If you ask most people to name a notorious serial killer, chances are they’ll say Ted Bundy. But did you know that Bundy wasn’t the only prolific serial killer in Washington State? In fact, there was another serial killer who claimed more victims than Bundy did.
Florida Photographic Collection
Ted Bundy Wasn’t The Most Prolific Serial Killer In The State Of Washington
With all focus on Jeffery Dhamer with the new Netflix documentary series Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, We tend to forget that sadly Washington State has had some equally despicable serial killers in the state.
I remember growing up in Washington State and being worried about the mysterious Green River Killer.
It wasn’t until 2001 that Washington residents could sleep easy knowing a prolific serial killer was behind bars.
King County Sheriff’s Office.
The Green River Killer Turned Out To Be A Man Named Gary Ridgway
Ridgway was active for two decades, from 1982 until his arrest in 2001. In that time, he is believed to have killed at least 71 women, though some estimates put the number of his victims as high as 80 or even 90.
Most of Ridgway’s victims were prostitutes or runaways who had fallen into a life of drugs and violence. He would pick them up along Seattle’s Pacific Highway South, promising them money or drugs in exchange for sex.
Once he had them in his car, he would strangle them to death before dumping their bodies in remote areas around King County.
Ridgway was finally apprehended in 2001 after DNA evidence linked him to four of his victims.
He pleaded guilty to those murders as well as 48 other counts of aggravated first-degree murder as part of a plea deal that spared him the death penalty.
He is currently serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole at the Walla Walla State Penitentiary.
While Ted Bundy may be better known outside Washington State, Gary Ridgway is far and away the most notorious serial killer in our state’s history.
In all likelihood, he is also one of the most prolific serial killers ever; while Bundy is believed to have killed somewhere between 30 and 40 people total, Ridgway is thought to have murdered at least 71 women over a span of 20 years—and possibly many more than that.
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