Famous Serial Killers Who Are Scorpios
With the increase in interest in true crime over the past years, crime buffs are curious to know what makes serial killers tick. One common question asked is whether a serial killer is made or born. Although the question cannot be answered conclusively, researchers have compiled a list of traits that are most common in serial killers, per Psychology Today. There is also the question of whether being a serial killer has something to do with a person's zodiac sign.
Astrology Zodiac Signs conducted research on how many serial killers belong to each zodiac sign. Take note that the study didn't study the correlation between being a serial killer and a specific sign; rather, the researchers merely tallied the numbers. The study consisted of 485 serial killers, and the results showed four zodiac signs sharing equal numbers on the top spot — Cancer, Pisces, Sagittarius, and Scorpio — with 46. On the other hand, the zodiac signs that had the least number of serial killers were Gemini and Taurus with 27.
Each zodiac sign has specific traits. Scorpios — born between October 23 and November 21 — are known as passionate and independent people. According to Horoscope, Scorpios use their feelings to drive them, but it may also be their downfall when they lose control.
Joseph DeAngelo, the Golden State Killer
If Scorpios indeed hate revealed secrets like Zodiac Sign tells us, Joseph DeAngelo had a particularly bad 2018. Not that he didn't deserve it, because this was the year he was finally arrested for his crimes as the serial killer and rapist known as the Golden State Killer, per ABC News.
DeAngelo gained infamy with his numerous crimes in the 1970s and 1980s. The murderer worked as a police officer for the early part of his reign of terror, though he was fired in 1979. His methods varied somewhat, but he often entered the victims' homes at night before tying them up and unleashing his horror (via Biography). His murders seem to have ended in 1986, but the authorities didn't get on his track until 2018, after DNA evidence connected DeAngelo to the Golden State Killer.
The serial killer was born on November 8, 1945, and was 72 years old at the time he was finally caught. Unfortunately, the statute of limitations for many of his crimes had already expired at that point. Nevertheless, in 2020 DeAngelo pleaded guilty to 13 murders and 13 kidnappings for purpose of robbery, and he received a life sentence.
Nannie Doss, the Giggling Granny
Nannie Doss had many nicknames, but perhaps the most memorable is the Giggling Granny (via Encyclopedia of Alabama). When Doss was arrested for the murder of her husband, things took an unexpected turn when she soon admitted that she was responsible for the deaths of the previous four, too. According to Tulsa World (via Oxygen), Doss was a poisoner motivated by her husbands' life insurance policies, but she also claimed she killed one because he was annoying.
Doss' nickname stems from her affable and cheerful attitude, even while facing a murder trial. Despite her friendly appearances, however, she was certainly a killer — in fact, the whole "giggling" part of her nickname refers to the fact that she liked to laugh while discussing her crimes. She's been connected to up to a dozen victims, all of whom were members of her immediate or extended family. She received a life sentence in 1955, narrowly avoiding the electric chair after being deemed insane.
Doss was born on November 4, 1905 (via Female Serial Killers). If we approach this through the lens of her star sign, it's worth noting that people born under the Scorpio sign can be egoistical and patient, and they may strike when least expected, per Allure. Even without going into her preferred killing method of poison, this seems to fit Doss' stealthy murders and her gleeful enjoyment of the attention to an uncomfortably accurate degree.
Belle Gunness, a.k.a. Hell's Belle
Some of a Scorpio's least desirable traits include manipulation and violence (per Zodiac Sign), two traits that describe this particular killer very well. Brynhild Paulsdatter Storseth started her life on November 11, 1859, in Norway, according to La Porte County Historical Society Museum. History is still unclear as to how and when she died, but one thing is certain: By the time her known crimes came to an end, she was going by Belle Gunness, and she may have murdered over 40 people (via Biography). For this, she's known as Hell's Belle, per Legends of America.
After Gunness relocated to the U.S. in 1881, she started leaving a mysterious trail of bodies in her wake. Over the years, a number of her family members and male acquaintances died in peculiar circumstances, ranging from husbands and suitors to children and stepchildren. On one notable occasion, a husband died in a freak accident where a heavy sausage grinder hit him in the head ... according to Gunness, anyway.
Gunness received multiple significant insurance payouts for the deaths over the years. In 1908, her Indiana farmhouse burned down. The bodies of three adolescents and a headless woman were found in the smoldering ruins (via Mental Floss). It has never been conclusively found out what happened to Gunness, though many believe that she faked her death and disappeared. What is known, however, is that there were over 40 victims of foul play buried on her property.
Robert Pickton, the Pig Farm Killer
Scorpios can be intimidating and secretive, per Horoscope. At the end of the day, those two things were bad news for the pig farmer and serial killer Robert Pickton, as Global News tells us. In 2002, the police entered his premises in Port Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada, to investigate reports that indicated Pickton had illegal guns. They found something far more horrifying.
It transpired that Pickton had been behind the disappearances of several women from Vancouver's poorest areas, which verified some area residents' longstanding suspicions that a serial killer was on the prowl (per the BBC). Pickton was charged with 26 murder charges and ultimately convicted for six of them. According to his own words, however, the killer was even more terrifyingly prolific. Per CBC, Pickton himself claimed that he'd killed 49 victims, and expressed regret that he couldn't commit his 50th murder before he was caught.
Pickton was born on October 26, 1949, per Globe and Mail.
David Parker Ray, the Toy Box Killer
Sometimes the terrifying thing about a serial killer is that no one can conclusively prove that the person in question is one. Such Scorpio-like secretiveness (per Horoscope) certainly applies to David Parker Ray, who was born on November 6, 1939 (via History Daily). Despite the fact that there's much proof about his various crimes, no bodies have ever been found, per Oxygen.
Ray's infamous "toy box" refers to a trailer that he had turned into a torture cell full of sadistic tools and implements, and where he held his victims for lengthy periods. He and girlfriend-accomplice Cindy Hendy were caught in March 1999 when one victim managed to get ahold of the keys that set her free. After a scuffle with Hendy, the victim managed to escape and alert the authorities.
Per The New York Times, investigators found well over 1,000 pieces of evidence, much of which was written and video evidence of Ray's torture of multiple women. There are also strong suspicions that he has killed a number of his victims, since only a small handful of his suspected 60-plus victims have come forward. What's more, Hendy has claimed that he has killed 14 women (via Jim Fielder's book "Slow Death"), and Ray himself spoke about killing people (via ABC News). However, no bodies have ever been found, so he was "only" sentenced to over 221 years in prison for his various kidnapping and torture crimes.
Velma Barfield, the Death Row Granny
A Scorpio's talent for trailblazing (per Zodiac Sign) fits this particular serial killer very well. According to The New York Times, when Velma Barfield received a lethal injection on November 2, 1984, she was the first female U.S. prisoner to be executed in 22 years. She was also surprisingly missed. Her burial ceremony drew a crowd of over 200, and per The New York Times, famous evangelist Billy Graham sang her praises.
Despite such public sympathy, however, it's probably worth noting that she was still very much a serial killer. Though she was technically only convicted for the poisoning murder of her boyfriend in 1978, she also admitted that she'd killed three other victims ... including her own mother.
Barfield, who was born on October 29, 1932 (per the Office of the Clark County Prosecuting Attorney), found religion during her incarceration, and was known as the Death Row Granny.