This Day in History: Infamous serial killer 'Son of Sam' arrested in 1977
On Aug. 10, 1977, serial killer David Berkowitz, often referred to as "Son of Sam" or ".44 Caliber Killer," was arrested and charged with killing six people. He also wounded seven others.
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The 24-year-old postal employee caused panic throughout New York City when he attacked young people — mostly attractive women with long brown hair — with a .44-caliber revolver.
Before his killings, Berkowitz set hundreds of fires in the city without ever being caught.
Later diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic, Berkowitz claimed to hear voices of “demons” that told him to commit murder. After he was arrested, he claimed that demons and a black Labrador retriever owned by a neighbor named Sam Carr — who he was referring to when he later called himself Son of Sam — had ordered him to commit the killings.
His first attack was on Christmas Eve, 1975, when he severely injured 15-year-old Michelle Forman with a hunting knife.
His victims ranged in age from 15 years old to 20 years old.
Because Berkowitz mostly targeted women with long brown hair, women in New York City cut their hair short and died it blonde.
Related video below: Serial killer Alton Coleman captured in 1984
The first big break in the case came when police were able to match the bullets to connect multiple of his crimes.
Berkowitz was able to evade police for a little over a year, but during that time, he sent bizarre and threatening letters to his neighbors, who turned him into police on the suspicions that Berkowitz was the Son of Sam.
Berkowitz was eventually arrested while leaving his home in Yonkers, and he admitted to being the Son of Sam.
On May 8, 1978, he pleaded guilty to the six murders and was given six sentences of 25 years to life.
He has since been denied parole and is currently held at the Shawangunk Correctional Facility in New York.