Lonely hearts killer explained

A lonely hearts killer (also called want-ad killer) is a criminal who commits murder by contacting a victim who has either posted advertisements to or answered advertisements via newspaper classified ads and personal or lonely hearts ads.^[1]

Varied motives

The actual motivations of these criminals are varied. By definition, a killing will have taken place in as much as the suspected, accused, or convicted perpetrator has been dubbed a want-ad or lonely hearts killer. However, the crime may have involved a simple robbery gone wrong, an elaborate insurance fraud scheme, sexual violence/rape, or any of several other ritualized pathological impulses (e.g. necrophilia, mutilation, cannibalism, etc.). Sometimes murder is not the (original) intent, but becomes a by-product of rape or other struggles; in some cases, murder is committed simply to cover up the original crime. Some, on the other hand, are serial killers who utilize this method of targeting victims, either exclusively, or when it suits them.^[2]

Notable lonely hearts and want-ad killers

The following accused and convicted murderers and serial killers are known to have used want ads, personal ads, and/or matrimonial bureaus to contact their victims:

• Elfriede Blauensteiner (1931–2003) – known as "The Black Widow"
• Viktor Bolkhovsky (b. 1959) - known as "The Necromancer Maniac"
• Harvey Carignan (1927–2023) – known as "The Want-Ad Killer"^[3]
• Nannie Doss (1905–1965) – known as "The Lonely Hearts Killer", among other names
• Amelia Dyer (1836–1897) – known as "The Ogress of Reading"
• Raymond Fernandez (1914–1951) and Martha Beck (1920–1951) – known as "The Honeymoon Killers" and "The Lonely Hearts Killers" ^[4]
• Albert Fish (1870–1936)
• Harvey Glatman (1927–1959) – known as "The Lonely Hearts Killer"^[5]
• Denis Gorbunov (1977–2006)
• Belle Gunness (1859–1908?) – she became part of American criminal folklore, a female Bluebeard.
• Robert Hansen (1939–2014)
• Béla Kiss (1877–19?)
• Sheila LaBarre (b. 1959) – serving two consecutive life sentences for two murders on farm she inherited from deceased husband. Boyfriend later died, as did a man who replied to her personal ad.
• Henri Désiré Landru (1869–1922)
• Bobby Joe Long (1953–2019) – known as "The Classified Ad Rapist"
• Philip Markoff (1986–2010) – known as "The Craigslist Killer"
• Harry Powers (1892–1932) – known as "The Lonely Hearts Killer", "The West Virginia Bluebeard", and "The Butcher of Clarksburg"^[1]

See also

• Internet homicide
• Internet suicide
• Murder of Margaret Martin

Notes and References

1. Web site: Lonely Hearts Murderer' . . April 5, 2009 . April 22, 2009 . Long before there was a craigslist or dot-com dating, there were places where men and women who were too shy or busy to meet face to face could find romance. Calling themselves "matrimonial bureaus," these organizations were known mostly as the "lonely hearts clubs," and they flourished through the middle of the 20th century. [...] (The article is a side-bar to a story about Philip Markoff, a "Craigslist killer" and it describes the murders committed in 1931 by Harry F. Powers, the so-called "Matromonial Bureau Murderer," also known as "The West Virginia Bluebeard" and "The Butcher of Clarksburg.") .
2. 'The A to Z Encyclopedia of Serial Killers' by Harold Schechter.
3. "The Want Ad Killer" by Ann Rule, 1983 . (This book is about the serial killer Harvey Carignan.)
4. http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070717/NEWS/70717016/1006&theme=BACKSTORY Backstory extras: The Lonely Hearts Murder Case (This article deals with Raymond Fernandez and Martha Beck of Delaware)
5. Web site: Archived copy . 2009-04-23 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20090505074848/http://www.timescall.com/BoulderJaneDoe/index.asp . 2009-05-05 . Boulder Jane Doe (This article covers a possible Colorado victim of Harvey Glatman, California’s “Lonely Hearts Killer.”)