4 Active Serial Killers in the U.S.

One of the most terrifying thoughts is imagining how many serial killers are out there still on the loose—especially when you find out that they've been recently active.

You might be surprised to learn that criminalists and FBI profilers believe there are around 2,000 active serial killers in the United States alone. Have you ever heard of the West Mesa "Bone Collector," New Mexico's still-unidentified serial killer? What about the serial stabber, the "River City Ripper," who is actively killing in Little Rock, Arkansas?

This list details a few serial murderers who are either active, unidentified, or unapprehend.

The West Mesa "Bone Collector"

This is the name used to describe an unidentified serial killer who is responsible for taking the lives of 11 different women whose remains were found buried in the desert of West Mesa, New Mexico, in 2009. It is thought that this could be one person or it could potentially be linked to some sort of a group.

There have been tips along the way and authorities have worked hard to try and get to the bottom of these crimes, but the killer remains at large. They've investigated a few different suspects throughout the years, but there hasn't been enough concrete evidence to charge anyone with the crimes yet.

Although the remains were found in 2009, authorities say satellite images suggest the last of the remains were placed there in 2005.

The Eastbound Strangler

In 2006, four dead women were discovered face-down in a drainage ditch behind a motel near Atlantic City, New Jersey. The victims—Barbara V. Breidor, Molly Jean Dilts, Kim Raffo, and Tracy Ann Roberts—were found naked except for shoes and socks and were determined to have died from strangulation.

Because all four women were sex workers, investigators initially suspected the murders were connected to the aforementioned Long Island serial killer. However, they eventually determined that there was yet another monster in the area: the "Eastbound Strangler."

Police investigated several suspects, including a repairman who had lived at the motel, a confessed killer who called himself the "River Man," and a drug dealer who knew one of the victims. But all of these suspects were eventually ruled out.

In 2021, the Chief of County Investigations, Bruce Shields, said, "Fifteen years later we have not made an arrest for these homicides, but we're always looking, we're always working and reexamining information about this case. We haven't stopped. We won't stop."

The River City Ripper

This serial killer is wanted in connection to four different incidents that occurred in Little Rock, Arkansas, three of which were fatal. These horrific crimes took place between August 2020 and April 2021.

Despite one of the victims surviving the attack and being able to provide a description of the assailant, there's still very little to go on, in terms of being able to identify this horrible human.

The FBI was contacted shortly after the survivor was able to give a testimony to authorities and their behavioral analysis team created a profile of this unidentified killer.

These crimes are terrible any way you spin them. However, one of the most terrifying parts is that they were all just random acts of violence that occurred completely unprovoked. The case has gained quite a bit of attention, but still, the monster remains at large.

The Chicago Strangler

In 2019, Chicago police organized a special task force to investigate the possibility of a serial killer at work in the city. The move came after the release of a bombshell report by the Chicago Tribune, which documented as many as 75 women who had been strangled or smothered between 2001 and 2017.

The police had hesitated for many years to link these cases, a controversial move given that most of the victims were black and between the ages of 18 and 58.

In 2021, the docu-series "The Hunt for the Chicago Strangler" began streaming on Discovery+, igniting a war of words between the Chicago police and activists like Beverly Reed-Scott, who was a consulting producer on the series.

“Unfortunately, in our society, not just Chicago, but in the United States, Black women are the least of us, and so when crimes happen as horrific as what has occurred over these 20 years with these ladies, there is no outrage," Beverly said, "I think if they were white women, they would certainly have brought out all the stops."

Glen Stewart Godwin: Bomber on the Run

This guy isn't technically a serial killer, but he's a sadistic bomber who's been on the run for over 30 years. In 1980, Glen was working in California and didn't have much of a criminal record. For some reason, he and his roommate decided to make a plan to rob someone who had once been a friend of theirs.

Of course, things went awry when the plan was botched, and Glen ended up killing the person they were robbing. In an attempt to destroy evidence, Glen tried to blow up the crime scene.

The explosive went off, but investigators were still able to figure out who committed the crime. Both Glenn and his roommate were tried and convicted in 1983.

In 1987, Glen tried to escape prison and failed. The attempt landed him at a maximum security facility, Folsom State Prison, where he attempted another escape. This time was successful. He fled to Mexico where he tried unsuccessfully to be part of the illegal drug trade. He was arrested again and sentenced in Mexico.

Authorities in the U.S. began the process of getting him extradited. Glen decided this was a good time to kill a fellow inmate who was a member of the Mexican drug cartel, slowing the process of extradition. This gave him time to plan another escape, which he did in 1991. Since then he's been on the run, and no one knows where he is.