America's Killer Clown

In December 1978, the Chicago police made a horrifying discovery that would uncover one of the most atrocious crimes in the city's history. As investigators pulled body after body from beneath the floorboards of an ordinary suburban home, they realized they were dealing with America's most sinister serial killer. This was the beginning of the shocking case of John Wayne Gacy, also known as the Killer Clown, who had surpassed all records as the most prolific individual murderer in U.S. history up to that point.

John Wayne Gacy was a well-liked and respected figure in his suburban community north of Chicago. He ran a successful construction business, was active in his local church, and involved in the Polish community. Married to his second wife, he appeared to be a devoted stepfather to her two daughters. In 1978, he even had the opportunity to meet and have his photograph taken with First Lady Rosalynn Carter. Little did anyone suspect that beneath Gacy's seemingly idyllic suburban life, he hid a dark and sinister past.

Before his arrival in Chicago, Gacy had been living in Iowa, where he was arrested for assaulting two young men while his first wife was giving birth. Despite being sentenced to 10 years in prison, Gacy served only 18 months before being released on parole and allowed to relocate to Chicago for a fresh start. However, the secrets Gacy carried from his time in Iowa were nothing compared to the sadistic double life he had been leading for years.

After revealing his bisexuality to his second wife, they divorced in 1976, setting Gacy free to indulge in his most twisted fantasies. It wasn't long before he discovered that murder brought him more satisfaction than anything else, and he spent the next several years attempting to satisfy his horrific urges in the most unimaginable ways.

The unraveling of Gacy's dark secrets began with the disappearance of Robert Piest. On December 11th, 1978, Robert's mother went to pick him up from work at a local pharmacy. Robert informed his mother that he was going to discuss a potential construction job with a man that could pay him more than double his pharmacy salary. He assured his mother it would only take a few minutes before they could return home to celebrate her birthday. However, Robert never returned, and his panicked mother went back to the pharmacy with her husband and other children, but Robert was nowhere to be found. They immediately drove to the police station to report his disappearance.

Lieutenant Kozenczak, whose son attended the same high school as Robert, took charge of the investigation. One of his first actions was to reach out to John Wayne Gacy. While Gacy's friends and neighbors were oblivious to his dark past, the police were aware of his prior convictions and had received multiple complaints about him in recent years. In 1975, the family of a missing employee from Gacy's construction company had pleaded with the police to investigate him, but their pleas were ignored. In 1976, the police had even conducted surveillance on Gacy's home in relation to the disappearance of a 9-year-old boy but couldn't gather enough evidence to build a case against him. In 1977, a young man reported to the police that Gacy had kidnapped him at gunpoint and assaulted him. Gacy was arrested but claimed the encounter was consensual, leading prosecutors to decline pressing charges. Police also began to suspect that Gacy was the man behind a series of complaints involving a man named John who frequented local parks, picking up young men who often disappeared afterward. Despite these incidents, Gacy had managed to elude the law, but his luck was about to run out.

Upon realizing that Gacy was the man Robert Piest had gone to meet