Editing John Wayne Gacy (section)

==Murders==
Gacy murdered at least thirty-three young men and boys, twenty-six of whom he buried in the crawl space of his house.<ref>{{Cite news |date=October 26, 2021 |title=Timeline of Serial Killer John Wayne Gacy's Life, Case |url=https://apnews.com/article/chicago-2a5842ef8ee46f8d43799bc50f390ad8 |access-date=April 23, 2025 |work=[[Associated Press]]|language=en}}</ref> His victims included people he knew and random individuals lured from Chicago's Greyhound Bus station, [[Washington Square Park (Chicago)|Bughouse Square]], or off the streets with the promise of a job with PDM, an offer of drink and/or drugs, or money for sex. Some victims were grabbed by force; others were conned into believing Gacy (who often carried a sheriff's badge and had red spotlights on his black [[Oldsmobile 98|Oldsmobile]]) was a policeman.{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=166–179}} Gacy usually lured a lone victim to his house, although on more than one occasion Gacy had what he called "doubles"—two killed in the same evening.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|p=350}}{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=239–243}}

Inside Gacy's home, his usual [[modus operandi]] was to ply a youth with drink, drugs, or generally gain his trust. He would then produce a pair of handcuffs to "show a magic trick", sometimes as part of a clowning routine. He typically cuffed his own hands behind his back, then surreptitiously released himself with a hidden key. He then offered to show his intended victim the trick.{{sfn|Amirante|2011|p=18}} With his victim restrained, Gacy proceeded with rape and torture. He frequently began by sitting on or straddling his victim's chest before forcing the victim to fellate him.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=283-284}} Gacy then inflicted acts of torture including burning with cigars, making his captive imitate a horse as he sat on their back and pulled on makeshift reins around their necks, and violation with foreign objects such as dildos and prescription bottles after he had sodomized his captive.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=307–310}} Gacy frequently manacled his captives' ankles to a [[Dimensional lumber#Dimensional lumber|two-by-four]] with handcuffs attached at each end, an act inspired by the [[Dean Corll|Houston Mass Murders]].{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=193–197}}{{efn|Dean Corll, with two teenage accomplices, had used a board fitted with handcuffs at each corner to restrain teenage male victims during sexual abuse and torture.{{sfn|Olsen|2008|p=146}}{{sfn|Berry-Dee|2008|p=202}}}} He also taunted many victims throughout their abuse,{{sfn|Cahill|1986|p=289}} and was known to have partly drowned several in the bathtub before repeatedly reviving them.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=290–294}}{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=331–334}}

Gacy typically murdered his victims by placing a rope tourniquet around their neck and progressively tightening it with a hammer handle.{{sfn|Amirante|2011|p=21}} He referred to this as the "[[Indian rope trick|rope trick]]", frequently informing his victim, "This is the last trick."{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=290–294}} Occasionally, the victim convulsed for an "hour or two" before dying, although several victims died by asphyxiation from cloth gags stuffed deep in their throats.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=274–276}} Except for his two final victims, all were murdered between 3:00 and 6:00&nbsp;a.m.{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=166–179}} Gacy usually stored the victims' corpses under his bed for up to twenty-four hours before burying them in the crawl space, where he periodically poured [[Calcium oxide|quicklime]] to hasten decomposition.{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=166–179}}{{efn|Some investigators believe that Gacy engaged in acts of necrophilia with his victims.{{sfn|Berry-Dee|2008|p=246}}}} Some were taken to his garage and embalmed prior to burial.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=342–351}}

===Murder of Timothy McCoy===
{{main|Murder of Timothy McCoy}}
[[File:Timothy McCoyJohnGacy1972.jpg|upright|right|thumb|Timothy McCoy]]
Gacy's first known murder occurred on January 3, 1972. According to Gacy's later account, following a family party the previous evening, he drove to the [[Richard J. Daley Center|Civic Center]] in the [[Chicago Loop|Loop]] in the early morning to view a display of ice sculptures.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|p=107}} He then lured 16-year-old Timothy Jack McCoy from Chicago's Greyhound Bus Terminal into his car. McCoy was on his way to his father's home in [[Omaha, Nebraska]], and informed Gacy his bus was not due until noon.{{sfn|Nelson|2021|pp=6-7}}<ref>{{cite news|last=Gallagher|first=Michael|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/112829757/area-visitor-was-1st-gacy-victim/|date=May 13, 1986|title=Identified: Area Visitor was First Gacy Victim|newspaper=[[Lansing State Journal]]|page=1|access-date=February 25, 2023}}</ref> Gacy took McCoy on a sightseeing tour of Chicago and then drove him to his home with the promise that he could spend the remainder of the night and be driven back to the station in time to catch his bus.<ref>{{cite news|last=Herrmann|first=Andrew|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=CSTB&p_theme=cstb&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EB36D062F6AA91B&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D|date=May 20, 1986|title=Gacy Victim's Remains Going Home to Iowa|newspaper=[[Chicago Sun-Times]]|page=36|access-date=August 15, 2010|archive-date=October 21, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181021232452/http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=CSTB&p_theme=cstb&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EB36D062F6AA91B&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D|url-status=live}} {{closed access}}</ref>{{efn|Gacy's fiancée and stepdaughters were visiting relatives in [[Kennicott Grove]] at the time of this first murder.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|p=104}} }} Prior to McCoy's identification, he was known as the "Greyhound Bus Boy".{{sfn|Berry-Dee|2009|p=193}}

Gacy claimed he woke early the following morning to find McCoy standing in his bedroom doorway holding a kitchen knife.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=342–351}} He jumped from his bed and McCoy raised both arms in a gesture of surrender, accidentally cutting Gacy's forearm.{{efn|Gacy had a scar on his arm to support this account.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=110–111}}}} Gacy disarmed McCoy, banged his head against the bedroom wall, and kicked him against his wardrobe.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|p=348}} McCoy kicked Gacy in the stomach, doubling him over. Gacy then grabbed McCoy,{{sfn|Cahill|1986|p=348}} wrestled him to the floor and stabbed him repeatedly in the chest.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=101–102}}

As McCoy lay dying, Gacy claimed he washed the knife in his bathroom, then went to his kitchen and saw the makings of breakfast on the table. McCoy had set the table for two; he had walked into Gacy's room to wake him while absentmindedly carrying the knife.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=342–351}} Gacy buried McCoy in his crawl space and later covered his grave with a layer of concrete.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=101–102}} In an interview several years after his arrest, Gacy said that immediately after killing McCoy, he felt "totally drained", yet noted that as he stabbed McCoy and listened to the "gurgulations" and gasping, he had experienced a mind-numbing orgasm. He added: "That's when I realized that death was the ultimate thrill."{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=342–351}}

===Second murder===
Gacy said he committed murder for the second time around January 1974.{{sfn|Taylor|2009|p=130}}{{efn|Some transcripts of the numerous confessions and statements Gacy gave to investigators immediately following his arrest state his second murder occurred in December 1974, although one of these statements—given in the presence of his attorneys in the early hours of December 22, 1978—indicates he may have confused the date of his first murder with a subsequent murder. The records of this confession state "Gacy stabbed the first victim. He thought it was December of 1974."{{sfn|Amirante|2011|pp=165;169}}}} This victim remains unidentified; he was [[strangled]] and placed in Gacy's closet before burial.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://doenetwork.org/cases/954umil.html|title=Case File 954UMIL|publisher=[[The Doe Network]]|access-date=July 18, 2010|archive-date=July 25, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110725124108/http://doenetwork.org/cases/954umil.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="auto1">{{cite web|url=https://www.namus.gov/UnidentifiedPersons/Case#/11006|title=NamUs – Case Report # 11006|publisher=[[National Missing and Unidentified Persons System]]|access-date=May 29, 2018|archive-date=June 9, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190609225342/https://www.namus.gov/UnidentifiedPersons/Case#/11006|url-status=live}}</ref> Gacy later stated that bodily fluids leaked from the victim's mouth and nose, staining his carpet. Gacy regularly stuffed rags, the victim's own underwear, or a sock into the mouths of subsequent victims to prevent such a leakage.{{sfn|Ressler|1992|pp=336–343}}

===Murder of John Butkovich===
{{main|Murder of John Butkovich}}
[[File:John Butkovich Chicago Tribune 13 March 1980 edition.jpg|upright|right|thumb|John Butkovich]]
On July 31, 1975, John Butkovich, an 18-year-old PDM employee, disappeared.<ref name=search>{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=PEEsAAAAIBAJ&pg=2963,232748|title=Search at Gacy Home to Resume|newspaper=[[Spartanburg Herald-Journal]]|date=January 1, 1979|access-date=April 11, 2019|via=Google News|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200928132210/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=PEEsAAAAIBAJ&pg=2963%2C232748|archive-date=September 28, 2020}} {{Open access}}</ref> Butkovich's car was later found abandoned with his jacket and wallet inside and the keys in the ignition.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=126–133}}

The day before his disappearance, Butkovich had confronted Gacy over outstanding back pay. Butkovich's father called Gacy, who claimed he was happy to help search for his son but was sorry Butkovich had "run away". When questioned by police, Gacy said Butkovich and two friends had arrived at his house demanding the overdue pay, but they had reached a compromise and all three had left. Over the following three years, Butkovich's parents called police more than 100 times, urging them to investigate Gacy further.{{sfn|Linedecker|1980|pp=83–87}}{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=132-133}}

Gacy later admitted to encountering Butkovich exiting his car, waving to attract his attention. According to Gacy, Butkovich approached him, stating, "I wanna talk to you." Gacy invited Butkovich into his car, then invited him back to his home, ostensibly to settle the issue of his overdue wages.{{efn|Gacy's wife and stepdaughters were visiting his younger sister in [[Arkansas]] at the time.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|p=126}}}} At his home, Gacy offered Butkovich a drink, then conned him into allowing his wrists to be cuffed behind his back. Gacy later confessed to having "sat on the kid's chest for a while" before he strangled him. He stowed Butkovich's body in his garage, intending to bury the body later in the crawl space. When his wife and stepdaughters returned home earlier than expected, Gacy buried Butkovich under the concrete floor of the tool room extension of his garage in an empty space where he had intended to dig a drain tile.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=126–133}}

===Cruising years===
In addition to being the year his business expanded, Gacy freely admitted that 1975 was also when he began to increase the frequency of his excursions for sex with young males.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=112–123}} He often referred to these jaunts as "cruising".{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=150–158}} Gacy committed most of his murders between 1976 and 1978, as he largely lived alone following his divorce.

Although Gacy remained gregarious and civic-minded, several neighbors noticed behavioral changes after his 1976 divorce, including seeing him keeping company with young males, hearing his car arrive or depart in the early morning, or seeing lights in his home switch on and off in the early hours.{{sfn|Cavendish|1997|p=28}} One neighbor later recollected that, for several years, muffled high-pitched screaming, shouting, and crying had repeatedly awakened her and her son in the early morning. She identified the sounds as emanating from a house adjacent to theirs on West Summerdale Avenue.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=274–276}}

====1976====
One month after his divorce was finalized, Gacy abducted and murdered 18-year-old Darrell Samson. He was last seen alive in Chicago on April 6, 1976.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=150–158}} Gacy buried him under the dining room, with cloth lodged in his throat.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.oxygen.com/crime-time/known-unknown-murder-victims-john-wayne-gacy-killer-clown|title=The 33 Known And Unknown Murder Victims Of 'Killer Clown' John Wayne Gacy|website=oxygen.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200928074256/https://www.oxygen.com/crime-time/known-unknown-murder-victims-john-wayne-gacy-killer-clown|archive-date=September 28, 2020|year=2020}}</ref> On May 14, 15-year-old Randall Reffett disappeared shortly after returning home from a dental appointment.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/22593975/herald-and-review/|title=Sex-Murder Victim, 15, Identified|work=[[Herald & Review]]|agency=[[Associated Press]]|date=April 13, 1979|access-date=April 24, 2022|archive-date=November 26, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211126190946/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/22593975/herald-and-review/|url-status=live}}</ref> Hours after Reffett was last seen by his family, 14-year-old Samuel Stapleton vanished as he walked home from his sister's apartment.{{sfn|Cavendish|1997|p=28}}{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=207–223}} He and Reffett were close acquaintances;{{sfn|Nelson|2021|p=95}} they were buried together in the crawl space, and investigators believe the two were murdered the same evening.{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=301–305}}
[[File:Michael Bonnin John Wayne Gacy June 3, 1976. Chicago Tribune 13 March 1980.jpg|upright|right|thumb|Michael Bonnin]]
On June 3, Gacy killed 17-year-old Michael Bonnin, who disappeared while traveling from Chicago to [[Waukegan, Illinois|Waukegan]]. Gacy strangled Bonnin with a [[Ligature strangulation|ligature]] and buried him under the spare bedroom.{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=301–305}}{{sfn|Amirante|2011|pp=320–326}}{{sfn|Linedecker|1986|p=123}} Ten days later, Gacy murdered 16-year-old William Carroll and buried him in a common grave in the crawl space. Carroll seems to have been the first of four victims known to have been murdered between June 13 and August 6, 1976.{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=207–223}} Three were between 16 and 17 years old, and one unidentified victim appears to have been an adult.

On August 5, 16-year-old James Haakenson is last known to have phoned his family, possibly from Gacy's home.<ref>{{cite news|date=July 19, 2017|title=Timeline of John Wayne Gacy Case|newspaper=[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]]|url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/timeline-john-wayne-gacys-case-48729716|url-status=dead|access-date=July 19, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170720011748/https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/timeline-john-wayne-gacys-case-48729716|archive-date=July 20, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.twincities.com/2017/07/19/teen-missing-from-st-paul-for-40-years-idd-as-victim-of-serial-killer-john-wayne-gacy/|title='My Brother Somehow Ran Into Him': A St. Paul Family Confronts the Horror of John Wayne Gacy|work=[[St. Paul Pioneer Press]]|date=July 19, 2017|author1=Mara Gottfried|access-date=November 30, 2020|archive-date=December 12, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201212174958/https://www.twincities.com/2017/07/19/teen-missing-from-st-paul-for-40-years-idd-as-victim-of-serial-killer-john-wayne-gacy/|url-status=live}}</ref> Haakenson died of suffocation. His body was buried in the crawl space beneath 17-year-old Rick Johnston, who was last seen alive on August 6.<ref>{{cite news|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200102112054/https://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2017/07/19/john-wayne-gacy-victim/|archive-date=January 2, 2020|url=https://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2017/07/19/john-wayne-gacy-victim/|title=Minnesota Teen ID'd as John Wayne Gacy Victim|publisher=CBS Local|date=July 19, 2017|access-date=July 19, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/sheriff-update-investigation-unnamed-gacy-victims-48724804|title=16-year-old from Minnesota ID'd as Victim of John Wayne Gacy|publisher=[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]]|date=July 19, 2017|author1=Don Babwin|author2=Jeff Baenen|access-date=July 19, 2017|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170720051638/https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/sheriff-update-investigation-unnamed-gacy-victims-48724804|archive-date=July 20, 2017}}</ref>{{efn|Because Haakenson and Johnston disappeared just twenty-four hours apart and their bones were commingled, they may have been murdered on the same day or even at the same time.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/19/us/john-wayne-gacy-victim-identified.html|title=John Wayne Gacy Victim is Identified After Four Decades|access-date=August 8, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180106235717/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/19/us/john-wayne-gacy-victim-identified.html|archive-date=January 6, 2018|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=July 19, 2017}} {{Open access}}</ref>}}

Gacy is thought to have murdered two unidentified males between August and October 1976. On October 24, Gacy abducted and killed teenage friends Kenneth Parker and Michael Marino: the two were last seen on [[Clark Street (Chicago)|Clark Street]] in Chicago.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=UO9eAAAAIBAJ&pg=5070,3504589|title=Two Apparent Gacy Victims Identified|work=St. Joseph Gazette|date=March 31, 1980|access-date=March 14, 2013|via=Google News|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200928073948/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=UO9eAAAAIBAJ&pg=5070%2C3504589|archive-date=September 28, 2020}} {{Open access}}</ref>{{sfn|Linedecker|1980|p=248}} Two days later, 19-year-old construction worker William Bundy disappeared after informing his family he was to attend a party.<ref>{{cite press release|url=http://www.cookcountysheriff.org/press_page/press_GacyVictimIdentified_11_29_2011.html|title=Cook County Sheriff Press – Unknown Victim of John Wayne Gacy is Identified|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150223030827/http://www.cookcountysheriff.org/press_page/press_GacyVictimIdentified_11_29_2011.html|archive-date=February 23, 2015}}</ref> Bundy died of suffocation. Gacy buried the body beneath his master bedroom.{{sfn|Foreman|1992|pp=80–83}} Bundy had apparently worked for Gacy.<ref name=bundy>{{cite news|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/breaking/chi-sheriff-gacy-victim-identified-through-dna-20111129-story.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200303222248/https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/breaking/chi-sheriff-gacy-victim-identified-through-dna-20111129-story.html|archive-date=March 3, 2020|title=Sheriff: Gacy Victim Identified Through DNA|newspaper=[[Chicago Tribune]]|date=November 29, 2011|author1=Jason Meisner|author2=Cynthia Dizikes}} {{Open access}}</ref>

Between November and December 1976, Gacy murdered 21-year-old Francis Alexander. His last contact with his family was a phone call to his mother sometime in November.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/breaking/ct-john-wayne-gacy-victim-family-20211026-pvn6irugmvby7moktzqzyd3nyy-story.html|title=Family of Recently Identified Gacy Victim Remembers Him as a Fearless Young Man who Called Home Every Month|first=William|last=Lee|newspaper=[[The Chicago Tribune]]|date=October 26, 2021|access-date=October 26, 2021|archive-date=October 26, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211026233519/https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/breaking/ct-john-wayne-gacy-victim-family-20211026-pvn6irugmvby7moktzqzyd3nyy-story.html|url-status=live}}</ref> He was not reported missing as his family believed he had moved to [[California]] shortly thereafter.<ref>{{cite news|title=Family of Recently Identified Gacy Victim Remembers Him as a Fearless Young Man who Called Home Every Month|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/breaking/ct-john-wayne-gacy-victim-family-20211026-pvn6irugmvby7moktzqzyd3nyy-story.html|access-date=November 8, 2021|work=The Chicago Tribune|date=October 26, 2021|archive-date=October 29, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211029144031/https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/breaking/ct-john-wayne-gacy-victim-family-20211026-pvn6irugmvby7moktzqzyd3nyy-story.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Alexander was buried beneath the room Gacy used as his office.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/dna-brings-pain-closure-family-john-wayne-gacy-80800696|title=DNA Brings Pain, Closure to Family of John Wayne Gacy Victim|first=Kathleen|last=Foody|publisher=[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]]|date=October 26, 2021|access-date=October 26, 2021|archive-date=October 26, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211026233519/https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/dna-brings-pain-closure-family-john-wayne-gacy-80800696|url-status=live}}</ref>

In December 1976, 17-year-old Gregory Godzik disappeared. His girlfriend last saw him outside her house.{{sfn|Amirante|2011|p=104}}{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=53–55}} Godzik had worked for PDM for less than three weeks when he disappeared. He had informed his family that Gacy had had him "dig trenches for some kind of (drain) tiles" in his crawl space. Godzik's car was later found abandoned. His parents and older sister contacted Gacy about Godzik's disappearance. Gacy claimed that Godzik had expressed a wish to run away from home; he also claimed to have received an answering machine message from Godzik shortly after he had disappeared. When asked if he could play the message for Godzik's parents, Gacy said he had erased it.{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=184–188}}{{sfn|Linedecker|1980|p=93}}

====1977====
On January 20, 1977, Gacy lured 19-year-old John Szyc to his house on the pretext of buying his [[Plymouth Satellite#Third Generation (1971-1974)|Plymouth Satellite]].{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=53–55}} He later confessed to strangling Szyc in his spare bedroom, claiming Rossi was asleep in the house the following morning. Gacy later sold the car to Rossi for $300.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=177–184}}

Two months later, on March 15, 20-year-old Jon Prestidge disappeared. Prestidge was last seen leaving a [[Near North Side, Chicago|Near North Side]] restaurant. He was buried in the crawl space above the body of Francis Alexander.{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=303}} Shortly before his disappearance, Prestidge had mentioned he had obtained work with a local contractor.<ref name=timeline/> Gacy murdered one additional unidentified youth and buried him in the crawl space in the spring or early summer of 1977. On July 5, Gacy killed 19-year-old Matthew Bowman. Bowman's mother last saw him at a suburban train station; he had intended to travel to [[Harwood Heights, Illinois|Harwood Heights]] for a court appointment.{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=301–305}}{{sfn|Nelson|2021|p=222}}

The following month, Rossi was arrested for stealing gasoline while driving Szyc's car. The gas station attendant noted the license plate and police traced the car to Gacy's house. When questioned, Gacy told officers that Szyc had sold the car to him in February, saying he needed money to leave town. A check of the [[Vehicle Identification Number|VIN]] confirmed the car had belonged to Szyc.{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=58–60}} The police did not pursue the matter further, although they did inform Szyc's mother that her son had sold his car.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=177–184}}

By the end of 1977, Gacy had murdered six more young men between the ages of 16 and 21. The first of these was 18-year-old Robert Gilroy, the son of a Chicago police sergeant, last seen alive on September 15.{{sfn|Linedecker|1980|pp=140–153}}{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=301–305}} Gilroy lived four blocks from Gacy's house. He was buried in the crawl space. On September 12, Gacy had flown to [[Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania]], to supervise a remodeling project, and did not return to Chicago until September 16.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/02/10/10374067-serial-killer-john-wayne-gacy-had-accomplices-lawyers-say|title=Serial Killer John Wayne Gacy Had Accomplices, lawyers Say|publisher=[[NBC News]]|date=February 10, 2012|access-date=March 14, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150303203137/http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/02/10/10374067-serial-killer-john-wayne-gacy-had-accomplices-lawyers-say|archive-date=March 3, 2015}}</ref> Because Gacy was in another state at the time Gilroy was last seen, this is cited to support Gacy's claim of assistance from one or more accomplices in several homicides. Ten days after Gilroy was last seen, 19-year-old former [[U.S. Marine]] John Mowery disappeared after leaving his mother's house.{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=301–305}} Gacy strangled Mowery and buried his body beneath the master bedroom.{{sfn|Foreman|1992|pp=80–83}}

On October 17, 21-year-old Russell Nelson disappeared; he was last seen outside a Chicago bar. Nelson was looking for contracting work.<ref name=timeline/> Gacy murdered and buried him beneath the guest bedroom. Less than four weeks later, Gacy murdered 16-year-old Robert Winch and buried him in the crawl space. Twenty-year-old Tommy Boling disappeared on November 18 after leaving a Chicago bar.{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=301–305}} On December 9, 19-year-old U.S. Marine David Talsma disappeared after telling his mother he was to attend a rock concert in [[Hammond, Indiana]].{{sfn|Cahill|1986|p=183}}{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=301–305}} Gacy strangled Talsma with a ligature and buried him in the crawl space, close to John Mowery.{{sfn|Foreman|1992|pp=80–83}}

On December 30, Gacy abducted 19-year-old college student Robert Donnelly from a Chicago bus stop at gunpoint.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/chicago-tribune-robert-donnelly-case/48080986/|last=Gorman|first=John|title=Gacy Seized a Year Ago but Freed, Records Show|newspaper=[[Chicago Tribune]]|date=January 7, 1979|access-date=December 16, 2023}}</ref> Gacy drove him to his home, where he raped, tortured, and repeatedly drowned Donnelly to unconsciousness in a bathtub as he made statements such as, "Aren't we playing fun games tonight?"{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=331–334}} Donnelly later testified at trial that he was in such pain that he asked Gacy to kill him. Gacy replied "I'm getting 'round to it."{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=241–250}} After several hours, Gacy drove Donnelly to his workplace and released him, warning him that if he complained to police, they would not believe him.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=331–334}}

====1978====
Donnelly reported the assault, and police questioned Gacy on January 6, 1978. Gacy admitted to having had a "[[BDSM|slave-sex]]" relationship with Donnelly, but insisted everything was consensual, adding that he "didn't pay the kid" the money he had promised him.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|p=200}} The police believed him and filed no charges.{{sfn|Linedecker|1980|pp=140–153}} The following month, Gacy killed 19-year-old William Kindred, who disappeared on February 16 after telling his fiancée, who knew Gacy,<ref>{{cite news|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190703214009/https://www.chicagotribune.com/history/ct-john-wayne-gacy-victims-20181215-htmlstory.html|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/history/ct-john-wayne-gacy-victims-20181215-htmlstory.html|title=Here are John Wayne Gacy's Victims|newspaper=[[Chicago Tribune]]|date=December 17, 2018|archive-date=July 3, 2019|author1=Kori Rumore|author2=Kyle Bentle|access-date=April 26, 2020}} {{Open access}}</ref> that he was going to a bar.{{sfn|Linedecker|1980|pp=140–153}} Kindred was the final victim buried in the crawl space.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=205–233}}{{sfn|Foreman|1992|pp=68–77}}

On March 21, Gacy lured 26-year-old [[Jeffrey Rignall]] into his car.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1891&dat=19800222&id=bqMfAAAAIBAJ&pg=2645,3663452|title=Gacy Defense Witness Tells of Rape, Torture by Accused|work=Gadsden Times|date=February 22, 1980|access-date=May 21, 2021|archive-date=May 21, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210521043258/https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1891&dat=19800222&id=bqMfAAAAIBAJ&pg=2645,3663452|url-status=live}}</ref> Gacy [[chloroform]]ed him and drove him to his house, where his arms and head were restrained in a [[pillory]] device affixed to the ceiling and his feet locked into another device.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|p=207}} He raped and tortured Rignall with instruments including lit candles and whips and repeatedly chloroformed him into unconsciousness. Gacy then dumped Rignall in Chicago's [[Lincoln Park, Chicago|Lincoln Park]], unconscious but alive.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=205–233}}

Rignall managed to stagger to his girlfriend's apartment. Police were informed of the assault but did not investigate Gacy. Rignall was able to recall the Oldsmobile, the [[Kennedy Expressway]] and particular side streets. He and two friends staked out the Cumberland exit of the Expressway and, in April, Rignall saw the Oldsmobile, which he and his friends followed to 8213 West Summerdale.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=205–233}} Gacy was arrested on July 15; he faced trial for assault and battery against Rignall.{{sfn|Linedecker|1980|pp=140–153}}

By mid-1978, the crawl space had no room for further bodies.{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=256–278}}{{sfn|Stone|2019|pp=196–203}}{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=166–179}} Gacy later confessed to police that he considered stowing bodies in his attic, but had been worried about complications arising from "leakage".{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=101–102}} Therefore, he chose to dispose of his victims off the [[Interstate 55|I-55]] bridge into the Des Plaines River.{{sfn|Linedecker|1980|pp=140–153}} Gacy stated he had thrown five bodies into this river in 1978, one of which he believed had landed on a passing barge;{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=166–179}} only four were ever found.<ref name=timeline>{{cite news|last=Rumore|first=Kori|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/history/ct-john-wayne-gacy-timeline-htmlstory.html|title=Timeline: Suburban Serial Killer John Wayne Gacy and the Efforts to Recover, Name His 33 Victims|newspaper=[[Chicago Tribune]]|date=December 17, 2018|access-date=March 13, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200923063553/https://www.chicagotribune.com/history/ct-john-wayne-gacy-timeline-htmlstory.html|archive-date=September 23, 2020}} {{Open access}}</ref>

The first known victim thrown from the bridge was 20-year-old Timothy O'Rourke. He was murdered in mid-June after leaving his apartment to purchase cigarettes. Shortly before his disappearance, O'Rourke had told his roommate a contractor on the [[Community areas in Chicago#North Side|Northwest Side]] had offered him a job.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=205–233}}{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=207–223}} On November 4, Gacy killed 19-year-old Frank Landingin.{{sfn|Nelson|2021|p=177}} He was last seen alive by his father walking along [[Foster Avenue]]; his naked body was found close to an [[inlet]] in the Des Plaines River by two duck hunters on November 12.{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=207–223}} On November 24, 20-year-old James Mazzara disappeared after Thanksgiving dinner with his family.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1994-04-22-9404220159-story.html|title=Gacy Execution Shut to Victims' Families | first = Sharon | last = Kuczka |work=[[Chicago Tribune]]|date=April 22, 1994|access-date=September 6, 2022}}</ref> Mazzara had informed his sister the day before that he was working in construction.{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=207–223}} He was last seen walking in the direction of Bughouse Square.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=205–233}}

====Murder of Robert Piest====
[[File:Robert Jerome Piest (1963-1978) as a high school freshman.png|upright|right|thumb|Robert Piest]]
On the afternoon of December 11, 1978, Gacy visited the Nisson Pharmacy in Des Plaines, to discuss a potential remodeling deal with the store owner, Phil Torf.{{sfn|Amirante|2011|p=99}} While he was within earshot of 15-year-old part-time employee Robert Piest, Gacy mentioned his firm often hired teenage boys at a starting wage of $5 per hour—almost double the pay Piest earned at the pharmacy.{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=4–7}}

Shortly after Gacy left, Piest's mother arrived at the store to drive her son home so the family could celebrate her birthday together.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=205–233}} Piest asked his mother to wait, adding that "some contractor wants to talk to me about a job". He left the store at 9:00&nbsp;p.m., promising to return shortly.{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=6–7}}

Piest was murdered shortly after 10:00&nbsp;p.m. at Gacy's home.{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|pp=4–7}} Gacy later stated that at his house, he gave Piest a soft drink before asking whether there was anything he "wouldn't do for the right price", to which Piest replied that he did not mind working hard. In response, Gacy stated "good money" could be earned by hustling, although Piest was dismissive. Gacy then duped Piest into donning handcuffs.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|p=230}} Gacy's subsequent statements regarding the events varied,<ref name="Vegas"/>{{sfn|Sullivan|2000|p=176}} although in one of his initial statements, he claimed Piest failed to resist as he removed the boy's trousers. He also stated that as he placed the rope around Piest's neck, the boy was "crying, scared".{{sfn|Amirante|2011|pp=140–142}} Gacy admitted to having received a phone call from a business acquaintance as Piest lay dying.{{sfn|Cahill|1986|pp=205–233}}