Florida is mostly known as being a vacation destination for families heading to Disney, spring breakers flocking to the beaches all along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts, and of course the snow birds who make their way down and sometimes never leave. When we think of Florida, aside from the raging home and gas prices, we typically have happy thoughts.
Well, not so fast! Who knew how many serial killers committed their crimes right here in Florida?
You may have heard of a few of these names. Aileen Wuornos who was famously portrayed by Charlize Theron in “Monster”, well, who could forget her? Then there’s perhaps the most infamous of all, Ted Bundy, known for his massacres at Florida State University, among other crimes.
If you love “True Crime”, you’ll love this list that Cat McAuliffe at Ranker put together of 10 Serial Killers Whose Crimes Were Committed In Florida.
Here is her list:
Danny Rolling
Daniel Harold Rolling (May 26, 1954 – October 25, 2006), known as The Gainesville Ripper, was an American serial killer who murdered five students in Gainesville, Florida, over four days in late August 1990. Rolling later confessed to raping several of his victims, committing a triple homicide in his home city of Shreveport, Louisiana, and attempting to murder his father in May 1990. In total, Rolling confessed to killing eight people.[1] Rolling was sentenced to death for the five Gainesville murders in 1994. He was executed by lethal injection in 2006.
Source: Wikipedia
Ted Bundy
Theodore Robert Bundy (born Cowell; November 24, 1946 – January 24, 1989) was an American serial killer who kidnapped, raped, and murdered numerous young women and girls during the 1970s and possibly earlier. After more than a decade of denials he confessed to thirty murders he committed in seven states between 1974 and 1978. Bundy’s true victim total is unknown, and is likely significantly higher.[7]
Source: Wikipedia
David Alan Gore
David Alan Gore (August 21, 1953 – April 12, 2012) was an American serial killer who confessed to, and was convicted of, six murders in Vero Beach and Indian River County, Florida in the 1980s. Gore was executed by lethal injection in 2012, having been on Florida’s death row for 28 years.
Source: Wikipedia
Gerard John Schaefer
Gerard John Schaefer Jr. (March 26, 1946 – December 3, 1995) was an American murderer and suspected serial killer known as the Killer Cop who was convicted of the 1972 murder and mutilation of two teenage girls in Port St. Lucie, Florida. He is suspected of committing up to 34 further murders.[1]
Source: Wikipedia
Aileen Wuornos
(Photo by Florida DOC/Getty Images)
Aileen Carol Wuornos[2] (born Pittman; February 29, 1956 – October 9, 2002) was an American serial killer.[3] In 1989–1990, while engaging in street prostitution along highways in Florida, she shot dead and robbed seven of her male clients. Wuornos claimed that her clients had either raped or attempted to rape her, and that all of the homicides were committed in self-defense. Wuornos was sentenced to death for six of the murders and on October 9, 2002, after 12 years on Florida’s death row,[4] was executed by lethal injection.
Source: Wikipedia
Bobby Joe Long
Robert Joseph “Bobby Joe” Long[1] (October 14, 1953 – May 23, 2019)[2] was an American serial killer and rapist who was executed by the state of Florida for the murder of Michelle Denise Simms.[3] Long abducted, sexually assaulted, and murdered at least ten women in the Tampa Bay area in Florida during an eight-month period in 1984. He released 17-year-old Lisa McVey after 26 hours. McVey provided critical information to the police that enabled them to arrest Long. Long was also a serial rapist.
Source: Wikipedia
Oscar Ray Bolin
Oscar Ray Bolin Jr. (January 22, 1962 – January 7, 2016)[1] was an American serial killer and convicted rapist who was executed in Florida for murder. In 1986, Bolin kidnapped and murdered three young women in Tampa, Florida. He was later connected to a fourth murder in Texas in 1987. The murders went unsolved for nearly four years, until the husband of his ex-wife called a tip line and implicated him. He maintained his innocence to the end.[2]
Source: Wikipedia
Christine Falling
From February 1980 to July 1982, teenager Christine Falling from Perry, Florida, choked five children, the youngest being an 8-month-old baby.
Source: Ranker
Eddie Lee Mosley
Eddie Lee Mosley (March 31, 1947 – May 28, 2020) was an American serial killer and rapist who murdered at least eight women in Fort Lauderdale, Florida between 1973 and 1987. He was arrested in 2001 following the results of a DNA profiling test, after being the prime suspect in several murders for many years.
Source: Wikipedia
The Flat-Tire Murderer
This killer has never been identified.
From February 1975 to July 1975, five young women and teenage girls were killed in South Florida, leading police to suspect the murders were the work of a single perpetrator. The killings were dubbed the “flat-tire murders” because the authorities believed the killer deflated the tires of his victims’ vehicles, allowing him to offer his help when they realized they were stranded in a commercial parking lot.
Source: Ranker
11 Florida Bugs That Can Kill You Or At Least Ruin A Perfectly Good Day
Red Fire Ant
These little bastards are the most dangerous when they swarm. Their attacks are especially bad when you’re wearing flip flops and the bites when drive you nuts for a week. Some people are allergic to the venom. I’d advise those people to stay inside because a few bites from these guys can kill you.
Mosquito
What might be a harmless, annoying bite might be something a lot worse, like West Nile virus or. encephalitis. Want some more? Chikungunya, Dengue and Zika viruses as well as malaria.
Red Widow
Hold up, hold up – what? They come in other colors too? Well, not anywhere else. Just here in Florida. The Red Widow is only found in the pine scrub forests of Florida. Was it a Red Widow that bit you. Well, the muscle spasms might be a clue. I find as a cartoon they’re less scary.
Buck Moth Caterpillar
Yeah, don’t try to pick one up, these thing are covered with venomous bristles. For most people the sting will suck. But if you get anaphylaxis, Well that can kill you.
Caterpillar or larva form of The buck moth, Hemileuca maia (Drury), is a member of Saturniidae, the giant silkworm family – prickly stingers orange yellow black coloring, red head, on wooden fence
Southern Black Widow
You probably won’t die if you get bit. Unless you’re sick or very young. If you see one you can usually just back away, but if you run into one – not good.
A Black Widow Spider spinning a web in an oak tree.
Brown Widow
Why not, let’s do another. These things like to nest in cars and are twice as venomous as black widows. Fun, huh?
Female Adult Brown Widow of the species Latrodectus geometricus
Saddleback Caterpillar
He looks like he’s wearing a little shirt. Don’t touch, the venom on those spines destroys tissue.
saddleback caterpillar (Acharia Hyperoche), shot in Costa Rica.
Io Moth Caterpillar
Grab one and watch the swelling begin! And for an extra treat, The spines can break off and embed themselves in the skin, causing prolonged irritation until the barb is removed.
Io Moth Caterpillar (Automaris Io). Photographed by acclaimed wildlife photographer and writer, Dr. William J. Weber.
Wolf Spider
When I first moved into my house one of these was inside my pool cage one night. That Wasp & Hornet spray came in handy. The good? Getting bit by one of these will suck but isn’t nearly as bad as others on the list. The bad? They are aggressive and will bring the fight to you.
A wolf spider is crawling through the grass.