The Devil at Genesee Junction


Book Description

Today you’d call Ballantyne suburban, but back then, at the start of the summer of 1966, it was country — just a cluster of houses, some of them shacks, on or near Ballantyne Road, in the Town of Chili, NY. And while June 25 started like any other day it would end in a nightmare. In The Devil at Genesee Junction, veteran crime writer, Michael Benson, returns to his formerly rural hometown to take on the double homicide of his friends Kathy Bernhard and George-Ann Formiciola that took place that night. The two girls were missing for a month and then found in the bushes horribly mutilated. The double homicide changed the author’s childhood suddenly, and drastically. He went from living in a rural playland, to being encased in fear, wondering who among them was the werewolf who cut up Kathy and George-Ann. This heinous crime was never resolved, and didn’t go away. In recent years, the author has teamed up with a victim’s mom, and a local private investigator to delve deep into the 6/66 murders, developing along the way some strong new leads and shocking details. Together they have heated up this icy cold case, and their investigation has led them in a startling new direction.




Murder in Connecticut


Book Description

An incisive, unflinching account of the shocking, summer 2007 Connecticut crime that is still making national headlines, Murder in Connecticut examines what happened to Dr. William Petit, his wife Jennifer Hawke-Petit, and their two daughters, Hayley and Michaela, in the early morning hours of July 23 in the quiet town of Cheshire--and how their community rallied bravely around the sole survivor of this vicious home invasion. Who was the Petit family? How were they marked for murder by their killers, Joshua Komisarjevsky and Steven Hayes? How could these men have dreamed up such a crime? And will these horrifying murders--with startling similarities to the case in Truman Capote's classic In Cold Blood--really be the impetus behind sweeping parole reform laws that will not only affect Connecticut, but all of America?




Watch Mommy Die


Book Description

In The Hands Of A Sadist. . . First, he bound and beat his girlfriend, a 43-year-old librarian. Then he went after her teenaged daughter--warning her, "Scream and I will kill you both"--before knocking her unconscious. When the teenager awoke, he proceded to rape her. And in a final horrifying act of depravity, he forced the girl to watch as he slit her mother's throat. But the killing didn't stop there. . . In The Crosshairs Of A Killer. . . Stephen Stanko was described as "a perfect gentleman" who "seemed so pleasant. . .and so normal." But behind Stanko's mild-mannered appearance, round spectacles, and quiet intelligence was a coldblooded ex-convict who kept a grisly scrapbook on serial killers--and convinced everyone he was a nice guy--until he killed and killed again. On The Trail Of A Psycho. . . A well-orchestrated manhunt caught up with Stanko, who tried to get away with his crimes by pleading insanity. But the jury saw through his ruse and the ruthless killer was sentenced to death. Case Seen On 48 Hours Includes 16 Pages of Shocking Photos




Killer Twins


Book Description

The chilling true story of the Spahalski brothers, who looked alike, acted alike—and killed alike . . . Robert Bruce Spahalski and Stephen Spahalski were identical twins. Same hair, same eyes, same thirst for blood. Stephen was the first brother to kill—by viciously bashing in storeowner Ronald Ripley’s head with a hammer. Unlike Stephen, Robert didn’t stop with just one victim. With the cord of an iron, Robert strangled prostitute Morraine Armstrong during sex. With his bare hands, he choked his girlfriend Adrian Berger. He brutally bludgeoned to death businessman Charles Grande. Even his friend Vivian Irizarry didn’t escape his lurid killing spree. Robert ultimately confessed to the four murders in vivid detail. But police suspected there were many more. The twins’ twisted story became even more bizarre as the true nature of their sick psyches came to light. In Killer Twins, through extensive interviews, Michael Benson reveals for the first time the horrific details of Robert Spahalski’s life and crimes in a disturbing look at the inner workings of a homicidal mind.




Mommy Deadliest


Book Description

The true crime story of a New York mother who killed and a daughter who wouldn’t die, from the author of A Killer’s Touch and Watch Mommy Die. Anti-Freeze For A Husband It looked like a suicide. A man’s corpse on the bathroom floor—next to a half-empty glass of anti-freeze. But fingerprints on the glass belonged to the deceased’s wife, Stacey Castor. And a turkey baster in the garbage had police wondering if she force-fed the toxic fluid down her husband’s throat. Pills For A Daughter In desperation, Stacey concocted a devious plan. She mixed a deadly cocktail of vodka and pills, then served it to her twenty-year-old daughter Ashley. The authorities would find Ashley with a suicide note, confessing to the anti-freeze murder. But Stacey’s plan backfired—because Ashley refused to die . . . A Killer For A Mother Charged with murdering her second husband—and attempting to kill her oldest daughter—Stacey Castor sparked a media frenzy. But when police dug up her first husband’s grave—and found anti-freeze in his body, too—this New York housewife earned a nickname that would follow her all the way to prison. They called her “The Black Widow.” And with good reason. The story that inspired the Lifetime film, Poisoned Love: The Stacey Castor Story, starring Nia Vardalos. Case Featured On 20/20 Includes Sixteen Pages of Shocking Photos




Everything You Wanted to Know About the New York Knicks


Book Description

This encyclopedic listing of every man who played on or coached the New York Knicks from the team's inception in 1946 to the present is jam-packed with details on everything from a player's careers statistics to his height, weight, and jersey number. Included is information about a player's life before and after the NBA, college career, and dates of birth and death. Relive the glory days of Bill Bradley, Walter "Cylde the Glide" Frazier, Patrick Ewing, Bob McAdoo, Dave DeBusschere, and all the other Knickerbockers in this comprehensive guide to Madison Square Garden's most famous denizens.




Evil Season


Book Description

"Benson is a master of true crime." --Robert Scott Deadly Dreams Joyce Wishart was living out her life's dream, running her own art gallery in sunny Sarasota, Florida. But that dream ended in nightmare when a deranged drifter named Elton Brutus Murphy walked through the door with a knife in his hand and a voice in his head commanding him to rape and kill. In the space of half an hour, Joyce was dead--brutally mutilated--and the tony arts enclave plunged into terror as a frenzied manhunt ensued. Told in the convicted murderer's own words, a chilling tale of one life spiraling into madness--and another gruesomely cut short. "Difficult to put down. . .. This is one that I highly recommend." --True Crime Book Reviews on Watch Mommy Die "Brisk pacing. . .shocking details." --Publishers Weekly on The Burn Farm Includes the exclusive confession of Elton Brutus Murphy




Hooked Up for Murder


Book Description

In this shocking true account, Mark Fisher, a nineteen-year-old college student and star football player, unaware of the dark side of New York City night life, attends a party with an attractive stranger, which leads to his brutal murder at the hands of a group of wannabe gangsters. Original.




Lethal Embrace


Book Description

A Murder Plot. . . Single mother Lee Ann Armanini worked as a bartender in a strip joint in Long Island's South Shore when she got pregnant by Paul Riedel, owner of a health club in Amityville, Long Island. In 1998, Paul did the right thing and married her. The marriage was not a happy one, and Lee Ann left Riedel in 2000. She moved to Florida and took up with a mob-connected hood named Ralph "Rocco" Salierno. Together, they plotted Riedel's murder in order to get his money and ownership of the health club... A Case Of Mistaken Identity. . . But Salierno murdered the wrong man--Alexander Algeri, Riedel's lifelong friend and business partner who bore an uncanny resemblance to Riedel and even drove the same kind of vehicle, a Ford Explorer. A Stunning Trial. . . In a notorious trial that was filled with sensational revelations about drug abuse, illicit sex, and wrong way murder, Lee Ann Riedel and Rocco Salierno were convicted of first-degree murder. Salierno was sentenced to life in prison without parole; Lee Ann Riedel was sentenced to 25-years-to-life. Includes 16 Pages of Shocking Photos. Robert Mladinich is the author of From the Mouth of the Monster: The Joel Rifkin Story. He is a retired New York Police Department second grade detective who has investigated numerous homicides and was named NYPD Cop of the Year in 1985 for his work as a patrol officer in the South Bronx.




Inside Secret Societies


Book Description

Secret Societies lifts the lid on some of the most notorious and clandestine organisations in the world. From frat boy handshakes to the 47th level of Freemasonry, this entertaining and hugely informative guide tells all. Even the most sceptical of readers will agree that secret societies are more important than just passwords, secret handshakes and silly ceremonies. Often they control business and politics. The book includes 150-200 entries, each detailing a secret society. There is also an extensive bibliography and glossary included.