Dr. Insanity - Serial Killer Burns His 9th Victim Alive

Episode Date: January 3, 2026

This video covers the case of Stanley Ford, and his terrors across Akron, Ohio. Subscribe for more crime content like this... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's 3.30 a.m. in a neighborhood in the city of Akron. CCTV records a man in a jumpsuit walking up to a house. Seconds later, what could only be a nightmare begins. Akron 911. Well, I got a fire going on close avenue. It's fully engulfed. I think there's people in the house. It's blazing, man.

It's right. I can feel a heat. The lights are going out. He's starting quick, man. If somebody's in there, there's death, man. As the flames engulfed the house, Flames engulfed the house, the mysterious man disappears into the night, leaving a trail of blood behind him. Oh my god.

Hurry, hurry, please. Oh, Jesus, the whole house is on fire! As authorities were called to investigate, they had no idea what they were stepping into. This would only be the beginning of a series of fatal fires set by a vicious, cold-blooded killer, and detectives would soon find themselves racing against the clock as a serial arsonist, hunts for his next victims. The night of April 17, 2016 was uneventful for 66-year-old Lindell Lewis. He had just gone through a hip replacement surgery and was resting at his home on 719 Fultz Street, being looked after by Gloria Jean Hart, his girlfriend at the time. However, this night would be

different. This night would plunge the once peaceful city of Akron into sheer terror. In the early hours of April 18th, close to 3.33 a.m., CCTV footage captured a man walking in the direction that led directly to Lindell's house. And moments later, tragedy would strike the house of Lindell Lewis. Because he was in a hurry to escape, this first attempt at setting the house on fire had failed and the flames died out, prompting the arsonist to make a return for a second time to make sure he finished the job. At around 3.40 a.m. at approximately 3.40 a.m. at approximately 3 minutes after this second round of dousing the house with what appears to be gasoline, a raging fire would swallow up the

entirety of Lindell's house. This was an early Monday morning and most people in Lane Worcester neighborhood were asleep preparing for work. No one would have been awake to see who this masked arsonist was. More importantly, whoever this was, was well aware of Lindell's hip surgery as it had made him wheelchair-ridden and unable to move. This meant that the fire was started, knowing that he would never be able to escape. And soon enough, 911 calls would begin pouring in as the fire raged on. Heckra 9-1-1-1. It's 7.25 at the next door.

I can feel a beast. The lights are going out. It's burning quick, man. If somebody's in there, they're dead, man. You'll get up here real quick. They're on their wing or right now. Presumably, Lindell and his girlfriend were sleeping in their bed. bedroom on the upper floor of the house when the fire initially began.

Since the masked arsonist ensured that the fire spread from the ground floor, this meant that by the time they woke up because of the heat and crackling of the fire, they had no escape, especially because Lindell was unable to move by himself. Gloria most likely helps Lindell move from the bed, and the couple retreated to their bedroom in an attempt to get as far away as possible. But all this did was delay the inevitable. As firefighters and EMS arrived at the scene, the elderly couple was heard screaming for help from inside their bathroom.

Even with desperate attempts to save them, it was far too late. This gasoline fire was far too violent, and the smoke was far too thick. Gloria Jean Hart and Lindell Lewis were pronounced dead by the time they were discovered. A tragedy like this was unheard of in Akron, Not only because of the fact that there was now an arsonist on the loose, but because no one knew who his next victim would be. Because as it turns out, Lindell and Gloria were only two of his nine victims to come. The hunt for this masked murderer was on, and soon enough, detectives had a lead. During the night this fire occurred, the suspect had fled in this direction immediately after his second attempt.

This meant that whoever this was lived in this general vicinity, and considering this, the very first suspect would be Stanley Ford. Stanley was a peculiar man. He often claimed to be a guardian sent by God, and would spend his days sleeping so he could stay awake at night to watch over the neighborhood. Additionally, Stanley was also Lindell's neighbor, and the two had spent many years living next to each other. This is why officers were certain that Stanley would react with sorrow when informed of Lindel's death. But when a call was made telling him of the tragedy, something was off. I was calling to follow up with you about the fire across the street. You know because of the tumultuous history that you and the people in Lindel's house had, everybody is thinking you, right? No, Tanish, listen to me once again.

I do not mess with these people up here. I don't, them guys tried to get me to come on and engage with them. Them guys was nasty. They was, they had prostitutes in and out all night. They was dealing with homosexuality. Those people was just bad people. I didn't do nothing to them people. Them people were just mean.

Listen here, when they moved up here, Tunisia, they stole everything that went and voted down. Well, Mr. Ford, this is my concern. What's the concern? How to make people believe that it wasn't you. Tunisia, you either take my word or you don't. That's all I can tell you. Well, we do have another option. What's that?

A polygraph. Suspiciously, not only did Stanley refuse a polygraph test, but officers believed his reaction to be endorsing Lindell's death rather than mourning it. This was likely because of a low in the two's relationship that stemmed from their arguments about property boundaries and maintenance. However, in all fairness, this case was not limited to Lindell alone. In fact, Stanley was infamous for often disputing with neighbors when it came to property boundaries. All things considered, Stanley was,

only seen as a weird and obnoxious neighbor, rather than someone who would burn a house down. For now, at least, he was not the most prominent suspect, as detectives began to believe that the one responsible for this fire may have been someone inside Lindell's house. The night the fire occurred, Lindell and Gloria were not the only ones in the house. Thomas Hugley and Garrett were two of Lindell's friends who were going through tough times due to financial constraints. Lendell was kind enough to offer the two of them a place in the basement of his home. Fortunately, Thomas escaped before the fire could swallow up the basement,

but Garrett, on the other hand, just so happened to be somewhere else that night. By April 22, 2016, Akron Detectives would call in Garrett for an interview to find out what really happened. First, let me say that I hate having to put you out here like that. That was terrible, I like what they're at? Heck? You, Gus. That's my first language. But I was worried because they said you lived down there, and I hadn't seen her from me, so I waited.

Yeah, I was there earlier that day, because I was on my aunties and did her job for her. What's her name? Shit. Like the Williams. I started her last night. She was just across the street, basically. Okay.

Now, I ain't trying to, you know, stare your brain as a main reason of where I wanted to find, make sure one that you said. and you okay, and it's fine... I didn't know nothing about until my sister named called me, and Mr. Yule didn't call me. And what did they say? They said, the housebreaker down. But they didn't tell me nothing about nobody got hurt in it.

And then my bad shirt. For detectives, it is definitely odd that that Garrett is taking so long to remember the finer details. But this is nothing conclusive as of now. However, they are confident that by poking deeper, they might be able to find some clues. Stanley had a thought right here. All I know is they report to have a redoubted order that guy because of a treat. You know, Stan something, that's all I do.

Stanley's name has once again crept into the conversation. In fact, rumors about Lindell and Stanley's conflicts had already spread like wildfire, and he was on his way to becoming suspect number one. But for detectives, this could mean anything. Stanley would alternatively be the most suitable for Garrett to pin his crimes on. A neighbor with a god complex, who had frequent conflicts with Lendell. Furthermore, Garrett has not given any details about his alibi.

All we know is that during the night of the fire, he was at his aunt's house and was spending time with his niece. This is why detectives would not let up putting pressure on Garrett. You're the only person that even gave a scenario. And that kind of made me suspicious. The scenario we mean.

Of anything that you might have heard or thought, you're the only one. I don't know nothing. I wasn't there. I know you aren't there. I wouldn't been there in a couple days. You aren't there, but you're the only one. All right, let's do it this way.

The day of the fire, the night had happened. I was up my niece house. What time did you get there? I don't know what time we got there. Was it light outside or was it dark? I don't know. We was in Tuskeen. What can I say?

We was. Who were you with? Me and my niece. And what time did you leave there? The next day, I think. What time did the fire happen? I don't know. Tomas told me it was 3 o'clock in the morning.

Let me ask you this question. Would you go into the funeral today? Yes. Yes. You know what time it is? It's probably at 10 o'clock. That's what you're saying. I'm going to say this.

I'm just going to go home straight with you. But the gut feeling I got is that you have some name swirling in your hand. You just don't want to give him because you don't want to get him. I don't know him. Right. I don't know through people. You might not know. You need your health.

We need your help. I understand that. I just don't really know much, man. But, man, they protected me when I was on a football field. I hate to beat you tackle, and they made it happen for me. They say,

we ain't going to get tackled. Oh, my God. They were good guys. For detectives, this was perplexed. A suspect that was willing to cry for his dead friend and housemate, yet had no solid story for where he was on that day, created a contradicting situation. No matter what, detectives cannot be certain that Garrett is the arsonist, so they would slowly push him towards a polygraph test, claiming it's the only way to prove his innocence. We can't get second butter to comment on steps in a polygraph. Okay.

No, we'll call you, it's his kid. We got a polygraph out there. It's his sketch. We're going to bring you in here. He's going to schedule with you, set up an appointment. Oh, my God. This is nuts. I'm about to have a fucking fucking dip from you, man.

Listen, man. We're trying to help here. We're not dating. I know. I, well, if I can help you all with, I'm pretty glad with it. Well, if you need to get something off your chest and let us know something that you know, you will feel a whole lot better. But you're our key to the information about who's...

Why me? Why, you're putting it on me? I want you in there. house for two years. Yo, but I was never there on it. And you're saying that you don't know or I have heard anything about any of it. I'm not. I never seen him going on two years.

The car fire that happened in 2013 and you were near in the house. You have no clue of who may have started. You're saying nobody gave any names. No, no scenarios, no theories, no nothing. It's just not plausible, sir. I mean, that just goes on in a normal conversation. Who do you think did this? Even though Garrett just agreed to the polygraph, just moments later, he would have second thoughts.

Mr. Garrett is starting to bother, please. I know, so. You're saying you want to take a polygraph. Well, I'm taking a polygraph for you Henry. You just said you would. Why? You said what we had, let me take a polygraph. I didn't say that.

I said that's what he said. I said I would if, I said I would if I needed to. What's coming down to a knee? All right. Yes, sir. Okay. Go ahead and talk to the sergeant here. Oh, is that something that you'd be willing to do is take a polygraph?

No. Actually, I'm sorry. That's it ain't broken. Why is that working like that? You follow. I didn't say that. I'll say I might. Usually suspects are never legally obligated to undergo a polygraph test.

Even if they did, these tests are not presentable in court due to a lack of accuracy and reliability, since results are affected by several factors like anxiety and mental and physical health. And with Garrett's insistence that he is innocent and was not at Lindell's house often, detectives are stuck with no other suspects. Their only remaining choice was Stanley Ford, the self-proclaimed neighborhood guardian. But at this point, this was more of a gut feeling for detectives, as they could not put up a plausible case against him for an arrest. And their eyes, many suspects were just as suspicious as Stanley, if not more. This meant the Ark and Arsonist was still on the loose,

and maybe these investigations had scared him, because things seemed to settle down. For the entirety of 2016, there were no more fires, and most began to forget about the incident. However, this piece would soon come to an end. On January 23, 2017, someone set fire to a vehicle on 6th,000. 723 Russell Avenue, just a few blocks away from the first fire.

The next two months would be another wave of silence from the arsonist until May 15, 2017, when close to 3 a.m., Lane Worcester neighborhood, was given another rude awakening. Multiple people are dead after a house fire in Akron this morning, and at least some were children. The Akron Fire Department says the home was fully engulfed when they arrived. The heat was so high, a staircase melted away. The exact number of victims has not been released. A fire on 693 Faults Avenue had resulted in the death of seven people. 35-year-old Dennis Huggins and 38-year-old Angela Boggs, along with their five children, aged between 16 months and 14 years.

This was the second major fire after the Lindell home was burned to a crisp 13 months prior. The fire had started in trash cans placed at the front of the house and spread quickly through the porch into the home. home. However, this was no accident. According to a forensic analysis, an accelerant identified as gasoline was dumped into the cans. The flames were intense and enveloped the house within seconds. There was no room for escape. And just like the first fire, all seven victims were found huddled in corners of the home as they had been trapped by the smoke and flames. The bodies had been burnt so badly that the only way to identify them was through a DNA test. This was a tragedy. But compared to the first fire, finding the suspect

this time wouldn't be hard, as there were only two options. The first was Patrick Boggs, who had a bit of history with Angela Boggs, the mother of the children in this fire. Patrick Boggs served 12 years in prison for dousing Angela and kerosene and threatening to set her on fire in 2001. He was a violent man and had even tried to stab someone, making him a very plausible suspect. But even with his past, Patrick was quickly discarded as cameras provided he had never left his home in Ohio. More importantly, an extensive polygraph test proved that Patrick was telling the truth about not being involved in this crime. However, his role in these murders wouldn't end here, as we'd later find out. For now, the only remaining suspect was a

familiar face, one that was a common denominator in both fires, Stanley Ford, and This time, officers were prepared to gather a mountain of evidence against him. Just Lee treated me like I'm a suspect, man. I'm not a suspect. The first step was to obtain a search warrant for Stanley's home, which would result in a crucial piece of evidence being found. Worn out tennis shoes that had been covered in an accelerant. An accelerant that just so happened to be gasoline.

But the evidence wouldn't end here. One of the detectives would decide to have a one-on-one conversation with Stanley in his car and what he says would be nothing short of disturbing. not the neighborhood and get rid of that i wouldn't do it like that why would i do that i wouldn't do it at all i ain't gonna set somebody on fire just to get up out of the neighborhood i said that that that's that that ain't that ain't god's like man that ain't that ain't human nature like that yeah that's evil that's pure you right man man yet another instance of stanley for justifying not only the deaths of the couple but of their five innocent little children too just

Like in the murder of Linda Lewis, there was a pattern, a pattern of pure hatred towards the victims. A pattern so disgusting that Stanley felt it was his God-given right to purge anyone who upset the guardian of the neighborhood. In this case, Stanley often accused the family of dealing drugs, damaging his property, and engaging in illegal activities, which only fueled his hatred towards them. Several neighbors had witnessed heated exchanges between the couple and Stanley leading up to the fire. Not only that, but the night of the fire, neighbors mentioned how they saw Stanley continuously patrolling the house. This would be corroborated by CCTV footage that would not only catch Stanley walking towards the house right before the fire, but also

running away from it after. If all of this was not compelling enough, there would be one last piece of evidence that would solve the mystery of the Ark and Arsonist. Take a look at this footage from the 2016 fire of Lindell's home. matching this with the footage from the 2017 fire, and matching both with the footage from when police spoke with Stanley in the neighborhood, there is one correlation. The way the suspect walks is exactly the same as Stanley's stride. Without a doubt, Stanley was the one responsible for the cold-blooded murders of nine people. Officers were now certain of this, and soon enough Stanley was called in for an interview to be confronted with his sick crimes.

We want to talk to you. I want you to be honest with me. Okay. I've been honest. Let's talk about the day question. Let's go back to the fire. Okay. What can you tell us about the fire?

I don't have no knowledge of that. So what's your point? You know, sometimes like I explain to him. You know, it's something like that's Charlie horses. Right. Sometimes I walk the street in a bang. You know what I mean? Something like that.

But I didn't do that fire, man. In the face of these denials, detectives decide that enough is enough. No matter what, they need a confession out of Stanley. And the best way to do that is to show him all the evidence that points towards him being the arsonist. That's you running back to the house. Mm-hmm. At the time of the fire, okay?

We got you running to the house. You're not asleep. You're on the camera, Stan. I wouldn't know what you. I wouldn't know no camera on something. You're on the camera. Running from a fire? We got you.

You're, yeah. I wouldn't, I didn't run from no fire. Yeah. It's time to come, this time, this time. Yeah. Yeah. We know the answers, okay. Right.

But I didn't run from, I'm running from no fire. Okay, you walk. You're seeing, you see the fire. Okay. I ain't at the fire. No, no, I'm not at no fire. You're at the fire. I'm at a fire?

Yeah, you're at the fire. Yeah, you're at the fire. Go there. We need to hear. side of the story. Johnny, I'm being honest, man. I didn't show anything. I mean, I can't admit to somebody to do what I want to do it or do that.

I don't have, I got too much to lose, man. We got all the pieces, we know the answers. This is what we want to know. Is there some reasoning or some kind of something that happened that somebody pissed you off or somebody to do something? No. Maybe there's maybe why. Maybe like I said, maybe you're going to send a message, right?

Uh-huh. I'm allowed to walk in there much. I wasn't at nobody house. I'm walking. I'm walking. I'm going to why you running back from the house? I didn't do that. Oh yeah, I'll tell you.

I got it wrong. Well, you know. Okay. We got you. Got you. Got you. Yeah, too. Often a suspect will refute their crimes, even in the presence of concrete evidence,

as this would still give them a fighting chance in court. In this case, Stanley is doing exactly this, and no matter what detectives say, he won't be cracking anytime soon. Do you believe that I did it? No, no, we proved that you. I didn't do that. I wouldn't dare to do that, man. You want me to explain charge to you or do that?

I didn't do it. I'm serious. I didn't do it. I'm not going to meant to that. I didn't do it. If I did, I meant to it. I didn't do that. Let me split in charge.

So then. Okay. You have seven counts of aggravated murder. However, this would be far from the end of Stanley's saga. Because he never admitted to anything and had a history of being mentally unstable, there was a chance that he could get away completely Scott free in court due to his mental status being absolved of all his crimes. 62-year-old Stanley Ford's trial would begin on Monday, August 30th,

with the prosecutor, Michael DiAngelo making his opening statements that focused on correlating the masked arsonist with Stanley Ford. That timeline, his statements, and the similarities of his actions show his opportunity. And ladies and gentlemen, the evidence, all of that will reveal his identity. And that will show you that when the defendant gets angry with his neighbors, he sets their property on fire and he kills them. And at the conclusion of this case, Mr. Leprinsey and I are going to ask you to find the defendant guilty. of all the charges and all the specifications. Stanley's defense, on the other hand, knew the kind of upheld battle that they were facing

and decided that the best approach would be not to prove Stanley's innocence, but to disprove the suspicions of his identity. A lot of the evidence that you're going to be presented to is not a dispute. It's not a dispute that there were three fires set. It's not a dispute that all three fires were set in tension. and it certainly is not a dispute that there were nine deaths. The coroner, the medical examiner is going to come in, talk to you about the homicide that she ruled

and then the cause and the manner of all nine of those deaths. Those facts are not in dispute. But again, as defense, we told you, and you know that the state of Ohio has the burden to prove, prove each and every element. Defense has the burden to prove nothing. On the surface, this might seem like an open-and-shot case. But Stanley's defense has planned for these hearings thoroughly and knew exactly who to blame,

because there was one person who could turn the tides in Stanley's favor. Patrick Boggs, the same man who was the initial suspect for the second fire. When Patrick was arrested, the most conclusive evidence to dispel suspicions was his polygraph tests. But these tests are not admissible in court. This meant that when Lee Detective Troy Looney was called to the stand, he could do nothing, but watch as the defense twisted this case. You knew during the course of your investigation in 2001 that Patrick Boggs tried to set Angela Boggs on fire, correct? Correct. Also beat her up, correct?

Correct. He believed she was cheating on him with a black man. Correct? Correct. That piqued your interest in this case, too, because of who Angelo Boggs was now dating. Fair? That's great. This line of questioning puts the prosecution in a tough spot, as Detective Troy could not immediately dispel the doubts of Patrick being the suspect

using the results of the polygraph test. However, the defense would not lose more. momentum on this win. They would play their final Trump card, bringing in Patrick Boggs himself as a witness. And at this time, do you choose to testify? I choose fifth, plead a fifth and not testify at all. So you're choosing to invoke your Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, is that correct? Yes, ma'am.

With him pleading the Fifth, the defense's case became much stronger because for the jury, a suspect refusing to answer questions meant that he did not want to incriminate himself. want to incriminate himself in a crime that he may have been involved in, thus shifting some of the blame off of Stanley. Fortunately, there was one silver lining. A major step of the defense's plan was to use Stanley's extreme beliefs to drive the case towards an evaluation of his mental health. Unluckily for them, if Stanley didn't hesitate to murder nine people, he wouldn't hesitate to fight his own defense team and admit in front of the jury that he had no mental issues.

I've met a crime with being prudent to deal with all these colleges of these different psychologists and psychiatrists. Does that make any sense? Yes. But I got to tell you, it's incumbent upon you to collaborate with Dr. Carfowage. I'm not saying a doctor, Your Honor. I'm not going to go.

I'm not saying no more doctor. At this point, the only thing left to do was for the jury to come to a decision. However, even with every single one of the defense's attempts to save Stanley, the decision would come out to be in favor of the prosecution due to the overwhelming evidence they had. The similar walks of the suspect, recordings of Stanley expressing his hate towards his neighbors, and Stanley running back to his home after the second fire.

One verdict, one aggravated murder regarding Angela Boggs, we the jury being duly paneled and sworn and affirmed to well and truly try and due deliverance made between the state of Ohio and the defendant, Stanley O. Ford, do find the defendant guilty of the offense of aggravated murder, a charge in the indictment, on or about the 15th day of May 2017. But even though he was found guilty of the fires, jurors were yet to conclude their decision about Stanley's punishment. This is when the defense decided to move forward with plan B. Do anything to save Stanley from the death penalty? There were a total of 12 jurors, and a unanimous vote was needed to give Stanley the death penalty.

Even if one of them disagreed, he would be given a life sentence instead, and on the 12th day of his trial, only 11 of the 12 would vote in favor of the death penalty. The defense was successful in their attempts to save him as just one juror disagreed, feeling that he should only be given life in jail. But even his life sentence would not be kind to him, because for every single year of his life, he would be reminded of his sick. and disgusting crimes. Stanley Ford would receive nine consecutive life sentences for every single one of his victims without the possibility of parole plus an additional 21 years. And to be reminded of his crimes, for every single date of the fire and for every single birthday of the five children he murdered, Stanley would be given solitary confinement, a punishment that he will have to endure for the rest of his life.