wasatch Mountains to the east and north and the Okurr Mountains to the west. I, it's probably not how you say it, but. but it's spelt O-Q-U-I-R-R-H. Anyway, this limited the room for expansion.

And blue collar families like Ridgeways had limited options, often living in cramped and outdated apartments, not included for long-term family life. And the Housing Act of 1949 sought to address this housing shortage with federal funding, aiming to clear slums and redevelop urban areas with modern and affordable housing. Though it often displaced low-income families without providing sufficient replacements. It was a bad time. It was a shit time to be alive.

And due to these economic limitations and the fierce competition for adequate housing, the Ridgeways relocated to the suburban area south of Seattle. And being near SeaTac, aka Seattle-Tacoma Airport, there were plenty of employment opportunities in the transportation and service industries. Perfect for Gary's parents.

But despite these opportunities, the stresses of balancing work and home life affected Gary's treatment by his parents and his childhood was... seemingly quite troubled to say the least. And based on what we learn in later interviews and interrogations, it would seem as though Gary's mother, Mary, was abusive towards Gary as a child. And his father wasn't around much.

He worked for the most part. So Mary was in complete control. And she was allegedly very domineering and degrading to him.

And despite his best efforts, she picked on him for not doing well in school as well. What did you want to do to your mom here? I wanted her to stop being angry at me for not knowing how to... But she wasn't stopping.

No, she wasn't stopping. Was she? No. She kept picking on you. She kept picking on me.

Belittling you. Embarrassing you. I mean, that's pretty clear from yesterday.

It happened in school too. She sounds like a fucking bully is what it sounds like. And this is kind of where Gary would begin to have very twisted ideas regarding his mother.

He would have multiple different fantasies of drastically different kinds. All of which were horrifyingly disturbed. Gary had his sensual fantasies about his mother, for example.

As early as 14 or 15 years old, Gary would begin to think about having intercourse with his mom after watching her sunbathe. She aroused him because she would come home from work and go to the backyard to tan. I'd see her out sunbathing and...

I feel that she, you know, she would be good to have s*** with. But the fantasy was likely spurred by sensual confusion resulting from her. On the one hand, belittling him, and on the other hand, when he'd wet his bed into his tea.

And after he did, his mother would wash his genitals for him. And like getting into those later years, like I get it if you're a kid, but my lord, 13, 14, that's getting a little weird. It's getting a little weird, mom. And psychologists believe that this was only the tip of the iceberg. and likely only one part of a larger pattern of Sejual contact between the two and they would also say that this would humiliate Gary and likely turn into more rage Directed at Mary and Gary apparently just wanted his mom I want to stop.

picking on him and eventually his fantasies would twist from having sensual intercourse with his mother to murdering her. You know, I, this, and I can't help but think of Ed Kemper in this, in this, uh, scenario, which if, if you want me to do a deep dive on Ed Kemper, I'd be more than happy to, but my God, talk about mommy issues, man. He, he killed women just because they, he, he would look at them and think of his mom.

And then he ended up killing his mom, gotten off her head and just doing stuff to it. I don't want to talk about it, but anyway. Anyway, he thought of hurting her in the past, explicitly mentioning fourth grade.

But this was an escalation of those desires. The sensual feelings wouldn't go away entirely, and it would become like a Jekyll and Hyde situation, where there are two desires in him fighting each other, basically. When she's down there, she's a fantasy object.

When she's up there trying to get me to read, and she's... the other side of something I hated. His urges were the first signs that something was deeply wrong with Gary. And he would take out his sejual and violent frustrations in other ways. And it started with him throwing rocks at windows and breaking them.

And it would progressively worsen over time. He would graduate from throwing rocks at windows to throwing rocks at his brother. And then he'd begin doing another thing that a lot of serial killers do, and that is killing animals. He would start killing animals.

He loved killing birds. He killed a lot of them. And he also suffocated a cat and shot puppies to hurt them.

He's also gorilla gripping this cat in this photo right here. And it's like, I've never wanted to like pop a kid in the head with a fist so much in my life. But it would escalate even further when he stabbed a kid with a knife when he was 15 or 16. And the victim of the stabbing didn't die. die, thankfully.

But Gary stabbed him just to see how stabbing worked because he wanted to stab his mom. And he would always think about stabbing her in the chest, in the heart, and cutting up her face specifically. And somehow, by either a miracle or a curse, Gary made it through high school and graduated in 1969 at 20 years old.

And he even married his 19-year-old girlfriend, Claudia Craig Barrows, before joining the Navy and going to Vietnam. And his military service isn't notable or relevant to the story really. He worked on a supply ship and saw combat while transporting supplies upriver. And during his service, when he wasn't aboard the ship and had some time on land, he became fixated on ladies of the night, aka prostituats. I can't say that word on YouTube, so I'm going to call them ladies of the night.

And ladies of the night would soon become his favorite target for killings. But at this time in Vietnam, he enjoyed their company and their talents. He was still married to Claudia at the time, so he's already a piece of shit, as we know.

And their marriage soon collapsed. She dodged a bullet though, so whatever. And Gary would marry a total of three times.

He married his second wife, Marcia Laureen Brown, a year after divorcing Claudia. Guy moves on quick, all right? And though they had a son together, Matthew, Gary and Marcia would divorce in 1981. And Gary and his third wife, Judith, married in 1988. So, a little bit further. time time frame there from remarrying.

All while Gary's sexual fantasies would never fade. If anything they were channeled into new fetishes or kinks and two ex-spouses and two ex-girlfriends alleged that he loved to have intercourse outdoors on camping or hiking trips and sometimes would push for intercourse up to three times a day. And Gary seemingly never gave up on hiring ladies of the night. At least in the first two marriages.

As in 1980. He had been arrested for choking a lady of the night but was never charged after claiming she'd bitten him first. And he'd continue his pattern of infidelity and supposedly had been very violent towards Marcia leading to their eventual divorce. And in 1982 he was arrested for soliciting a lady of the night. And it's believed that shortly after this he did begin killing. All while having a family and working a regular job as a truck painter.

So let's get into the murders. In the summer of 1982, five bodies of young women would appear in or near the Grain River in King County, Washington. And based on the evidence that was found at the crime scene and the locations of the bodies, it became very evident to investigators that they did have a serial killer on their hands.

And over the next few years, they would work hard gathering evidence, photos, and following leads in hope of catching this. gang monster. And here are the five victims in order.

The first one was Wendy Lee Caulfield. And at the time of her death, Wendy was 16 years old and last seen on July 8th in 1982 in Tacoma, Washington. And her body was discovered underneath the Peck Bridge by two boys riding on their bikes across the bridge floating in the Green River near Kent, Washington. And her cause of death was strangulation using her own clothes.

And the next victim victim was Deborah Lynn Bonner. She went missing in July 15th, 1982, and she was 23 years old. She was last seen at SeaTac Airport in SeaTac, Washington, and her body was seen floating in the Green River near Kent, Washington as well.

And it's important to note that her body was found in close proximity to the meat packing plant that Gary worked at. How convenient. And victim number three was Marcia Faye Chapman, and Marcia was last seen leaving her home at SeaTac. Washington on August 1st, 1982. And her body was recovered from the Green River on August 15th, 1982. Near, you guessed it, Kent Washington.

See a pattern here? We're getting cereal with it right now. And she would be 31 years old at the time, and her cause of death was also... strangulation. And the fourth victim would be Opal Charmaine Mills and her family reported to the police that they last spoke to her on August 12th, 1982 and she would make a call from 194th street and Pacific Highway South in SeaTac and her body would also be pulled out of the Green River in Kent, Washington on August 15th, 1982 and she would only be 16 years old at the time of her death.

Like, oh man, I fucking hate it, fucking hate it. And there was actually a sixth victim found in the Green River, except she was dumped much later. And that was Tracy Winston, who was 19 at the time. And she was last seen on September 12th, 1983 at 6 p.m. at North.

Gate Mall. And her body was discovered one mile from the bridge that Wendy Lee Caulfield was found under. And if we look at the reports of where the bodies were found near the Green River near Kent, all of these women were taken from SeaTac, specifically along...

the Pacific Highway South and are mostly young women. The highway does run through Tacoma so that ties in the first victim found. The police also found all the bodies within the same time frame so it's hard to say whether or not they were murdered at the same time or if they were discovered at the same time without seeing the autopsy reports.

Nevertheless, there was a monster living in the greater Seattle area and little did investigators know that Gary Ridgeway was lurking right beneath their noses. And the next set of victims were found. nearby where the first set of victims were abducted. The SeaTac airport and the Taiyi golf course are close to each other and near Pacific Highway South. And their names were Giselle A. LaVorn.

At age 19, she would be discovered on September 25th, 1982 in the woods of South 200th Street and 18th Avenue South in Seattle. And she was last seen in Normandy Park on July 17th, 1982. And it's important to note that Normandy Park was was sandwiched between SeaTac Airport and the Green River, right where the previous victims were abducted and dumped. And before she disappeared, Giselle had beautiful blonde hair but when her body was discovered, it appeared her hair had been dyed black for some reason. And the next victim would be Constance Neon. And Constance would be last seen on June 8th, 1983 at 6 p.m.

at near South 188th Street and Pacific Highway South, leaving her friend's house. And she was last seen by her boyfriend, Mr. Neon. saying that she was picking up her check at her job and would see him in about 20 minutes. Her car would be later found parked at South 188th Street and Pacific Highway South.

And on October 27th, 1983, her body would be discovered on a vacant lot. And she would only be 21 at her time of death. And the next victim would be Kelly Ware.

She would be last seen on July 17th, 1983. And she was last seen at a bus stop at 22nd Avenue East and East Mat- Madison Street. And just four months later, her body would be recovered on October 29th, 1983, in the 2500 block of South 192nd Street. And she would be only 22 years old at her time of death. So all these murders are like in such compacted timeframes from the first set to the second set.

It's like he just went on a frenzy. And the next victim would be Mary Bridget Meehan. The Western Six Motel would be the last place the 19-year-old Mary was seen.

alive on September 15th, 1982 at about 8.30 p.m. while she was just out for a walk. And a few months later, her body would be discovered on November 13th, 1983 at South 192nd Street and 27th Avenue South.

So again, just really close proximity. And there would still be a few more victims after this to show up. One of which being Andrea M. Childers.

Andrea was 17 years old at the time of her disappearance. And she was last seen at a bus stop on 21st Avenue and Union. Union Street on April 14th, 1983 at about 12 PM. And she would be eight months pregnant at the time.

And it would take over six years for investigators to discover her body in the woods near South 190th Street and 24 Avenue South on October 19th, 1989. Just oh, it's just heartbreaking. Like eight months pregnant. I just like there's just a special, not even special. special, just a grimy fucking just nail covered fucking throne that is sitting in hell for Gary Ridgeway.

And I just, I just, yeah. And this is when another dumping ground would be found and it was found near baseball fields, just North of the SeaTac airport. And Shonda Leah Summers, Cheryl Lee Wims, and an unidentified corpse would all be found. Shonda was only 17 years old. Cheryl was only 18 and would disappear on her birthday.

And Cheryl's sister would also go missing on the exact same day and she would remain missing, which is just heartbreaking. So you have to think like, was it Gary as well? I don't know.

And then the unidentified corpse of a white female between the ages of 14 to 18 years old would also be found behind the ballpark at South 146th Street and 16th Avenue South. And police were probably thinking that they had some time to work with, believing that no more bodies would appear. However, they were about to find even more, but this time inside a residential neighborhood. Star Lake was originally a small natural lake, but it was enhanced and expanded over time with modifications to support residential development around the area.

And it is also in close proximity to Pacific Highway South, where the other victims were found. So from 1983 to 1985, the bodies of six women were discovered along Star Lake Road, a very scenic road just south of Star Lake. And here is the order in which the bodies were discovered.

There was Gail Matthews. She was last seen on April 10th, 1983 on Pacific Highway South at around 6 p.m. and her body would be discovered along Star Lake Road on September 18th, 1983, and she would be only 23 years old at the time of her death. And it was reported that she had entered a truck along Pacific Highway South and was never seen again.

And next, there was Dolores Laverne Williams. Dolores was only 17 years old at the time of her disappearance and was last seen near a bus stop, similar to the others, at Red Lion Inn on Pacific Highway South in March of 1983. And on March 31st, 1984, her body would be discovered in the intersection of South 53rd Street and Starlake Road, and she was identified through dental records. And the next victim would be Terry Renee Milligan.

On August 29th, 1982, Terry would disappear on Pacific Highway South as well, and her body would appear on April 1st, 1984, two years and one day after she initially disappeared. And she would only be 16 at the time of her death. And Terry had lived a very hard life up until her disappearance.

disappearance. She had gotten pregnant in middle school and her family disowned her and she was forced to quit school at a very young age and even move in with her boyfriend at a hotel. And Gary admitted to killing her in November of 2003. And the next victim would be Sandy K. Gabbert.

And on April 17th, 1983, at the age of 17, Sandra would be last seen on South 142nd Street and Pacific Highway South. And 11 months later, on April 2nd, 1984, her body would be recovered. at Star Lake Road and 55th Avenue South in an isolated spot. And next is Alma Smith disappearing on March 3rd, 1983 on Pacific Highway South and would be recovered April 2nd, 1984 on Star Lake Road.

And Gary even claimed that he took Alma to his home and strangled her there. And the next would be Carrie Ann Royce and she would be missing for two years. Carrie was last seen on May 13th, 1983 and was rediscovered on March.

10th 1985 and her body was dumped in a swamp just off of Starlake Road and she would be only 15 years old at the time of her death. And from 1883 to 1985 Gary moved dumping locations but he kept the abduction area the same. He was likely picking these women up off the side of the highway, offering them rides or maybe even kidnapping them in broad daylight and then killing them and then dumping them in different locations. But from these new victims it was very clear that he targeted them.

teenage women. However, as we have come to learn, Ridgway was not dumping bodies in one spot. He had spots literally all over the city. And it became even more clear that he wasn't just killing or abducting one at a time. He had to have been doing it repeatedly every week or even multiple times a day.

And this is when a new dumping ground would be found along Highway 18 and I-90. And the victims that would be found there were Tina Marie Thompson, who was last seen along the Pacific Highway South as well on July 25th, 1983. And her body would be found April 20th, 1984 near Highway 18. And next would be Maureen Sue Feeney. And Maureen was last seen September 23rd, 1983 between 5 and 6 p.m.

at 1515 East Madison Street in Seattle. And her body was also discovered along Highway 18 on May 2nd, 1986. And she would only be 19 years old. And the next victim would be Cindy Ann Smith on June 29th, 1990. 1987, the partially decayed remains of the 17-year-old Cindy were discovered by three young boys near Green River Community College, about 15 miles south of where she originally disappeared on March 21st, 1984 at around 5 p.m.

Well, hitchhiking. Never. Hitchhike. And the next victim where these bodies were dumped was Patricia Barzak.

October 11th, 1986, the 19-year-old Patricia was last seen on South... 139th Street and Pacific Highway South. And her body would be found along Highway 18 as well near Seattle International Raceway on February 3rd, 1993, almost seven years after she disappeared.

And the next set of victims were discovered near Exit 38 and I-90 from 1984 to 1986. And Exit 38 on Interstate 90 in Washington State is located near North Bend, approximately 38 miles east of Seattle. And this area is extremely remote and far away from civilization. And most people who take this exit are using it to access national parks and hiking trails.

And these women were murdered around the same time that the women at Star Lake were being killed and abducted. So he's literally killing women in one spot, dumping their bodies in this other spot, and then abducting women from the same spot and dumping their bodies in a completely different spot. So he's like, he has this whole system and nobody's catching on at this point.

point. It is fucking insane. And the victim list just keeps growing and growing and growing.

Like in researching it and looking it up, like you see the number, but then you start to read when they went missing and how they went missing and when their bodies were found and who they were. It's just like, it's unbelievable, like truly. But the victims that were found in this specific spot were Delise Louise Plagger, who was only 22 at the time.

And she was last seen on October 30th, 1983 at 3 PM at a bus stop. and she would be found on February 14th, 1983, right next to exit 38. And next is Lisa L. Yates. And on March 13th, 1983, the 21-year-old Lisa would be discovered near exit 38 as well. And the next victim is Kimberly Nelson.

She would only be 20 years old and she would be last seen at the Ben Carroll Motel on Pacific Highway South at a nearby bus stop on November 1st, 1983, around 11 p.m. And she would be missing for two and a half years. And partial skeletal remains. would be rediscovered three miles from exit 38 on Forest Back Road on June 13th, 1986. And by this point, the local and state police had a real problem on their hands, obviously.

Gary was now moving out of Seattle and who knows how long it was until they moved farther west and maybe even out of state. But it seems as time passes, more dump sites will be discovered. Because along Highway 410 near Enumclaw, Washington, roughly 40 miles south of- of Seattle, the body of Debbie Mae Abernathy was found.

She would be last seen on September 5th, 1983, and she was only 26 years old. And she would be found March 31st, 1984. And the other victims that were found near Highway 410 were Mary Sue Bellow and Martina T. Athoralee. Mary was only 25 and Martina was only 18. And some of the bodies found at the site were dumped much later, similar to the Green River dump site.

Like Marta Reeves. On March 5th, 1990, Marta would call her husband for the final time. Her body would be recovered on September 20th at the end of the logging road between mile markers 33 and 34 off Highway 410. And sometime during February of 1987, Roberta Hayes completely disappeared. She had a troubled life and was even featured in the 1984 documentary called Streetwise, highlighting homeless teenagers on the streets of Seattle. And she was arrested and released by Portland Police.

police and was believed to have been picked up by Ridgeway on her way back to Seattle. And three and a half years later, her skeletal remains were discovered at the end of a dirt road near mile marker 36 and a half near Highway 410 on September 11th, 1991. And Pavi Event was also found near Highway 14 as well. She was only 16 years old and was discovered on August 16, 2003. And it was clear that Gary was actively thinking about where he was going to dump his bodies. He was very very calculated to ensure that he would never get caught.

And this became very evident with his next set of victims. Denise D. Bush was last seen October 8th, 1982 at 1230 PM at the Moonrise Hotel at South 144th Street and Pacific Highway South. And she was only 23 years old.

And Shirley Marie Sherrill, age 19, was last seen in Chinatown eating lunch with a friend in Seattle, October or early November of 1982. And her body was found June 14th 1985 in Tigard, Oregon. Again, 200 miles away from where she was last seen. So he's going out of his way to make sure that he does not get caught. He is such a A fucking monster.

Like he had to be thinking about this 24-7. Eventually it was discovered that Ridgeway was just dumping bodies all over the state of Washington. He had so many spots all across the county that police investigators were searching every nook and cranny.

there could be a body there, because there very well could be. And so far, there have been nine victims found in various spots all across King County specifically. Linda Jane Rule, last seen near the Seals Motel on Aurora Avenue South in Seattle, September 26th. 1982. Her body was found on a campus of Northwest Hospital on January 31st, 1983 at only 16 years old.

Carol Ann Christensen at age 29 was last seen at Barn Door Tavern on May 3rd, 1983 near Pacific Highway South, of course. And she was planning on returning to a tavern for an evening shift after stopping home to see her daughter and husband. And on May 8th, 1983, her body would be found in the woods by a family mushroom hunting. near Southeast 242nd Street and 248th Avenue Southeast in Maple Valley area of King County. And she had been strangled with a bag over her head and she was partially submerged in shallow water and her clothes were put back onto her body backward.

And she would also have one shoe on the wrong foot and the other one missing completely. And she had a raw sausage wrapped around her, a wine bottle in her hand, and two gutted fish neatly placed over her chest. You have to just think that he's just like expecting people to find her and just screwing with them in a sick, sick way. Like I don't know at this point, like I don't know. It's just like horrifying.

And next was Yvonne Shelley Antosh. She was last seen at the Ben Carroll Motel on Pacific Highway South on May 31st 1983 around 11 p.m. and five months later on On October 15th, 1983, her body would be discovered on Auburn Black Diamond Road, a wooded suburb east of where she disappeared.

She would be only 19 years old. Next would be Colleen Renee Brockman. On May 26th, 1984, a 15-year-old Colleen would be found on Jovita Boulevard in Pierce County, Washington. And the next victim is Maria Exeta West, who on February 6th, 1984, was last seen walking around Rainier Avenue South.

And on September 8th, 1985, someone spotted and reported a body leaning against a tree in the backwoods of Seaboard Park, Seattle. And it was later identified that she was only 16 years old. But like at this point, he's just placing them to be found. Like he is being meticulous in where he's putting them, but like they're being found. So it's, I don't know.

And Patricia Ann Yellow Robe originally ruled as an overdose. Patricia was last seen sometime in January of 1998. And her body would be discovered just off Des Moines Way South in a vacant lot. And during his trial, Ridgway would admit to murdering her.

And next would be April Buttram. She was last seen when she actually spoke to police in August of 1983. And her remains would be found on August 30th and September 2nd, 2003. In a wooded area near Snoqualmie, about 26 miles east of Seattle. By searchers sifting dirt through screens.

And next would be Mary Jane Molina Marie Malver. On April 30th, 1983, Marie was last spotted at an intersection of South- 216th and Pacific Highway South. And her boyfriend saw her actually getting into a truck and feeling that something was off, tried to follow the vehicle.

However, he would lose them in an intersection, unfortunately. And a few days later, he would inform the police that he had found the same truck parked outside a house less than half a mile away. And the property belonged. to Gary Ridgway.

And when questioned by authorities, Ridgway denied any involvement in Marie's disappearance. And the police found no reason to pursue the matter further, unfortunately. And it wasn't until 2003, nearly 30 years later, that Marie's remains were discovered in the ravine off 65th Avenue South in Auburn.

And to this day, these next four women who Gary admitted to killing still remain missing. And that is Casey Ann Lee, who was only 16 years old. And next was Becky Marrero, who was only aged 19. And she would also disappear December 3rd, 1982 off.

Pacific Highway. And next was Kelly K. McGinnis. Kelly was last seen on June 28th, 1983, standing beside a street in the area of the Three Bears Motel on Pacific Highway South.

And he claimed to had killed her, but either refused to tell or forgot where he hid the body because he had hid so many at this point. And lastly, there was Patricia Ann Osborne, who on January 24th, 1983, had relatives report that she was missing. And a little later that year, from September to December of 1983, more women went missing and seven bodies were discovered, all who were believed to have been abducted and murdered. And they would all be later identified as victims of Gary Ridgeway. And it's just crazy to believe that Gary Ridgeway was able to get away with this many murders.

And while in custody, he even admitted to killing and abducting a woman with his own son in the car. July 18th, I think it was my brother's birthday, that weekend I picked up a woman. And I was like, I don't know. On Pack Highway, and Matthew was next to me in the seat, and she hopped in, and I took her over to the South Airport area, and took her into an area, and my son was there, and I killed her.

I'm sure my son didn't see it. But thankfully, his reign of terror wouldn't last much longer thanks to advancements in technology that would expose his true identity to investigators. So like I said before, on April 30th, 1983, Ridgeway did become a sus- for a little bit and that was after the murder of Marie Malver and the boyfriend identifying him and his truck and the police went to go question him but he said he didn't know anything about it and police would leave.

But in November police again would speak to him about the murders and he would deny any knowledge of the victims again and authorities lacked any evidence to connect him to any of the crimes. And in 2003 after Ridgeway was already arrested he would actually tell investigators that he stood against offense during his original 1983 questioning to conceal scratches that Malver had left on his arm while trying to escape. Which is so sick and scary. Ridgeway would then say that he burned the scratches with with battery acid to describe them once detectives had left. So Ridgeway is a suspect at this point and has been questioned multiple times.

And he would be the last person seen with two of his victims. So when police eventually searched his house and vehicles, he eventually provided police with a saliva sample in 1987. However, the technology at the time wasn't good enough to nail the deaths on him necessarily. So he walked a free man for many, many years. And it wasn't until March of. 2001 that new techniques in forensic testing became available.

And investigators reopened the case and examined all the evidence that they had collected over many years, over many, many, many years. And the new tests were known as Polymerase Chain Reaction, otherwise known as PCR tests, and the Short Tandem Repeat, otherwise known as STR tests. And these tests allowed scientists to sequence and copy short fragments of DNA taken from the crime scenes. From rinsing fingernails to swabbing ligatures for the strangulation device from the ropes and cables. And eventually they were looking so deep that they were able to find a few sperm cells and some pubic hairs.

Gross. And the teams had created DNA profiles and three different victims where they compared that DNA to a piece of gauze that Ridgway had chewed on all the way back in 1987, which is crazy. Like, thank God for technology.

And the DNA match. Meaning Gary Ridgway was their murderer and they had all the evidence that they needed. So on November 30th, 2001, they finally got the bitch.

And he was charged for the murders of Cynthia Jean Hins, Marcia Faye Chapman, and Opal Charmaine Mills, and Carol Ann Christensen. Nearly two decades after the- First murder, the King County Sheriff announced to the public that the Green River Killer had been caught. And after the arrest in 2001, it wasn't looking good for little poor Gary. Womp womp, big fucking whoop.

And he was charged again. with three more murders. That of Wendy Lee Caulfield, Deborah Lynn Bonner, and Deborah Estes. And the charges were building against him more and more.

However, in June 2003, he was willing to make a deal because he's a slimy little b****. A plea deal would begin in exchange for the prosecutor not giving him the death penalty because he's a narcissistic piece of shit. And he would be willing to plead guilty to all the murders that he had committed in King County.

And this would include full truth and all information, answering any questions detective had in interviews with prosecuting attorneys, questions answered as well. And on November 5th, 2003, he entered that guilty plea deal of 48 charges of aggravated first degree murder. 48. Oh my god, it's fucking crazy.

And in his own statement he said quote unquote, I killed so many women I have a hard time keeping them straight. Piece of shit. And he explained that he never knew the victims, not even their names.

However, he is pos- that he killed all of them. The majority in his house and a bunch of them in his truck as well. And his motive? Well he explained that he wanted to kill as many of them he thought were ladies of the night as possible.

He hated them because he never wanted to kill them. wanted to pay for intercourse. And since they were so easy to pick up, a lot of them weren't reported anyway. So he basically just treated them like actual trash. Little did he know, he was the trash.

And he would steal their jewelry and clothes to make them harder to identify, putting their bodies in clusters or groups so he could keep track of all the people that he did kill. And he liked to drive past them to remember as sort of a landmark. And the rest of the documents had him going. going one by one explaining the women that was killed, their locations, name, and where he placed them, slating he was guilty for each.

How do you plead to the charge of aggravated murder in the first degree as charged in count 47 for the death of Patricia Yellowrobe? Guilty. And how do you plead to the charge of aggravated murder in the first degree as charged in count 48 for the death of an unidentified person known as Jane Doe B20? Guilty. And he obviously couldn't remember all the murders and it had to be from detectives investigations that he could remember.

And the court states that they know that he spent time with law enforcement to provide all the details of the murders that took place. And they asked him if he felt pressured to admit information from intimidation. To which he states, no, idiot. And this meant he was very compliant and knew the gravity of the situation in the obvious hopes of not receiving the death penalty.

And on December 18th, 2017, he was arrested. 2003, he was finally sentenced, receiving 48 consecutive life sentences, which, what's 48 times 12? Wait, 12. He's just rotting.

He rotted. He's rotting like the little rat he is. And they actually let the victim's families and friends talk to him, giving their testimony to finally get their peace.

Speaking to the murder- murderer who caused them so, so much pain and their family members so, so much pain. And a majority of the time, he just sat there like the piece of shit he is with a stone cold face while the victim's families talked about how they hope he rots in hell. Hell yeah.

And he suffers a painful and long death that, yes, absolutely. But he finally was brought up to speak in front of everyone, apologizing to the families for everything that he had done, realizing all the victims could have lived long and very happy and fulfilling lives. And the judge of the case was actually interviewed and talked about the families talking to him, thanking him for bringing their family peace. And they also sent him letters continuously just because of the huge impact that he made on their lives.

The judge, not. Gary. He would be charged again with a 49th murder on February 18th, 2011. And he admitted to the murder of Rebecca Romero in 2003. However, there wasn't enough evidence to actually charge him on that account until nearly eight years. years later and it was just a way to rub salt into the already 48 life sentences wound.

But as time goes on, more and more victims are still identified. Just in December of 2023, police identified another one of his victims, which was no known as Bones 17, known as Laurie Ann Raspotnik. So the fact that the story just isn't over shows the insane impact this insane serial killer has left behind. But his story behind bars seems to be a relatively boring one.

But to this day, he will rot in his cell and his health slowly deteriorates. And he is stuck with the idea that one day he will die in those concrete walls and behind those metal bars, like the piece of shit. he is.

Perhaps the most shocking part of the story isn't the sheer number of murders that Gary had perpetrated over the decades, but that nobody in Gary's life suspected him of being the monster that he was. You took the lives of 48 women. You snuffed them out.

More than 48 women. 71, yes. You killed them all, Ridgeway. You killed them all.

We discussed how Gary was married three separate times. And the fact that he convinced three women he was- normal and to marry him and share a home and and have kids with him is beyond me. But of course his home life wasn't perfect given he had divorced two of his wives but Judy his final partner had absolute faith in the man she had spent the better part of two decades with. She described their 17 year marriage as a happy one and had maintained her husband's innocence for quite some time even after he was arrested and he was confessing.

So she was just fully Delulu. I think that's the definition of Delulu. And Judy would even say that Gary was the best thing that ever happened to her and even reminisce about camping trips the two had taken. Weekends together, shopping, gardening, and spending time with family, all of which were probably around the burial sites of the 49, potentially 70-ish women that he had murdered.

But beyond convincing his wife, Judy, that he was a good family man for so long, Gary also played the role of a loving and supportive father to his son, Matthew Ridgway. And Matthew was born to Gary's second wife. Claudia and in 2021 Matthew, who was now 28 at the time, talked about his memory of his father.

To Matthew, Gary was a relaxed man who never yelled. He took his son camping, taught him how to play baseball, and also showed up for school concerts and soccer practices. He described his dad as somebody that was always there for him and he would never remember Gary not being around. So yeah, I don't know.

He was somehow was a good dad I guess. I don't know. I don't know. How did he do all that? I just don't know.

understand there had to be like 12 of him to like murder all these people and then also be there for the kid and also maintain a marriage. I don't know. And Matthew at the time he was in fourth or fifth grade when his father got arrested and Matthew never believed he could have been guilty of these crimes at the time.

He was just one of 500 possible suspects at the time and it just couldn't be him. And Matthew never knew that he was used by his father to lure women to their deaths. The family man facade was a tool in Gary's toolbox to reassure women. He would ease potential victims'worries when picking them up in his truck by showing that he was a father.

And when the women got in his vehicle and asked to see his ID and a photo of his son next to his license, they were much calmer. And on the top of his license photo, there were often toys that belonged to his son in his truck and on his dashboard. So the women would see further proof that he was just a family man and there was nothing to be afraid of when in fact he was a fucking psycho killer. But Gary's ability to maintain this double- life is just a chilling reminder of how easily darkness can hide in plain sight.

He manipulated his family and those around him, drawing on their trust and predictability of his normal life. His wives and son and co-workers had no idea they were living alongside this absolutely brutal psycho monster. And since his incarceration for the many killings he committed over the several decades, it gained him infamy as one of the country's deadliest convicted serial killers. And he's influenced all forms of- pop culture. From art to film to print, he's being immortalized.

That's why I like to just reiterate a thousand times that he is a giant piece of shit and I hate him. So, but a guy named Phil Hansen created a piece of art of Gary's face using portraits of his victims. He used a total of 11,792 images.

to construct it which is interesting and given his prolific nature gary has been the subject of many documentaries and films and docu-series episodes a crime documentary murder no apparent motive from 1984 discuss the killings in the sea tac area being indicative of a serial killing operated in the area he was even on unsolved mysteries and he was in the netflix released to show catching killers in 2021 and the very first episode of season one is dedicated dedicated to the Green River Killer, aka Gary Ridgeway. And those might just be the most recent covers of Gary Ridgeway, but there has been many, many more throughout history. Not to mention books as well. The Search for the Green River Killer, The River Man, Ted Bundy, and I Hunt for the Green River Killer, which also Ted Bundy was asked about how to find the Green River Killer.

And Ted did say that they should be looking for a guy that's going to keep coming back to the sites where the women were, because that is what Ted Bundy did. What do you know? And a grunge brand from the 80s also named themselves Green River after the serial killer with a song called Come On Down, having the lyrics about the killings in the river from Gary's point of view. And it's, the river runs shallow, the river goes deep, the river calls in your sleep.

Dig this baby, now dig this hole, your body's so warm, the river's so cold, you're the one I want to hold. I want to throw up after reading that, personally. But it begs the question as well, is that like... How many other victims are out there?

Because by what we're seeing of how many victims he had and how many victims he's confessed to, I'm sure that there's more, which is just heartbreaking. And the fact remains that despite the most famous serial killers being the ones that have been caught and documented, there are believed to be many still active around the world at any given time. And I am so aware of that.

The FBI actually estimates that there is around 25 to 50 active in the US alone. And some within the FBI believe... that multiple operate as long haul truck drivers, which in history, we have seen that that is very, very common. But until next time, let me know what other serial killers, cults, conspiracies you guys want me to cover down below.

I know I mentioned Ed Kemper. If you want me to do that, let me know. But until next time, I will see you a beautiful face in the next video. Okay.

Bye.

Transcript for:The Life and Crimes of Gary Ridgway

Transcript for:
The Life and Crimes of Gary Ridgway