![]() Fish’s attorney, James Dempsey, attempted to use the insanity defense, but the jury found him guilty and he was sentenced to death. All the doctors concluded Fish was insane. Frederic Wertham who estimated Fish had raped at least one hundred children. He also confessed to torturing and castrating nineteen-year-old Thomas Kedden in 1910, while still married.įish was examined by multiple psychiatrists after his arrest, including Dr. However, other potential victims include twelve-year-old Yetta Abramowitz, sixteen-year-old Mary Ellen O'Connor, and multiple unnamed victims. Fish went on to confess to other murders, including some which turned out to be false. ![]() After hearing his story, police went to Wisteria Cottage, where the murder had occurred, to recover Grace’s body. While Fish initially resisted, he eventually confessed to the abduction and murder of Grace Budd, giving the police a detailed account of the events. She then stalled Fish until King could get there. Schneider informing him that Fish had returned to the boarding house. On December 13, 1934, King received a call from Mrs. King continued to follow every lead that came up, even going so far as to postpone his retirement to continue the investigation. Eventually, all the detectives except King gave up on the investigation. But Fish had covered his tracks well, the only clue being a copy of the telegram he’d sent in response to the ad. They soon discovered the address he had given as his sister’s residence didn’t exist.ĭetective William King led the investigation into Grace’s disappearance. On June 3, 1928, under the alias of Frank Howard, he charmed the family with his trustworthy demeanor, convincing them to let him take Grace to a birthday party at his sister’s house. Fish had intended to murder Edward but changed his mind after he discovered Grace. On May 27, 1928, Fish responded to an ad in the New York World-Telegram, posted by Grace’s eighteen-year-old brother, Edward, who was looking for work. Fish later confessed to the crime, but Billy’s body was never recovered.įish’s third victim, which would lead to his capture, was ten-year-old Grace Budd. According to the friends who were with Billy just before he disappeared, “the bogeyman took him.” The primary suspect at the time was another serial killer named Peter Kudzinowski however, after Fish’s photo appeared in a newspaper, he was identified by a witness who had seen him with a child resembling Billy on the day he disappeared. His second victim, four-year-old Billy Gaffney, was murdered on February 11, 1927. According to Fish’s confession, the body had been spared further mutilation only because someone had shown up, forcing him to flee to avoid discovery. Francis was later found hanging from a tree, having been strangled with his suspenders, with the flesh stripped from one of his legs. Witnesses saw him walking off with a man with a gray mustache. The first was an eight-year-old boy named Francis McDonnell, reported missing on July 14, 1924.
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