Killer Stories with Harvey Guillén - “Genesee River Killer” Arthur Shawcross Pt. 2

Episode Date: October 14, 2021

After 14 years behind bars, Arthur Shawcross struggled to settle into civilian life. He moved from town to town, but a change of scenery didn't change the truth: Arthur was still the same killer. In a matter of a single year, Shawcross would earn the title of the "Genesee River Killer" as he slowly picked off sex workers in the Rochester area. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Due to the graphic nature of this killer's crimes, listener discretion is advised. This episode includes discussions of murder, pedophilia, necrophilia, body mutilation, cannibalism, and rape that some people may find offensive. We advise extreme caution for children under 13. In the fall of 1989, 44-year-old Arthur Shawcross strolled through Turning Point Park along the Genesee River. It was one of his favorite fishing spots. but this time he didn't bring his gear. He was focused on another mission. The body of 30-year-old June Stott

lay exactly where he left her, partially tucked under some foliage. Arthur was intrigued by the body's stiffness. Several of June's belongings lay scattered around her from their struggle two days earlier. Bending down, Arthur picked up a jackknife. He placed the tip of the knife where June's collar-brose. bones met, then pressed down, cutting through the rubbery flesh in a long, neat line.

Arthur sat next to the corpse, expecting to feel satisfied, but he didn't. It wasn't enough to mutilate his victim. He needed to take something. He wanted a part of her as a momento. As Arthur gazed down at the body, he knew exactly what piece he wanted. Hi, I'm Greg Poulson. This is Serial Killers, a Spotify original from Parcast. Every episode, we dive into the minds and madness of serial killers. Today, we'll conclude our exploration of Arthur Shawcross, otherwise known as the Genesee River Killer.

I'm here with my co-host, Vanessa Richardson. Hi, everyone. You can find episodes of serial killers and all other Spotify originals from Parcast for free on Spotify. Last time, we watched Arthur's disturbing urges lead to the rape and killing of two innocent children. For this crime, Arthur was sentenced to 25 years behind bars, but he served less than 15 before he was released. Today, we'll follow Arthur as he ventures back into the world with a hunger for blood. We've got all that and more coming up. Stay with us. This episode is brought to you by Shopify, Bonnie and Clyde.

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When 41-year-old Arthur Shaw Cross walked out of New York's Greenhaven Prison in April of 9, He didn't look like the man he'd been 14 and a half years earlier. The hardness of youth had faded. Now as a stocky man with gray hair, Arthur looked like any regular Joe, except that is, for the empty, dead look in his eyes. When it came to the cold violence inside of him, Arthur Shalcross was unchanged by the years. It seems that the parole board noticed at least a glimmer of that violent urge.

So although they let him go free, they tightened Arthur's leash. They sent him to the city of Binghamton to live in a Volunteers of America shelter. There he was required to attend weekly meetings with his parole officer, adhere to a curfew, avoid children, and regularly check in at a mental health facility. But Arthur didn't intend on following the rules. He immediately visited local playgrounds and started inviting children to fish with him. The parole board hadn't noticed him last time, and he assumed they wouldn't again. Unfortunately, he was right.

But his parole officer wasn't all Arthur had to worry about. When local police were informed that a child rapist and murderer had moved to town, they were furious. They took Arthur's presence as a personal offense, one they weren't willing to ignore. One day, while Arthur was fishing along the Shenango River near a playground, the local sergeant's patrol car pulled up. The cop cussed Arthur out and told him to stay out of the parks. Arthur didn't want trouble, so he nodded along respectfully, but inside he seethed.

The way Arthur saw it, he had the same rights as anyone else, but that was in the past. In his mind, no one had any right to judge him for that. Vanessa is going to take over on the psychology here and throughout the episode. As a note, Vanessa is not a license. psychologist or psychiatrist, but we have done a lot of research for this show. Thanks, Greg. Throughout his life, Arthur was described as having psychopathic tendencies, which might explain his reaction. A 2015 study published in Lancet Psychiatry found that psychopaths at a neurological level process punishment differently than most. Typically, when a person is

punished for any action, they notice the negative response and usually adjust their behavior accordingly, but psychopaths don't register the negativity in the same way that non-psychopaths do, so they continue the behavior. Arthur likely never viewed his time in prison as punishment for bad behavior. He saw it as an unnecessary exercise, and now that he was out, the sergeant's outbursts infuriated him. But it wasn't the end of Arthur's frustration with local law enforcement. Even though the parole board specifically requested discretion while Arthur adjusted to his new life, the sergeant contacted local news. And soon, word of Arthur's crimes had spread through the small city like wildfire.

With the truth out, nobody wanted Arthur around. Residents bombarded him with death threats harassing him to leave. Eventually, the parole board transferred Arthur to Delhai, New York, just over an hour away. but Arthur was delighted by the change. While in prison, he had a romantic penpill named Rose Murray Wally, and she just happened to live in Delhi. Arthur and Rose had daydreamed about moving in together once he was out, and now they could finally do just that.

The two saw this moment as a fresh start, but things took a turn almost immediately. The division of parole had called Delhai's police to inform them about the killer in their midst. So within a week, Arthur and Rose, Faced eviction, death threats, and even an angry mob of locals on their porch. The Pearl Board transferred Arthur again, allowing Rose to come with him. But this time, the board kept his arrival secret from local police.

In late June, 1987, Arthur and Rose settled in Rochester, New York. Rose got a position as an in-home health care assistant, while Arthur took a series of odd jobs, eventually landing a position in a food market. Without the police breathing down his neck, Arthur was able to settle into his new life. After a few weeks, the board informed law enforcement that there was a new parolee in the area, but they were careful not to mention the full details of his past crimes. Arthur loved this new start. He found fishing spots along the nearby Genesee River and became a regular at Dunkin' Donuts.

There he chatted with other coffee drinkers, people he considered to be his friends. He especially liked getting to know the police who came in. Now, more than ever, Arthur felt confident about his social skills. He went out of his way to be helpful to people around him. He shoveled snow from driveways, fixed appliances, and gave food to anyone in need. When he brought fish back from his time at the river, he often gave it away, even to strangers. It was extremely important to Arthur to be liked by people around him, and these acts of kindness were the only way he knew how to gain approval,

and affection. And in his mind, his method worked. He assumed that everyone around him appreciated his generosity. But that wasn't exactly true. The community accepted Arthur's offerings, but most people still found the 41-year-old off-putting. His actions were thoughtful, but his general demeanor remained cold, irritable, and sometimes even aggressive. Women especially found Arthur difficult to be around. He did favors they didn't ask for, and if they smiled or said thank you, Arthur latched on to them. Suddenly, his friendly demeanor would change. He'd start inappropriately complimenting his female friends and sometimes even touching them. As unwelcome as his advances were, rejecting Arthur came with its own set of dangerous consequences.

Once, he grabbed a woman's breast in front of her husband. When she demanded he leave, Arthur flew into a rage. He threatened that she would suffer the consequences if she talked to him like that again. But his girlfriend never rejected Arthur, and perhaps that was the reason he liked her. Even when he was moody or distant, Rose reminded herself of the good she saw in him. In fact, she was almost entirely dependent on him. Many in Rose's family cut her off after they learned about Arthur's criminal history, but Rose didn't seem to mind. All she needed was him.

The relationship was nearly perfect in Arthur's mind, too. But there was one problem. When they had sex, Arthur couldn't reach orgasm. He'd had similar issues in his previous relationships, but not quite this bad. And as the problem persisted, he started to resent Rose. Arthur frequently lost his temper with Rose, smashing dishes and slapping her. He blamed her weight for his inability to climax. His performance issues were her fault, he insisted.

Still, Arthur mentioned his sexual issues to his psychiatrist at the Genesee Mental Health Center, though he acted like it was no big deal. Aside from telling them about his issues in the bedroom, Arthur likely bragged to the doctors about his friends, his job, and fishing. It seemed he truly believed he was doing well. This optimism seemed to work on the psychiatrist. With only Arthur's perspective as a reference point, the doctor believed that his patient was genuinely improving.

But Arthur, who hadn't shaken his knack for lying, didn't tell this new specialist everything. For one, he didn't mention his new girlfriend. Around Christmas in 1987, Clara Neal walked into the food market where a 42-year-old Arthur worked. The older woman immediately took a fancy to him, and they began a secret affair. Interestingly, Arthur was far less volatile in this relationship. He always seemed to keep his anger in check with Clara. If anything, Arthur treated Clara more like a mother figure than a girlfriend. This bled into their intimate life in particular.

He loved when she held him like a baby and rubbed his back. Arthur likely sought out this kind of attention as a replacement for his mother's distance. Growing up, Arthur never received the kind of loving attention that he craved, and Clara probably helped fill that void. Even now, Arthur still craved an attentive, warm relationship with his husband. mother Betty, but she remained as cold as ever. Betty refused to visit Rochester, so Arthur called her frequently, asking if he could see her. She insisted that after his crimes, he couldn't come to Watertown without stirring up an angry mob. The calls left Arthur feeling like a child again,

stuck in a cycle of rejection. Both Rose and Clara saw the impact his mother's indifference had on Arthur and showered him with affection. But even that wasn't enough. He needed something more. In Rochester, there was a place for lonely men like Arthur, the intersection of Lake and Lyle Street, where sex workers stood around day and night looking for Johns to take on dates. It was perfect. On March 15, 1988, Arthur cruised down Lyle in Clara's light blue Dodge Omni. He wasn't sure what or who he was looking for. But it didn't take long to find the action he was craving. 27-year-old Dorothy Dotsie Blackburn stepped into the road in front of his car, waving. When he pulled over, she got into the passenger seat and asked if he was interested in a date.

Arthur gave Dotsie $30 for oral sex, but quickly things got out of hand. According to Arthur, Dotsie was the one to start the trouble, though we have to take his version of events with a grain of salt. He said that she leaned down and bit his penis as hard as she could. Furious, Arthur bit her vagina, then choked Dotsy until she passed out. After that, Arthur drove his unconscious passenger to a remote creek. When he pulled over, he attempted to rape Dotsie, but she came to and started hurling insults at him. It was the final straw for Arthur.

He clenched Dotsy's neck and squeezed as hard as he could. They held on for nearly ten minutes, long after her eyes rolled back and her body went limp. When he was done, Arthur got out of the car in a daze. He pulled Dotsie's body out and dumped her into the creek, then got back into the car and drove home. While Dotsie's body lay in a heap in Salmon Creek, Arthur slept fine. In his mind, he had no choice but to kill her. She attacked him first, or at least that's how he chose to remember it. Either way, he hoped the incident would remain in the past.

However, nine days later, a work crew found Dotsie's corpse in the water. But by then, any evidence on the body had washed away, leaving little for police to go on. With no other leads, investigators questioned Dotsie's boyfriend and a few other possible suspects. But that was it. There just wasn't enough information to continue the investigation. They decided or maybe hoped that Dotsie's murder was nothing more than an isolated, tragic incident. But now that Arthur had found the corner of Lake and Lyle, he was like a kid in a candy store. These women were his for the taking. Their only job was to satisfy him.

And if they didn't, well, nobody would care when they went missing. Arthur was free to take his pick. Coming up, Arthur goes undercover at Dunkin' Donuts. Since the beginning of time, people have wanted to believe in an afterlife. Hi listeners, I'm Shelby Scott. In mediums, a new Spotify original from Parcast, I take a closer look at the mortal lives of spiritualists who claim to communicate with the dead and the scientists who tried to debunk them. This eight-episode series looks at paranormal events proven to. be hoaxes and those which have mystified even the world's greatest skeptics. Mixing history, mystery,

and social psychology, mediums asked how these self-proclaimed psychics pulled off the illusion of interacting with the dead, even under a microscope of criticism. Were they all simply pedaling parlor tricks, or was there something truly paranormal going on? Break out your Ouija board, dust off your crystal ball, or light some candles, because His PARCAST is ready to reveal what's really known about the unknown. Follow the Spotify original from PARCAST mediums. Summon new episodes every Wednesday, free and only on Spotify. Snoring, gasping during sleep, feeling fatigued, ask your doctor about Zepbound,

terseptitite, the first and only FDA-approved prescription medicine for moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea, OSA, and adults with obesity. Zepbound is a prescription medicine. used with a reduced calorie diet and increased physical activity to help adults with moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea, OSA, and obesity to improve their OSA. Zetbound is approved as a 2.5, 5, 7.5, 10, 12.5, or 15 milligram injection. Zetbound contains terseptitite and should not be used with other terseptide containing products or any GLP1 receptor agonist medicines. It is not known if Zepound is safe and effective for use in children. Don't share needles or pins or reuse needles. Don't take if allergic to it, or if you or someone in your family had

medullary thyroid cancer, or if you've had multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2. Tell your doctor if you get a lump or swelling in your neck. Stop Zepbound and call your doctor if you have severe stomach pain or a serious allergic reaction. Severe side effects may include inflamed pancreas or gallbladder problems. Tell your doctor if you experience vision changes before scheduled procedures with anesthesia. If you're nursing, pregnant, plan to be, or taking birth control pills. Taking Zep bound with a sulfonelioria, or insulin may cause low blood sugar. Side effects include nausea, diarrhea, and vomiting,

which can cause dehydration and worsened kidney problems. Talk to your doctor. Call 1-800-545-99 or visit Zepbound.lily.com. Now back to the story. In March of 1988, about 11 months after his release from prison, 42-year-old Arthur Shaw Cross murdered Dotsie Blackburn. Of course, he didn't tell anyone about his crime, especially not his court-appointed psychiatrist.

Arthur had maintained that he was living a safe and healthy lifestyle, and conveniently left out the more troubling details. To Arthur's delight, the psychiatrist bought the lies. So that June, the doctor essentially cleared Arthur of his mental health clinic obligations. However, not everyone was fooled by Arthur's innocent act. His colleagues found him strange and unsettling. He casually told graphic war stories, ignoring the discomfort of his coworkers. It was like Arthur couldn't stop himself from saying whatever popped into his head,

including tales from his stint behind bars. The food market employees didn't know why Arthur had been in prison, but his bizarre behavior convinced them to do some more digging. Eventually, they asked some local police to look into the real reason behind Arthur's incarceration. That's how they learned about the two days. children Arthur raped and killed in 1972. When the truth came out, the food market quietly parted ways with Arthur, who found a job as a food prepper at another grocery market. He worked from around 9 p.m. to 3 a.m. each night,

but adjusted to nocturnal life well. It gave him plenty of opportunities to stop at Dunkin' Donuts to hang out with local cops. Plus, he would have more time to visit the sex workers at the intersection of Lake and Lyle. Arthur became a regular client for several of the Rochester sex workers, and for the most part, Arthur's interactions there were uneventful. The women on the strip saw him as just another John. But in July 1989, Arthur set himself apart. One day, he followed 27-year-old Anna Marie Stefan into a field behind the local YMCA, where they started to have sex. Once again, we only have Arthur's account of the events that followed.

So it's difficult to be certain exactly what happened next. Arthur claimed that a group of children wandered into the area. He knew if he was caught engaged in sexual activity near children, he would get into trouble. So he tried to quiet Anna, but she wouldn't listen. Desperate to silence her, Arthur felt a familiar rush course through him. He put his hands around Anna's throat and strangled her until her pulse fluttered to a on. Then he stashed her body behind a bush on the bank of the Genesee River.

Like before, Arthur found a way to justify this assault. In his mind, this was another case of self-preservation. He couldn't risk violating his parole, so he did what he had to to stay out of prison. He had no choice but to kill Anna. By the time someone stumbled upon Anna's corpse about two months later, it was badly decomposed, with no trace of physical evidence left behind. So for a second time, Arthur was in the clear. During this time, he continued juggling his relationships with Rose and Clara. While Clara knew about Rose, Arthur convinced her that he didn't love his live-in girlfriend. He explained that he was only with Rose to appease his probation officer. Clara was confident in Arthur's feelings about

her, but her family hated him. He made a great woman. He made a great woman. aggressive sexual advances toward her two adult daughters, Linda and Loretta. Once he pinned Linda down out of bed until she kicked him off. When she told her mom, she said Clara just laughed. But Arthur was interested in more than just Clara's daughters. He loved spending time with her grandsons, Linda's children. He offered to babysit, take them for ice cream, teach them how to fish, any excuse to be alone with them.

Linda knew better than to accept the offers. Besides her own experiences with Arthur, she'd seen the way he played with her boys. One time, he bit her 14-year-old on the nipple. After that, she refused to leave her sons alone with Clara's boyfriend. But Arthur didn't mind. He was busy making other friends. By the summer of 1989,

he'd met an older homeless woman, Dorothy Keeler, and invited her to stay with him. He allegedly paid Dorothy to clean her. the house. Rose may have assumed that Arthur was being his usual charitable self, but that was just a front. He began an affair with Dorothy almost immediately, but it seems he saw her as disposable. On or around July 29th, Arthur and Dorothy went to a creek that connected to the Genesee River to fool around. Everything was fine at first, but then an argument broke out. Once again, the version of events we have paints Arthur as a man backed into a corner.

According to Arthur, Dorothy threatened to tell Rose about their affair. Furious and scared, he picked up a nearby log and hit her with it. She crumpled to the ground, dead. Arthur stashed Dorothy's body and went home. Over the next several weeks, he waited to hear news of her disappearance, but nothing happened. Dorothy had lived on the fringes of society, and it seemed nobody realized she was missing. About a month later, Arthur returned to Dorothy's body. By then, almost all of her musculature had disintegrated,

leaving little more than a skeleton behind. Arthur picked up her skull and, without a thought, tossed it into the river. Then he made his way back home to Rose. For a few weeks, this murder appeased Arthur's darker urges, giving him mental space to focus on more personal matters. Despite his ongoing affair with Clara, Arthur and Rose got married in August of 1989. But this brief celebratory moment didn't keep Arthur away from the corner of Lake and Lyle for long. Within a month, Arthur was back to his old habits.

On the morning of September 29th, Arthur claimed the life of 25-year-old sex worker Patricia Ives. According to Arthur's own retelling, he thought he saw her going through his wallet during a date. furious, he attacked Patricia, strangling her to death. As always, he felt validated in his murderous behavior. To Arthur, there was always an excuse for murder, but Patricia Ives wouldn't be his last victim. Only a month later, in October of 1989, he met June stopped. 30-year-old June wasn't a sex worker, but she was a vulnerable young woman with a mental disability. June didn't have a steady income or living arrangement,

so Arthur started inviting her over for dinner. On October 23rd, Arthur took June for a picnic in Turning Point Park. The pair started having sex, but Arthur couldn't maintain an erection. Furious, he latched onto June's neck and squeezed. Arthur strangled June quickly. Once she was dead, he removed her clothes and dropped them in the river, leaving her naked body in the dirt. Two days later, Arthur returned to June's body.

He dragged it into a swamp-like area and was about to cover it with an old rug when he got an idea. Using a knife, he sliced June open from breastbone to crotch, but he didn't stop there. He cut out her genitalia and took a bite. It's impossible to know for sure what was going on inside Arthur's mind during this shocking moment, but it seems likely that the moment was sexually motivated.

A 2021 study in the journal, Aggression and Violent Behavior, found that while post-mortem mutilation is often an attempt to dispose of evidence, cannibalism is different. Cannibal cases are usually planned ahead of time and motivated by sadism. Though Arthur may have wanted to cut June to speed up decomposition, he devoured her body for his own sexual gratification. and after that, he was hungry for more.

As Arthur's habits escalated in both pace and horror, investigators struggled to keep up. They discovered the bodies of Dorothy Keeler and Patricia Ives the same week that Arthur killed June. Detectives couldn't identify Dorothy without her head, and both bodies had decomposed past the point of gathering useful evidence. But based on what they did know and some educated guesses, Rochester PD could finally see what was happening.

Someone was using the intersection of Lake and Lyle as a hunting ground. The police sent a small team of undercover officers to provide surveillance to the area. The squad started trailing local sex workers on dates in the hopes of spotting their elusive killer. But this plan was flawed. Clients noticed the surveillance and didn't like it, which meant the sex workers started sneaking away for their protection, so they could earn living. Frustrated, the police were left at Square One. Arthur watched with interest as the Rochester police moved into Lake and Lyle, but he wasn't concerned.

He knew a lot of the undercover team from spending time at the donut store, where he also overheard some of their plans. Arthur still had every intention of picking off sex workers for his sadistic fantasies. All he had to do was tweak his routine. He stopped approaching women at the infamous intersection and waited for them in less popular spots. As a regular client, the girls told cops not to worry about Arthur, who they knew as Mitch or Joe. He was a little strange, they said, and often struggled with his erection. He rarely orgasmed, they reported, but he wasn't violent and he paid well.

But of course he was violent. It's just that none of his victims returned to spread the news. So, Arthur continued to fly under the radar. From November 5th to December 15, 1989, Arthur murdered five more sex workers and dumped their bodies near the Genesee River. Local police enlisted the help of the FBI and the Bureau of Criminal Investigation, but nobody could find useful evidence from the women's decomposing corpses. All they could find was basic information. The bodies were often beaten and showed signs of asphyxiation.

The position of the limbs also suggested they'd been raped, but there was never semen. And without DNA evidence, they had little hope of narrowing in on a suspect. Scambling for answers, officers assigned to the case often gathered at the local Dunkin' Donuts late at night to discuss the case. Sitting in his usual booth, sipping coffee, Arthur listened to these updates. He even spoke with officers and asked questions. It delighted him that the cops had no idea that they were talking to the very killer they were hunting for. And as Arthur reveled in his infamy, terror spread through the streets of Rochester.

On Lake and Lyle, many of the sex workers stopped going on dates, but some continued to work, refusing to let this mysterious killer keep them from making a living. Joanne Van Nostrand was such a woman. She was an older, streetwise sex worker, and she felt like she could handle the creep who was snatching women. But then she met Arthur. One night towards the beginning of winter, Arthur was driving his girlfriend Clara's Blue Dodge Omni, when Joanne flagged him down and got in. While they drove, he talked about all of the women he'd been with who stole from him.

It made her uneasy, so Joanne secretly pulled out a knife in case Arthur tried anything. Once they parked, Arthur took a long time to get an erection. He kept reaching towards Joanne's neck, but after all of the local strangulations, she was wary. Each time, she swatted his hands away, claiming she had asthma. Arthur kept at it for about an hour and finally asked Joanne to pretend she was dead. Tired and scared, Joanne agreed, forcing her body to go limp. Almost immediately, Arthur reached climax. After all this time, necrophilia roleplay was exactly what Arthur wanted.

Perhaps he was so pleasantly surprised by this discovery that he decided to spare Joanne's life. When he let Joanne out of the car, she walked away unsteadily. She didn't fully realize what just happened, but she was absolutely certain of one thing. She had just spent a night with the killer everyone was searching for her. Coming up, Arthur's disturbing habits lead to his downfall. Want to support your gut health? Take Activia's gut health challenge by enjoying two Activio yogurt today for two weeks and see if you feel a difference. With billions of probiotics and 20 years of scientific expertise,

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By mid-December, 1989, 44-year-old Arthur Shawcross had killed 10 women in Rochester, New York. Local police were determined to catch the criminal, but he continued to elude them. That said, Arthur did slip up. He'd recently had a date with Joanne Van Nostrand, and his behavior made her suspect that Arthur was the killer everyone was talking about. so she went to the police to tell them what she knew.

She described the encounter and reported that the John she met drove a blue car. However, the car Arthur had picked Joanne up in went in for repairs that month. So he started driving another car, a gray Chevrolet celebrity that Clara had rented. Unaware that he'd narrowly dodged a bullet, Arthur felt untouchable, and he was itching to kill again. On the night of December 17th, Arthur picked up 33-year-old June Cicero. She had a reputation as one of the meanest, toughest sex workers in Rochester and was determined to keep working in spite of the serial killer targeting women like her.

It isn't clear exactly what happened between Arthur and Cicero, but something went wrong early on in the date. Whatever it was, Arthur felt like the only solution was to kill her. He ended Cicero's life right there. in the car and left her in the passenger seat as he drove through town. He made his way down Highway 31 until he crossed over a small bridge. He opened the passenger door and pushed Cicero out of the car. Her body tumbled over the side of the bridge and fell into Salmon Creek. Then Arthur closed the door and drove home. A few days later, he returned to the creek and mutilated Cicero's body

with a hacksaw and took a trophy to remember her by. Meanwhile, June Cicero's disappearance shocked the sex worker community. She was supposed to be the strongest of them all. If the killer could take her, then nobody was safe. As if to prove this point, Arthur killed 20-year-old Felicia Stevens a few days after Christmas. Police found some of her clothes scattered along a creek's bank but couldn't locate a body. So investigators took their search to the skies. A few days later, agents in a helicopter passing over the search area

caught sight of something unusual in a stream. It was a body frozen in ice. The detective also noticed a gray Chevrolet celebrity parked on a nearby bridge. It was Arthur Shawcross, once again returning to check on his victim's remains. But his timing couldn't have been worse. As soon as he heard the helicopter, he quickly jumped back into his car and drove down Highway 31, back toward Rochester. As he drove back towards town, Arthur could see the helicopter following him,

and he grew more and more nervous. He made his way towards the nursing home where Clara worked, but was intercepted in the parking lot by several state troopers. The officers questioned him about what he'd been doing on the bridge, and Arthur explained that he'd just stopped to relieve himself. but that was it. He was forthright and polite, but there was something about him that made the officers suspicious. They asked if he had a criminal history, and Arthur responded he'd been in prison for manslaughter. Hearing that, the cops knew they had to investigate further. Trying to keep him

calm, they asked if Arthur would come to the station for more questions. Arthur felt comfortable around cops. After all, he spent most nights talking to them at Dunkin' Donuts. He also wanted to appear as cooperative as possible, so he agreed to go with them. Back in the station, the Rochester PD and the BCI worked together to dig up Arthur's previous crimes. When they discovered that he'd killed two children, they realized that their early suspicions were correct. This man really could be responsible for killing all these women. Two officers interrogated Arthur and quickly realized he responded well to positive reinforcement. so they remained as friendly as possible,

asking if he needed anything, if he was doing okay, and complimenting him for being so honest. But the police couldn't hold Arthur forever, and eventually they had to let him go. Arthur went to work and did some chores, satisfied that he'd fooled the police yet again. He even stopped to meet with his parole officer. In his mind, all of this was just one gigantic mistake.

While Arthur went about his day on January 4th, the Rochester PD, state police, and BCI, all compared notes about their new suspect. He fit all the profiles they'd created, plus he matched Joanne Van Nostrin's description from her creepy John. They were certain they had their man. Now they just needed a confession. Later that day, some officers located Arthur to clear up some questions. He was surprised they wanted to talk to him again, but agreed. For more than 10 hours, Rochester PD officers and BCI agents prodded Arthur with questions.

This proved to be more of a challenge than they anticipated. If their accusations piled up or came across too harsh, Arthur would suddenly explode and slam his hands down on the table. In other moments, he shut down and refused to speak at all. Arthur likely felt offended and outraged that the police, men he thought of his friends, would accuse him of murder. Noticing his indignation, the officers decided to change tactics. BCI interrogation specialist Dennis Blythe asked if his girlfriend Clara was involved in the murders

since Arthur had been using her cars to pick up his targets. This question deflated Arthur. Instead, he insisted his mistress wasn't involved in anything untoward, but the mere idea of her as a suspect threw him off. Within minutes, he started confessing. It wasn't a quick process. The confession ran 79 pages. But once that was done, Arthur Shawcross was arrested and eventually charged with 11 counts of murder. The prosecution and defense both set to work, but they weren't arguing over whether or not Arthur killed the women. They knew that he did. They were trying to discover if Arthur was insane.

Following instructions from his lawyer, Arthur pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity, which would mean his mental illness made it impossible for him to take responsibility for the murders. For months, he went through all kinds of tests, interviews, and experiments. Dr. Richard Krauss led the most in-depth study. He was a leading psychiatrist in the fields of psychopathy, multiple personalities, schizophrenia and pedophilia. But like every expert before him, he found Arthur's mind impossible to untangle.

Arthur was too open about his crimes. Yes, he constantly justified his own murders and twisted the truth, but unlike other psychopaths who commit similar crimes, Arthur seemed comfortable talking about his acts as something wrong or bad. Sometimes Arthur even admitted feeling shame for his actions. He referenced another book. part of him, an evil part, that he had never understood. And Krauss found that he didn't understand

either. Every time he thought he'd cornered Arthur into a diagnosis, a new admission would make him second guess himself. When the trial finally started in the fall of 1990, the evidence to prove Arthur's insanity was confusing and unconvincing to the jury. So after 13 weeks, they found Arthur guilty on all accounts. The judge sentenced him to 250 years in prison, and this time there would be no chance of parole. In prison, Arthur conducted many interviews, enjoying the attention he received from his crimes. It wasn't exactly the kind of recognition he had spent his life searching for, but it was close enough.

Arthur was candid in these interviews, but he rarely spoke about killing eight-year-old Karen Hill and 10-year-old Jack Blake. Perhaps he'd begun to feel remorseful over his earliest murders. We'll never know for sure. On November 10, 2008, 63-year-old Arthur complained about a pain in his leg. The guards were used to Arthur's complaints

about strange ailments, both real and fake, and sent him to a hospital in Albany. There, he died from cardiac arrest. While he was certain to never be granted parole again, It's hard not to feel like the world got a little bit safer the day Arthur Shawcross died. Thanks again for tuning it to serial killers. We'll be back soon with a new episode. For more information on Arthur Shawcross, amongst the many sources we used,

we found The Misbegotten Son, a serial killer and his victims, the true story of Arthur J. Shawcross by Jack Olson, extremely helpful to our research. You can find more episodes of Serial Killers and all other Spotify Originals from Parcast for free on Spotify. We'll see you next time. Have a killer week.

Serial Killers is a Spotify original from Parcast. Executive producers include Max and Ron Cutler, sound design by Michael Motion, with production assistance by Ron Shapiro, Trent Williamson, Carly Madden, and Bruce Kitovich. This episode of Serial Killers was written by Kit Fitzgerald, with writing assistance by Georgia Hampton and Joel Callan, fact-checking by Bennett Logan,

and research by Brian Petrus and Chelsea Wood. Serial killers stars Greg Paulson and Vanessa Richardson. Hi, I'm Shelby Scott, host of Mediums, a new Spotify original from Parcast. You can join me Wednesdays as I dive into the world of spiritualism and the women that defined it. We'll explore everything from obvious con artists to 150-year-old mysteries.

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