Serial Killers Who Were Never Caught
Series in which the offender was never identified, or was identified but never taken into custody. The linked case files hold the victims and the investigation.
ColdCaseIndex currently lists 12 serial killers in this group, out of 104 profiles. The list is computed from the dataset on every build, so it changes as profiles are added.
| # | Name | Alias | State | Active | Convicted | Confessed | Suspected | Legal status | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Axeman of New Orleans | The Axeman | Louisiana | 1918 to 1919 | — | — | At least 6 killed and 6 injured in the attacks attributed to the series in 1918 and 1919; historians dispute which attacks belong to it, and totals of up to 17 killed have been cited | Unidentified | Unknown |
| 2 | Cleveland Torso Murderer | The Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run | Ohio | 1935 to 1938 | — | — | 12 officially counted (7 men, 5 women); some researchers suggest 20 or more | Unidentified | Unknown |
| 3 | Phantom Killer of Texarkana | The Phantom Killer | Texas, Arkansas | 1946 | — | — | 5 killed and 3 wounded in 4 attacks | Unidentified | Unknown |
| 4 | Zodiac Killer | Zodiac | California | 1968 to 1969 | — | — | 5 confirmed killed and 2 survivors; 37 claimed in a 1974 letter | Unidentified | At large |
| 5 | Freeway Phantom | The Freeway Phantom | District of Columbia, Maryland | 1971 to 1972 | — | — | 6 | Unidentified | At large |
| 6 | Oakland County Child Killer | The Babysitter Killer | Michigan | 1976 to 1977 | — | — | 4 | Unidentified | At large |
| 7 | Connecticut River Valley Killer | The Valley Killer | New Hampshire, Vermont | 1978 to 1988 | — | — | At least 7 women killed; 1 woman attacked and survived | Unidentified | At large |
| 8 | Honolulu Strangler | The Honolulu Rapist | Hawaii | 1985 to 1986 | — | — | 5 (attributed by the Honolulu Police Department task force) | Unidentified | At large |
| 9 | New Bedford Highway Killer | New Bedford Highway Killings | Massachusetts | 1988 | — | — | 9 to 11 | Unidentified | At large |
| 10 | I-70 Killer | I-70 Serial Killer | Indiana, Missouri, Kansas, Texas | 1992 | — | — | 6 killed in 1992; 2 more killed and 1 wounded in Texas in 1993 to 1994 are a disputed possible link | Unidentified | At large |
| 11 | West Mesa Bone Collector | West Mesa murders | New Mexico | 2003 to 2005 | — | — | 11 women and an unborn child recovered; police say up to 8 more missing women may be linked | Unidentified | At large |
| 12 | Eastbound Strangler | Atlantic City Serial Killer | New Jersey | 2006 | — | — | 4 | Unidentified | At large |
Profiles
Axeman of New Orleans
The Axeman
Unidentified. An unknown attacker killed at least six people and injured six more in night-time axe attacks on homes in New Orleans and Gretna, Louisiana, between May 1918 and October 1919, most of them Italian-American grocers.
Cleveland Torso Murderer
The Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run
Unidentified. An unknown offender decapitated and dismembered 12 officially counted victims in Cleveland, Ohio, between 1935 and 1938, most found in or near Kingsbury Run.
Phantom Killer of Texarkana
The Phantom Killer
Unidentified. An attacker shot and beat eight people in four attacks around Texarkana, Texas and Arkansas, between February and May 1946, killing five.
Zodiac Killer
Zodiac
Unidentified. The Zodiac Killer attacked seven people in Northern California between December 1968 and October 1969, killing five, and taunted police and newspapers with letters and ciphers.
Freeway Phantom
The Freeway Phantom
Unidentified. The Freeway Phantom abducted and strangled six Black girls and young women, aged 10 to 18, in Washington, D.C., between April 1971 and September 1972, leaving their bodies beside roads in D.C.
Oakland County Child Killer
The Babysitter Killer
Unidentified. Four children aged 10 to 12 were abducted in Oakland County, Michigan, between February 1976 and March 1977 and found dead days or weeks later.
Connecticut River Valley Killer
The Valley Killer
Unidentified. At least seven women were stabbed to death in the Connecticut River Valley of New Hampshire and Vermont between 1978 and 1987, and a pregnant woman survived a 1988 attack.
Honolulu Strangler
The Honolulu Rapist
Unidentified. An unknown man sexually assaulted, bound and strangled five women on Oahu, Hawaii, between May 1985 and April 1986, leaving them near waterways around Honolulu airport.
New Bedford Highway Killer
New Bedford Highway Killings
Unidentified. Nine women who disappeared from New Bedford, Massachusetts, in 1988 were found beside area highways in 1988 and 1989, and two more remain missing.
I-70 Killer
I-70 Serial Killer
Unidentified. Six shop workers were shot in the head in small stores in Indiana, Kansas and Missouri between April 8 and May 7, 1992, all linked by a .22-caliber weapon.
West Mesa Bone Collector
West Mesa murders
Unidentified. The remains of 11 women and an unborn child were found buried on Albuquerque's West Mesa in February 2009; the women had disappeared between 2003 and 2005.
Eastbound Strangler
Atlantic City Serial Killer
Unidentified. The bodies of four women, two of them confirmed strangled or asphyxiated, were found facing east in a drainage ditch behind a Black Horse Pike motel in Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey, on November 20, 2006.