
Who is David Berkowitz, where is the Son of Sam serial killer now and what do we know about his victims?
One of America's most infamous serial killers,
2
Police mug shot of David Berkowitz, who killed six people and wounded seven
Who is David Berkowitz
and why was he called the Son of Sam?
Gunman David Berkowitz carried out a killing spree that terrorised New Yorkers for 12 months, killing six and wounding seven, sparking the biggest manhunt in the city's history before he was finally arrested in 1977.
Before being identified, the '.44 Caliber Killer' was also known as the 'Son of Sam' for the signature he left on letters at crime scenes and sent to media outlets.
After a year-long reign of terror which left six dead and seven more wounded, cops were relieved to have brought down the gunman.
After David Berkowitz was apprehended and put on trial, he claimed that his neighbour's dog, named Sam, was possessed by a demon and commanded him to kill.
With Berkowitz behind bars, the Son of Sam case was closed — until a bizarre theory about a Satanic cult threw new light on the killings.
Not everyone is convinced Berkowitz had acted alone, while some fear that others involved in the spree could still be out there.
In 1993, Berkowitz gave a series of shocking TV interviews to Inside Edition in which he claimed that he had not acted alone during his 1970s bloodbath.
Who were David Berkowitz's victims?
Donna Lauria and Jody Valenti shooting (July 1976)
The first shooting attributed to the Son of Sam occurred in the Pelham Bay area of the Bronx.
Most read in The US Sun
At about 1.10am on July 29, 1976, Donna Lauria, an emergency medical technician, 18, and her friend Jody Valenti, a nurse, 19, were sitting in Valenti's double-parked Oldsmobile, discussing their evening at Peachtree's, a New Rochelle disco.
Lauria opened the car door to leave and noticed a man quickly approaching the car, he produced a pistol from the paper bag and aimed his weapon with both hands, and fired.
Lauria was struck by one bullet that killed her instantly.
Valenti was shot in her thigh and survived her injury.
2
Oliver Cooper playing David Berkowitz in Mindhunter
Carl Denaro and Rosemary Keenan shooting (October 1976)
Most of Berkowitz's activity was in Queens, though he lived farther north in Yonkers.
On October 23, 1976, a similar shooting occurred in a secluded residential area of Flushing, Queens, next to Bowne Park.
Carl Denaro, a Citibank security guard, 20, and Rosemary Keenan, a Queens College student, 18, were sitting in Keenan's parked car when the windows suddenly shattered.
Keenan quickly started the car and sped away for help.
The panicked couple did not realise that someone had been shooting at them, even though Denaro was bleeding from a bullet wound to his head.
Keenan had only superficial injuries from the broken glass, but Denaro eventually needed a metal plate to replace a portion of his skull.
Donna DeMasi and Joanne Lomino shooting (November 1976)
High school student Donna DeMasi, 16, and Joanne Lomino, a student at Martin Van Buren High School, 18, walked home from a movie soon after midnight on November 27, 1976.
They were chatting on the porch of Joanne's home in Floral Park, when a man dressed in military fatigues who seemed to be in his early 20s approached them and began to ask directions.
He quickly produced a revolver and he shot each of the victims once and, as they fell to the ground injured, he fired several more times.
DeMasi had been shot in the neck, but the wound was not life-threatening. Lomino was hit in the back and hospitalized in a serious condition.
She was ultimately rendered paraplegic.
Christine Freund and John Diel shooting (January 1977)
At about 12.40am on January 30, 1977, Christine Freund, a secretary, 26, and her fiancé John Diel, a bartender, 30, were sitting in Diel's car near the Forest Hills LIRR station in Queens, preparing to drive to a dance hall after having seen the movie Rocky.
Three gunshots penetrated the car and in a panic, Diel drove away for help.
He suffered minor superficial injuries, but Freund was shot twice and died several hours later at the hospital.
Virginia Voskerichian shooting (March 1977)
At about 7.30pm on March 8, 1977, Columbia University student Virginia Voskerichian, 19, was walking home from school when she was confronted by an armed man.
She lived about a block from where Christine Freund had been shot.
In a desperate move to defend herself, Voskerichian lifted her textbooks between herself and her killer, but the makeshift shield was penetrated, the bullet striking her head and killing her.
Alexander Esau and Valentina Suriani shooting (April 1977)
At about 3am on April 17, 1977, Alexander Esau, a tow truck operator, 20, and Valentina Suriani, an aspiring actress and model, 18, were sitting in Suriani's car near her home in the Bronx, only a few blocks from the scene of the Lauria–Valenti shooting, when each was shot twice.
Suriani died at the scene, and Esau died in the hospital several hours later without being able to describe his attacker.
Sal Lupo and Judy Placido shooting (June 1977)
On June 26, 1977, there was another shooting.
Sal Lupo, a mechanic's helper, 20, and Judy Placido, a recent high school graduate, 17, had left the Elephas disco in Bayside, Queens, and were sitting in Sal's parked car at about 3am, when three gunshots blasted through the vehicle.
Sal was wounded in the right forearm, while Judy was shot in the right temple, shoulder, and back of the neck, but both victims survived their injuries.
Sal told police that the young couple had been discussing the Son of Sam case only moments before the shooting.
Stacy Moskowitz and Robert Violante shooting (July 1977)
Berkowitz's final killing happened in Brooklyn.
Early on July 31, 1977, Stacy Moskowitz, a secretary, and Robert Violante, a clothing store salesman, both 20, were in Robert's car, which was parked under a streetlight near a city park in the neighbourhood of Bath Beach, on their first date.
They were kissing when a man approached within three feet of the passenger side of Robert's car and fired four rounds into the car, striking both victims in the head before he escaped into the park.
Robert lost his left eye but Stacy died from her injuries.
Netflix drops trailer for harrowing new true crime doc The Sons of Sam: A Descent Into Darkness
Where is David Berkowitz now?
In 1978, Berkowitz was convicted of the murders of two men and four women, ranging in age from 18 to 25, and sentenced to six consecutive life sentences in prison, which he is still serving.
How was David Berkowitz caught?
Berkowitz grew up as a difficult child with occasional bouts of violence but his real troubles began after the death of his adoptive mother in 1967.
His adoptive father remarried in 1971 and moved to Florida without him, forcing him to join the army.
Claiming to be pushed to kill by demons, Berkowitz attempted to murder a woman in December 1975, but she survived with several stab wounds, beginning his year-long killing spree.
He named himself Son of Sam, a reference to a demon he believed lived inside the black labrador owned by his neighbour, Sam Carr.
David Berkowitz was caught when a young woman named Cacilia Davis unwittingly walked past his crime scene, and past Berkowitz himself in his car.
Davis tipped off the police and the officer who had been ticketing cars in the area that night, including Berkowitz's.
He was arrested on August 10, and in his car they found a rifle, a bag of ammunition, maps of the crime scene and further threatening letters. Then, the police uncovered the .44 gun.
What did David Berkowitz say after being caught?
During his arrest, Berkowitz said with a smile on his face: 'Well, you got me.'
He confessed to all his crimes while in police custody, changing his story several times, claiming to be part of a cult and falsely confessing to the murder of a young woman in New York.
In the new series, viewers are given an insight into his state of mind at the time.
Ahead of one court appearance, Berkowitz told prison guards: 'I guess the press is waiting with their cameras … can you comb my hair?'
About Netflix's The Son of Sam Tapes
The three-part series delves into the mind and troubled past of Berkowitz, featuring newly unearthed audio interviews recorded with him by reporter Jack Jones in 1980 at Attica Correctional Facility in Wyoming County, New York.
Alongside interviews with detectives, journalists, and survivors of Berkowitz's attacks, it claims to offer new insights into the investigation and the enduring impact of Berkowitz's crimes on the local community.
The series is directed and produced by Emmy-winning and Academy Award-nominated director Joe Berlinger (Cold Case: Jon Benet Ramsey, Crime Scene: The Texas Killing Fields, and Hitler and the Nazis: Evil on Trial).
Berlinger told Netflix: 'With The Son of Sam Tapes, we delve into the world of David Berkowitz and his chilling influence on 1970s New York City.
'These rare tapes reveal unnerving insights into his psyche, shedding light on the intricate details of the case and the pervasive fear that gripped the city.
Read more on the Irish Sun
'Through these tapes, we hope to not only revisit history, but to bring clarity and depth to a narrative that has long intrigued and unsettled the public.'
The Son of Sam Tapes airs on Netflix on July 30.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Sunday World
8 hours ago
- Sunday World
Pervert pensioner jailed after breaching court order
SEX OFFENDER | Convicted sex offender Stephen Ford Hutchinson downloaded a social media app without permission. Stephen Ford Hutchinson Sentencing Stephen Ford Hutchinson at Antrim Magistrates Court, sitting in Ballymena, District Judge Nigel Broderick told the 70-year-old he had been 'extremely fortunate' to get a suspended sentence for the index offences of attempted sexual communication with a child. 'In conjunction with that sentence the court imposed a Sexual Offences Prevention Order and the purpose of that was to reduce the risk to the public, especially in terms of sexual communication with children' he told Hutchinson. The judge said it was 'particularly concerning' that Hutchinson had downloaded and used the Telegram app which, according to police, 'is notorious for being used by criminals seeking to hide their conduct and behaviour.' Stephen Ford Hutchinson News in 90 Seconds - Tuesday, July 29 Earlier this year Hutchinson, from the Curran Road in Larne, admitted he had breached the SOPO on 7 April by downloading the app without prior approval from his Designated Risk Manager. The SOPO, an order designed to protect the public, was put in place last year after Hutchinson was convicted of attempting to sexually communicate with a child between 18 July and 1 August 2022. In that case the pensioner, who had also entered guilty pleas to three charges of having extreme pornography, had been ensnared by a paedophile hunter group whose decoy had been posing as a 14-year-old girl. The court heard how he had exchanged highly sexualised messages with the decoy and that believing he was talking to a teenage girl, he sent her explicit images of himself. During the contest, Hutchinson's testimony was at times bizarre as he claimed that he was a 'digital soldier' helping to combat against 'dark forces' involved in 'molesting children and sexualising children, indoctrinating them in schools and cannibalism.' Read more 'I believe it involves Satanic ritual child abuse and worldwide trafficking of children,' the 70-year-old told the court, claiming that at the time of the offending he had been 'tracking what was purported to be the greatest military intelligence operation in the history of the planet.' 'It was an online thing, I'm not a member of it, just tracking that's all and we had been led to believe that there was an emergency alert system imminent whereby a worldwide alert had been put out and the military would come in and take over.' In October last year, Judge Broderick imposed a five-month jail sentence, suspended for three years and commented that 'from what he has told probation that he is living in a different world - he seems to be delusional.' In court today (tues), a prosecuting lawyer confirmed that having spoken to Hutchinson's Designated Risk Manager (DRM), he confirmed that if the pensioner had asked for approval for the app, 'that would not have been granted.' 'It is notorious for criminals trying to hide their behaviour and liaising with like-minded individuals, ' he told the court. Defence counsel Nadine Knight said that according to Hutchinson himself, the police had looked through the app and had found only 'innocuous' material, adding that the pensioner 'is entirely remorseful' for the breach. 'He realises it puts his liberty at risk because he is in breach of a suspended sentence' as well as breaching the SOPO itself, said the barrister who highlighted that Hutchinson has been diagnosed with 'persistent delusional disorder' as well as living as an 'isolated individual.' Judge Broderick said however, 'I'm of the view that the custody threshold is crossed' so he imposed three months for the breach and activated five months of the previously suspended sentence, ordering them too be served consecutively.


The Irish Sun
12 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
Horror moment woman desperately clings for her life from 100ft tall ferris wheel screaming ‘help I'm going to die!'
THIS is the horror moment a woman desperately clung to a metal structure while hanging from a 100-foot-tall ferris wheel in Brazil. Chilling footage shows the woman screaming "help I'm going to die" as 2 The woman desperately clung to a metal structure while hanging from a 100-foot-tall ferris wheel Credit: Newsflash 2 Onlookers were left horrified as the big wheel inched around an entire rotation before carrying the woman to the ground Credit: Newsflash The woman can be seen grabbing onto the metal frame of the Ferris wheel cabin and clinging on And the only thing that stopped her from falling through was her grip on the metal bars. At first, it was thought that she slipped from her seat after a safety restraint malfunctioned. It later emerged that the woman had opened the cabin's safety barrier and tried to get out, believing the ride had ended. read more world news Onlookers were left horrified as the big wheel inched around an entire rotation before carrying the woman to the ground. And as her arms begin to tire, she can be heard screaming: "Help, I'm going to die! I'm going to fall!" But just as she stepped forward, the ride lurched forward again, leaving her clinging to the railings to stop herself falling. Miraculously, the woman was reported to be unharmed. Most read in The US Sun In a statement, Mandirituba City Hall said "The technical team immediately identified the situation and operated the equipment so that the cabin slowly lowered to the ground, allowing the passenger to be safely removed." Despite the terrifying experience, the woman declined medical attention and walked away unscathed. Horror moment girl dangles 60ft in air after plunging from Ferris wheel Though she was visibly distraught after the horror experience. It comes after a teenage girl was left Footage of the horror moment showed the 13-year-old desperately clinging to the metal structure as onlookers can be heard screaming. Last year, The Sun reported on the horror moment Another footage showed the moment rescuers had to climb a Ferris wheel to save passengers left dangling in mid-air. Onlookers were left horrified after


The Irish Sun
15 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
Who was Didarul Islam? NYPD officer shot by Shane Tamura
THE NYPD officer killed in the New York skyscraper shooting on July 28, 2025, has been named as Didarul Islam. Here's everything we know so far about 'heroic' cop Didarul, as well as what happened during the Advertisement 4 Didarul Islam was killed in the mass shooting on Monday, July 28, 2025, in New York City Credit: Getty 4 The suspected shooter was caught on CCTV entering the Manhattan skyscraper with a rifle 4 Officials have named Shane Tamura as the gunman Three civilians and an NYPD officer were tragically killed during the attack on the Midtown high-rise, which is home to corporate giants including Blackstone and the NFL. Those trapped in Blackstone's office New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch named the gunman as On July 28, 2025, he attacked 345 Park Avenue on East 52nd Street between Park Avenue and Lexington Avenue at about 6.30pm (11.30pm BST). Advertisement read more on Didarul Islam Tamura was caught on CCTV exiting a double-parked BMW with an M4 rifle and walking across a public plaza into the 44-storey building. He opened fire in the lobby, killing a woman who tried to take cover behind a pillar, as well as the off-duty policeman. Tamura then made his way to the elevator bank, shooting a guard at a security desk and another man in the lobby, who is in a critical but stable condition, the commissioner said. He also spared the life of a woman he came face-to-face with as she exited an elevator. Advertisement Most read in The US Sun Latest Police say Tamura subsequently took the elevator to the 33rd floor offices of Rudin Management, the company that owns the building, walking the floor and opening fire, killing another man. Commissioner Tisch said he then shot himself in the chest, with the rifle found next to him covered in blood. A He wrote that he suffered from the neurodegenerative disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). Advertisement 'You can't go against the NFL, they'll squash you. 'Study my brain please I'm sorry Tell Rick I'm sorry for everything." CTE is linked to repeated head trauma and can only be diagnosed through an autopsy of the brain. Advertisement 4 Office workers fleeing the area during the horrific shooting Credit: The NYPD named the off-duty officer killed as Didarul Islam and paid tribute to the man who "represented the very best of our department". The department said: "He was protecting New Yorkers from danger when his life was tragically cut short today. "We join in prayer during this time of incomprehensible pain. We will forever honour his legacy." Advertisement Commissioner Tisch said Didarul "died as he lived. A hero." She added: "He was doing the job that we asked him to do. He put himself in harm's way. He made the ultimate sacrifice." New York Mayor Eric Adams said he was "doing what he does best... saving lives. He was protecting New Yorkers". Who was Didarul Islam? Didarul Islam was a 36-year-old NYPD officer, who originally hailed from Bangladesh. Advertisement He was killed in the line of duty during the mass shooting. Didarul had served with the NYPD for three and a half years and was a member of the 47th Precinct in the Bronx. Didarul leaves behind two young boys and a pregnant wife.