A True Story Retold by Marion Pellicano Ambrose
Along the banks of the Cuyahoga River which runs through Cleveland’s East Side, was Kingsbury Run. The Run was a shantytown during the Depression and was the site of one of America’s most famous unsolved crimes : The Torso Murders.
Between the years of 1935 – 1938, 13 victims were murdered. Each one was decapitated and most were dismembered. The body parts were found strewn about Kingsbury Run and were believed to be hobos, prostitutes, transients, and other residents of shantytown.
The murders finally ended in 1938 when the famous Elliott Ness burned the shacks of shantytown to the ground. A man named Frank Dolezal was charged with the crimes but died under mysterious circumstances before he was able to be brought to trial. People believed that the real killer was a member of a wealthy, influential family who committed himself to a mental institution after the burning of shantytown. It was from this killer that Elliott Ness received taunting postcards. The murders and the postcards haunted Ness for the rest of his life, leading him into a downward spiral of alcohol and debt. Many believe that Elliott Ness was the 14th victim!
This case did destroy Ness' reputation and ultimately took his life with the help of a bottle. However, evidence now suggests that Ness was right all along.
ReplyDelete