[188], At the time, the killing spree was the worst case of serial murder, in terms of the number of victims, in the United States, exceeding the 25 murders attributed to Juan Corona, who had been arrested in California in 1971 for killing 25 men. As the couple watched the trio, one of the men (whom they later identified as Henley) advanced upon their car with such a menacing expression that the couple felt compelled to drive away. [189], Families of Corll's victims were highly critical of the HPD,[190][191] which had been quick to list the missing boys as runaways who had not been considered worthy of any major investigation. [107] The following day, Garcia telephoned his mother to say he was spending the night with a friend; he was shot and left to bleed to death in Corll's bathtub before he was buried at Lake Sam Rayburn. Prior to their respective trials, both Henley and Brooks would reject offers presented to them by the district attorney of life sentences in exchange for pleas of guilty in the murders for which they had been indicted. Once manacled, the victims would be sexually assaulted, beaten, tortured and, sometimes after several days, killed by strangulation or shooting with a .22 caliber pistol. [16], Corll's mother divorced West in 1963 and opened a new candy business, which she named Corll Candy Company; her eldest son was appointed vice-president of the new family firm,[19] with his younger brother Stanley being appointed secretary-treasurer. [22]:3670 Investigators later returned to the scene where these extra bones bodies were discovered in efforts to locate any additional human remains at the site of their discovery, although this search yielded no further remains. They would then be restrained either by force or deception, and each was killed either by strangulation or shooting with a .22 caliber pistol. As had been the case in his teenage years, Corll increased the number of hours he devoted to the candy business to satisfy an increasing public demand for his family's product. Scott was tied to the torture board and suffered the same fate as Aguirre: rape, torture, strangulation, and burial at High Island Beach. [15], Reportedly, Corll divulged to some of his close acquaintances after his release from the army that it was during his period of service that he had first realized that he was homosexual, and had experienced his first homosexual encounters. In addition, around the time of Lyles's murder, Henley had temporarily moved away to Mount Pleasant in an apparent effort to distance himself from Corll. That evening, Simoneaux is known to have phoned his mother's home and to have shouted the word "Mama" into the receiver[94] before the connection was terminated. "[140], Minutes later, a PPD patrol car arrived at 2020 Lamar Drive. These facts may account for this sudden lull in killings. [29] Corll is also known to have installed a pool table at the rear of the candy factory where employees and local youths would congregate. All of these victims were killed by either shooting, strangulation or a combination of both. Henley had stated in his confession to police that he and Corll had "choked" Michael Baulch and buried him at Lake Sam Rayburn. [10][11] Corll's mother and stepfather started a small family candy company, initially operating from the garage of their home. Dean Arnold Corll (December 24, 1939 August 8, 1973) was an American serial killer and sex offender who abducted, raped, tortured, and murdered a minimum of 28 teenage boys and young men between 1970 and 1973 in Houston and Pasadena, Texas. Buried in Houston, Texas, USA. The macabre record number of known victims attributed to a single murder case set by Corll and his accomplices was surpassed only in 1978 by John Wayne Gacy, who murdered 33 boys and young men and who admitted to being influenced by press coverage of the Houston Mass Murders to manacle his victims prior to their abuse and murder. [204][205][n 11], Elmer Wayne Henley and David Owen Brooks were tried separately for their roles in the murders. Police had been led to Sellars's body on August 13, 1973, by a trucker who recalled conversing with a youth he believed to be Henley after he had seen a car stuck in the sand close to where Sellars's body was subsequently found. Henley was quite insistent, however, and upon his recalling the names of three boysCobble, Hilligiest, and Joneswhom he stated he and Brooks had procured for Corll, the police accepted that there was something to his claims, as all three teenagers were listed as missing at Houston Police Department (HPD) headquarters. He had two teenage assistants, David Brooks and Elmer Wayne Henley, who would help lure victims to his home. A body found on a beach in Jefferson County on August 4, 1983, is strongly believed a further victim of Corll. [175] The twelfth body unearthed bore evidence of sexual mutilation (the severed genitals of the victim were found inside a sealed plastic bag placed beside the body);[176][177] another victim unearthed had several fractured ribs. [5], In several instances, Corll forced his victims to either phone or write to their parents with explanations for their absences in an effort to allay the parents' fears for their sons' safety. The jury deliberated for just 90 minutes before they reached a verdict. The three teenagers began drinking and smoking marijuana, with Henley and Kerley also sniffing paint fumes as Corll watched them intently. [30] On June 4, Henley and Corll abducted 15-year-old William Ray Lawrence; the youth was last seen alive by his father on 31st Street. [110], In July 1973, after Brooks married his pregnant fiance,[30] Henley temporarily became Corll's sole procurer of victims, assisting in the abduction and murder of three Heights youths between July 19 and 25. Henley claimed these three abductions were the only three that occurred after his becoming an accomplice to Corll in which Brooks was not a participant. [310], The discovery raised the disturbing possibility that the statements Corll had given to both Henley and Brooks prior to his murder that he was associated with an organization based in Dallas which "bought and sold boys"[262] may indeed have held a degree of truth. In his confession, Brooks stated the youth killed immediately prior to Henley's involvement in the murders was abducted from the Heights and kept alive for approximately four days before his murder. As punishment, Manson received a life sentence for first-degree murder since the Brooks served his life sentence at the Terrell Unit near Rosharon, Texas. [311] The discovery of the material in Houston in 1975 subsequently led to the arrest of five individuals in Santa Clara, California. [89] Approximately one month later, on or about August 21, a 19-year-old[90] named Roy Bunton was abducted while walking to his job as an assistant in a Houston shoe store. [171] Two additional bodies were found in shallow, lime-soaked graves located close to a dirt road. However, the Office of the Medical Examiner of Harris County lists Branch's death as having occurred in November 1972. [22]:3644. His last known victim of 1971 was Ruben Watson Haney, who disappeared on August 17. [5][161][n 10] Cloth rags had also been inserted into the victims' mouths and adhesive tape wound around their faces to muffle their screams. In this confession, Henley readily admitted to having personally killed approximately nine[170] youths and to have assisted Corll in the strangulation of others. [99], On January 20, 1973, Corll moved to an address on Wirt Road in the Spring Branch district of Houston. Henley was born May 9, 1956, in Houston where he was the eldest of four boys. [166][167], Accompanied by his father, Brooks presented himself at HPD headquarters on the evening of August 8 and gave a statement in which he denied any participation in the murders,[168] but admitted to having known that Corll had raped and killed two youths in 1970. I just killed a man! Dean Arnold Corll (December 24, 1939 August 8, 1973) was an American serial killer and sex offender who abducted, raped, tortured, and murdered a minimum of 28 teenage boys and young men between 1970 and 1973 in Houston and Pasadena, Texas. Corll ignored him and Henley then grabbed Corll's pistol, shouting, "You've gone far enough, Dean! The youth had rebuffed the trucker's offer to help free the car, stating he had two friends with him who would free the vehicle. Some victims had been shot, others strangled,[160] the ligatures still wrapped tightly around their necks. [101][n 5]. The image depicts a blond-haired teenage youth in handcuffs, strapped to a device upon Corll's floor, alongside a toolbox known to contain various instruments Corll used to torture his victims. I can't have you kill all my friends! The bodies were discovered in three different locations in Texas. As with the two bodies found the previous day, both victims had been tortured and severely beaten, particularly around the head. [230][231] Brooks is buried at Captain Joe Byrd Cemetery in Walker County. [78][n 3], Brooks later stated Henley was "especially sadistic" in his participation in the murders committed at Schuler Street and Henley later admitted to gradually becoming "fascinated" with "how much stamina people have" when the recipient of the act of murder. [30] Twenty-seven of Corll's known victims have been identified, and the identity of a 28th victim whose body has never been found, Mark Scott, is conclusively known. [16], Corll graduated from Vidor High School in the summer of 1958. ", In one section of his subsequent testimony at Henley's 1974 trial, Detective Sergeant David Mullican would state to the court: "Other means of torture were pulling their pubic hairs out one by one, shoving glass rods up the penis and shoving a large, bullet-like instrument in the victim's rectum.". Two of the unidentified victims were found buried in the boat shed and were estimated to have been killed in 1971 or 1972. Henley said the first abduction he participated in occurred during the time Corll resided at 925 Schuler Street, an address he moved to on February 19, 1972. [88] The youth was savagely bludgeoned about the chest with a blunt instrument before he was strangled and buried in the boat shed. [117][n 6] Brooks was not present at the time. Kerley had been stripped naked. On November 4, 2011, the victim mistakenly identified as Baulch (case file ML73-3333) was identified through DNA analysis as Roy Eugene Bunton, a Heights teenager who was last seen by his family heading for work at a Houston shoe store on or about August 21, 1972. [124] His mouth had been taped shut and his ankles had been bound together. [222] Henley's attorneys again attempted to have Henley's written statements ruled inadmissible. [288] In addition, his T-shirt bore a handwritten inscription believed to read either "LB4MF", "LBHMF",[286] or "L84MF". Brooks initially became one of Corll's many youthful close companions, regularly socializing with Corll and various teenage boys who congregated at the rear of the candy factory. [30] However, Corll refused, informing Henley that he had raped, tortured, and killed the previous victim he had assisted in abducting, and that he intended to do the same with Aguirre. FactualTV has screened a documentary focusing upon the murders committed by Corll and his accomplices. [275][300] The earliest of Corll's victims known by Brooks were two teenage boys killed at 3300 Yorktown, where Corll lived after moving out of his Judiway Street apartment. The statements given by Kerley and Williams corroborated Henley's account, and the detective questioning Henley believed he had indeed acted in self-defense. [213] Upon advice from his defense counsel, Henley did not take the stand to testify. This route often involved West traveling to Houston, where much of the product was sold. Delome then pleaded with Henley, "Wayne, please don't!" Altogether, at least ten teenagers between the ages of 13 and 19 were murdered between February and November 1972, five of whom were buried at High Island Beach, and five inside the boat shed. Webdr heavenly sister passed away; jacqueline dalya cause of death; sunningdale golf club membership cost; ultra wideband in phones; gainesville sun obituaries and funeral notices He also joined Corll on the regular trips he took to South Texas beaches in the company of various youths, and later commented that Corll was the first adult male who did not mock his appearance. He was aided by two teenaged accomplices, David Owen Brooks and Elmer Wayne Henley. Also known as the Houston Mass Murders, at least 28 boys and young men were raped, tortured, and killed by Corll up until Brooks was implicated with Elmer Wayne Henley and Dean Corll in the murders of at least 28 young men. "[132][n 7], Henley then asked Corll whether he might take Williams into another room. He later moved into an apartment of his own above the shop. His alcoholic father regularly abused him, In addition, Brooks only knew the location of Konen's body at High Island Beach because Corll had shown it to him. [304], In March 1973, a Mr. and Mrs. Abernathy[305] had reported to Galveston County authorities that they had observed three men carrying and burying a "long, wrapped bundle"[306] at Galveston Beach. On September 13, 2010, DNA analysis was able to confirm that the unidentified victim known as ML73-3378 was actually Michael Anthony Baulch, who had incorrectly been identified as case file ML73-3333: the second victim unearthed from the boat shed. [128] Henley calmed Corll, promising to participate in the torture and murder of both Williams and Kerley if Corll released him. Web"Mama, I killed Dean," confesses Elmer Wayne Henley Jr. "Dean" refers to serial killer Dean Corll, who murdered at least 28 teenage boys and young men in Houston between After approximately two hours, Henley, Kerley, and Williams each passed out. He is the last one. [5] Kerley and Williams lay beside Henley, securely bound with nylon rope, gagged with adhesive tape, and lying face down on the floor. [72][73], Henley later stated that, for several months, he ignored Corll's offer, although he did maintain an acquaintance with Corll and gradually began to view him as something of a "brother-type person" whose work ethic he admired and in whom he could confide. The oldest of the couples four sons, Henleys childhood home was an unhappy one. Henley Sr. was a violent and abusive alcoholic who took his rage out on his family. Henleys mother tried to do right by her children, and when Henley Jr. was 14, she left her husband and took the kids with her, hoping for a fresh start. In August of 1973, Henley shot and killed Dean. September 17, 1953-November 15, 1972", "Relative of Long-lost Murder Vvictim: 'We Pretty Much Lost Hope', "Pruitt Medical Laboratories: Autopsy Report 73-7778-A", "Baton Rouge Man Among Victims in Houston Case", "Henley Gives Statement on Manner of Killings", "Remains Draw More Questions on '70s Corll Killings", "A Body Ruled Out as Victim of Ring; Henley Trial Told Search" Found Unrelated Corpse Trial was Shifted", "More Bodies Unearthed: Mass Murder Victims", "Pathological Diagnosis on the Body of John Manning Sellars", "Joseph A. Jachimczyk Forensic Center: Unidentified Decedent Notice", "Amended Autopsy Report on the Body of Joseph Allen Lyles", "Texas Crime News Interview with Elmer Wayne Henley, Jr", "Efforts Continue to Identify Last Known Victim of Houston Mass Murders", "Houston Authorities Working to ID Candy Man's Last Unknown Victim", "The Last Lost Boy: Can You ID the Final Known Victim of the 1970s Heights Mass Murders? [123], Henley awoke to find himself lying on his stomach and Corll snapping handcuffs onto his wrists. [9], Following the second divorce, Corll's mother married a traveling clock salesman named Jake West. Inside Corll's house, Aguirre smoked marijuana with the trio before picking up a pair of handcuffs Corll had left on his table. In most of these abductions, he was assisted by one or both of his teenage accomplices: David Owen Brooks and Elmer Wayne Henley. [19][24] The army granted his request and he was given an honorable discharge on June 11, 1965, after ten months of service. [214][215], On July 15, 1974, both counsels presented their closing arguments to the jury:[216] the prosecution seeking life imprisonment; the defense a verdict of not guilty. [98] On November 15, a 19-year-old Heights youth named Richard Kepner disappeared on his way to a phone booth. before he was strangled. Henley protested in vain against Corll's actions, whereupon Corll reiterated that he was angry with Henley for bringing a girl to his house and that he was going to kill all three teenagers after he had assaulted and tortured Kerley, initially saying, "Man, you blew it bringing that girl,"[126] before shouting: "I'm gonna kill you all! The thirteenth and fourteenth bodies unearthed bore identification cards naming the victims as Donald and Jerry Waldrop. [223] He had been indicted for four murders committed between December 1970 and June 1973,[224] but was brought to trial charged only with the June 1973 murder of 15-year-old William Ray Lawrence. Shortly thereafter, he and his family moved to the northern outskirts of Houston so that the family candy business could be closer to the city where the majority of their product was sold. [186] On August 13, both Henley and Brooks again accompanied the police to High Island Beach, where four more bodies were found, making a total of 27 known victims the worst killing spree in American history at the time. After he had shot Corll, Henley released Kerley and Williams from the torture board, and all three teenagers dressed and discussed what actions they should take. The youth pinned the reward posters around the Heights and attempted to reassure Hilligiest's parents that there might be an innocent explanation for the boys' absence. Elmer Wayne Henley initially ignored Corlls offer, only changing his mind in early 1972 because he needed the money but Henleys later actions suggest that the money was only part of it. Once Henley agreed to help, he and Corll got into Corlls Plymouth GTX and began driving around looking for a boy. As Henley's claim that the victim known as ML73-3355 was not Scott has been proven to be correct, a strong suspicion remains that Scott's body remains buried on High Island. [228] Successive parole applications dating from July 1980 have been denied. [145], When questioned regarding his claim that as Corll had threatened him that morning he had shouted that he had killed several boys,[146] Henley explained that for almost three years, Brooks and he had helped procure teenage boys, some of whom had been their own friends, for Corll, who had raped and murdered them. [n 2], During the years in which he abducted and murdered his victims, Corll often changed addresses. Beginning in 1969,[32] Corll paid Brooks in cash or with gifts to allow him to perform fellatio on the youth. Kerley began writhing and shouting as Williams, whose gag Henley had removed, lifted her head and asked Henley, "Is this for real?" Elmer Wayne Henley is a convicted serial killer involved in a series of murders in Houston. In the rear of the vehicle, police found a coil of rope, a swatch of beige rug covered in soil stains,[154] and a wooden crate with air holes drilled in the sides. Inside this crate were several strands of human hair. The 1973 misidentification of Michael Baulch was discovered as a result of an independent investigation conducted by freelance writers Barbara Gibson and Debera Phinney, who contacted Dr. Derrick with a tip indicating that the second victim unearthed from the boat shed had been misidentified; upon conducting additional DNA testing, Dr. Derrick discovered their suspicions were correct. It's known that he inspired John Wayne Gacy. [226] Assistant District Attorney Tommy Dunn dismissed the defense's contention outright, at one point telling the jury: "This defendant was in on this killing, this murderous rampage, from the very beginning. Baulch had disappeared en route to a barbershop on July 19, 1973a year after his brother, Billy, had been murdered by Corll. Brooks later stated he had assisted Corll in the abduction and murder of two youths during the time Corll resided at this address, including one youth who was killed "just before Wayne Henley came into the picture." [22]:3647, Corll was drafted into the United States Army on August 10, 1964,[5] and assigned to Fort Polk, Louisiana, for basic training. [198] The other youth, Willard Branch,[199] lived in the Oak Forest district of Houston. [158], Two prison trusties[22]:3649 began digging through the soft, crushed-shell earth of the boat shed and soon uncovered the body of a blond-haired teenaged boy, lying on his side, encased in clear plastic and buried beneath a layer of lime. Between 1970 and 1973, Dean Corll, aided by David Owen Brooks and Elmer Wayne Henley Jr., killed 26 young men in the [87], After vacating the Schuler Street residence, Corll moved to an apartment at Westcott Towers, where, in the summer of 1972, he is known to have killed a further two victims. Corll is known to have suffered from a hydrocele[103] in early 1973, which may have contributed to this period of inactivity. One of the youths who voluntarily offered to distribute posters the parents had printed offering a monetary reward for information leading to the boys' whereabouts was 15-year-old Elmer Wayne Henleya lifelong friend of Hilligiest. Of the sixteen individuals depicted within the films and photos, eleven of the individuals appeared to be among Corll's known victims who had been identified by this date;[309] other individuals in the cache were underage at the time the images and films had been taken, but had reached the legal age of consent by the time of the discoveries and their questioning by authorities, indicating the material had been accrued over many years. [116], On the evening of August 7, 1973, Henley, aged 17, invited a 19-year-old named Timothy Cordell Kerley to attend a party at Corll's Pasadena residence. At Corll's residenceusing a ruse he and Corll had preparedHenley cuffed his own hands behind his back, freed himself with a key hidden in his back pocket, then duped the youth into donning the handcuffs before observing Corll bind and gag him. "[5] Henley then fired at Corll, hitting him in the forehead. 2020 Lamar Drive was demolished in February 2023. In 2013, Williams recounted Henley's actions on the morning of August 8, stating: "He (Henley) was afraid that he wasn't going to be able to save me. Simoneaux and Hembree were enticed into Brooks's Corvette and driven to Corll's Westcott Towers apartment. [86], During the time Corll resided at Schuler Street, the trio lured a 19-year-old named William Ridinger to the house. But first I'm gonna have my fun! [66] Haney agreed and was taken to Corll's home where he was subsequently strangled and buried in the boat shed. [64], As had been the case with parents of other victims of Corll, both sets of parents launched a frantic search for their sons. Both Kerley and Williams had awakened by this point. Brooks later claimed he persuaded Corll to allow Ridinger to be released, and the youth was allowed to leave the residence. [18][19] During this time, Corll formed a close relationship with a local girl, although he rejected a subsequent marriage proposal she made to him in 1962. He died of COVID-19-related complications at a Galveston hospital on May 28, 2020, at the age of 65. [n 1] From the earliest days of the business, Corll worked day and night while still attending school. [225] Brooks also appealed his sentence, contending that the signed confessions used against him were taken without his being informed of his legal rights, but his appeal was dismissed in May 1979. [16], By the time Brooks dropped out of high school, Corll's mother and his half-sister, Joyce, had moved to Colorado after the failure of her third marriage and the closure of Corll Candy Company in June 1968. [72] Henley subsequently assisted Corll and Brooks in Aguirre's burial at High Island Beach. [122] Corll was furious that Henley had brought a girl to his house, telling him in private that he had "ruined everything". That's what he was telling you about his presence. "[30] Corll approached Henley, saying, "Kill me, Wayne! [30], In 1967, Corll befriended 12-year-old David Owen Brooks,[16] then a bespectacled sixth grade student and one of the many children to whom he gave free candy. The two bodies that Henley had insisted were still buried on the beach may have been those of Scott and Lyles. According to official military records, Corll's period of service in the army was unblemished. After they had spent several hours beating each other, Jones was tied to a board and forced to watch Cobble again be assaulted, tortured, and shot to death before he himself was again raped, tortured, and strangled with a Venetian blind cord. After listening to over six hours of testimony from various people, on August 14, the jury initially indicted Henley on three counts of murder and Brooks on one count. Several victims' parents had to leave the courtroom to regain their composure as police and medical examiners described how their relatives were tortured and murdered. ", Henley would later state to investigators that one of Corll's motivations for retaining the keys of his victims had been to subsequently. His brutal killings - known as the Houston Mass Murders - were only uncovered when he was shot dead by his accomplice Elmer Wayne Henley in 1973. [63] The other two victims, 13-year-old David Hilligiest and 16-year-old Gregory Malley Winkle, were abducted and killed together on the afternoon of May 29, 1971. [43] They were then stripped naked and tied to either Corll's bed or, usually, a plywood torture board which was regularly hung on a wall. [295][n 14]. That day and the next, investigators found the remains of 16 boys and young men at the boat shed in the 4500 block of Silver Bell Street. The body was buried at High Island Beach. Houston Police officer Karl Siebeneicher describing Henley's actions upon leading police to Corll's boat shed on August 8. [113], On August 3, 1973, Corll killed his last victim, a 13-year-old boy from South Houston named James Stanton Dreymala. In light of developments relating to the identifications of victims, the body of Scott still lies undiscovered at High Island, while Lyles's remains were only found by chance in 1983. [204], Brooks was brought to trial on February 27, 1975. [218] The following day, July 16,[55]:34 formal procedures to sentence Henley for the six guilty verdicts began, and on August 8, Judge Preston Dial ordered that Henley serve each 99-year sentence consecutively (totaling 594 years), and he was transferred to the Huntsville Unit to formally begin his sentence. The pegboard walls inside the rear of the van were rigged with several rings and hooks. [84] Before Corll vacated the address on June 26, Henley assisted Corll and Brooks in the abduction and murder of two youths named Billy Baulch and Johnny Delome. His mother and sisters testified to this in court, and Gacy [31] Whenever Brooks told Corll he needed cash, Corll gave him money, and the youth began to view Corll as a father figure. Corll lived in Indiana for almost two years but returned to Houston in 1962 to help with his family's candy business, which by this date had moved to Houston Heights.

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