75 Notorious Criminals Who Were Murdered in Prison

75 Notorious Criminals Who Were Murdered in Prison

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re looking at convicts throughout history and the world who were famously murdered while incarcerated.

Alireza Shir Mohammad Ali

Though human rights advocates wouldn’t consider him a criminal, Alireza Shir Mohammad Ali was doomed by the very laws he resisted. The Iranian dissident was convicted in 2019 for blasphemy and anti-government activism. This was not enough to silence him, as he went on a hunger strike to protest the conditions of the Greater Tehran Central Penitentiary. Several months later, death row inmate Hamidreza Shojazadeh fatally stabbed Ali in order to get transferred to a more secluded cell. It’s believed that prison staff deliberately neglected the killer’s previous threats, if not tasked him with assassinating Ali. Either way, the victim’s grisly end said more than he could in life about the horrors of suppressing speech.

Luis Romero

March 9, 2019 began with a most disturbing security check at the California State Prison in Corcoran. Guards discovered that murderer Luis Romero had been tortured, killed and extensively mutilated by his cellmate Jaime Osuna. The perpetrator had been moved to this cell the previous day following his sentencing over another ritualistic homicide. Romero’s mother thus sued prison staffers for the reckless housing assignment and for failing to address warnings about her son’s death. She later filed a separate lawsuit against the corrections officer who posted a photo of the gruesome scene online. But years of litigation continues to keep this horror story of prison mismanagement in the media.

Sherry Joyce and Hallie Reed

Violence in Arrendale State Prison in Georgia was really brought to media attention by Jeanni Geuea. In April of 2024, the convicted terrorist strangled 61-year-old murderer Sherry Joyce while they were both in the prison’s mental health facility. It was reported that the victim passed away in her sleep until, just eight days later, Geuea strangled 23-year-old Hallie Reed. She was serving five years for obstruction of law enforcement. These incidents occurred less than a year after it was announced that ASP would be restructured to minimum security. This and Geuea’s charge thus boosted public interest in an epidemic of violence and murder in U.S. women’s prisons, with the State of Georgia setting a record.

Carlos Torres Iriarte

Sometime in the late 1970s, extreme measures in Carlos Torres Iriarte’s Puerto Rican nationalism landed him in San Juan’s Oso Blanco. There, he formed Asociación Pro-Derechos del Confinado in support of prisoner rights, often by force. This turned on Iriarte on March 30, 1981, when he was stabbed and gunned down by members of the rival gang Grupo 27. Evidence suggests that this assassination was aided by traitors who disagreed with the victim’s apprehensions about organized crime. Nonetheless, a string of brutal retaliations eventually ended with Ñetas essentially taking control of Oso Blanco. Though they continued the activist aspect of their operations, the story of Iriarte plainly illustrates the perils of combining politics and violence.

Los Lobos and Sao-Box

Where most prison gang attacks get swept up in riots, Ecuador’s Machala Detention Center was the site of war on November 10, 2025. Sao-Box struck members of Los Lobos after breaking from the larger organization over conflicts. Around four inmates were killed in the assault. Before prison staff could fully respond to the situation, Los Lobos retaliated by asphyxiating 27 cellmates from the rival gang. The massacre was more efficient than the prison in properly addressing the gangs’ falling-out and subsequent feud. Between this and an explosion that killed at least 13 inmates a month later, the Machala Detention Center stands out in Ecuador’s prison violence crisis in the 2020s.

Thaer Abu Asab

A terrorist attack in Nablus, Israel was thwarted when Thaer Abu Asab was apprehended with a bomb in May of 2005. He was sentenced to 25 years in Ketziot Prison. But in November of 2023, Asab was beaten to death in what extensive eyewitness testimony described as a conspiracy involving 19 guards. This was part of a string of violence against Palestinian prisoners in Israel in response to the October 7 attacks. Asab’s killers were never formally charged following a detention period, in one of the first displays of the Gaza War’s unchecked chaos.

Zackaria Luz

Not just a white supremacist group, the Aryan Warriors are a ruthless Nevada crime syndicate that continued to operate after their leader Zackaria Luz landed in Ely State Prison in 2018. This came more to light after Luz and two associates were killed a year later. What seemed to be an out-of-hand brawl with Mexican Mafia affiliates led to 20 inmates being charged for a premeditated hit. The ensuing investigation renewed interest in a well-documented war between the Aryan Warriors and the Sureños that has spanned around two decades. Luz’s death was merely a chilling affirmation of just how heated race relations and organized crime can get behind bars.

Robert Brooks

Violent prison corruption in the U.S. doesn't get much more overt than the death of Robert Brooks in 2024. The assault of his ex-girlfriend in 2017 resulted in a 12-year sentence in the Mohawk Correctional Facility, where he completed his education. His stay at the Marcy Correctional Facility was marked by regular beatings from multiple corrections officers for unknown reasons. The lethal session and denial of medical treatment led to charges against 17 people. Bodycam footage released during trial sparked massive public outrage, but only one CO was convicted of murder after five others pleaded guilty to manslaughter. Whatever Brooks could have been after doing his time was stolen by those tasked with preventing violence.

Tillu Tajpuriya

It was a feud that rang out from behind bars all the way to social media. But it all began with the assassination of gangster Jitender Mann Gogi while he was in court in 2021. The hit was allegedly ordered by Tillu Tajpuriya from Tihar Prisons in New Delhi. Nearly two years later, he was himself stabbed to death by Deepak Titar and Yogesh Tonda. Police hadn’t even begun investigating when Goldy Brar, an associate of Gogi’s based in Canada, took to social media to announce his vengeance and identify the killers. The hubris that Brar and, supposedly, Tajpuriya showed in this bloody episode is enough evidence that prison couldn’t stop the violence.

MS-13 and 18th Street gangs

The Women's Center for Social Adaptation in Támara was the site of a massive riot on June 20, 2023. This was in fact the culmination of feuds between MS-13 and the 18th Street Gang, both within and outside of the sole women’s prison in Honduras. This was just months after the country entered a state of emergency in response to gang violence that included over a dozen prison deaths the previous year. This one battle saw 46 casualties. Horrified authorities around the world blamed prison conditions, staff error, breakdowns in gang operations, and more. In any case, the massacre continues to hang over the Honduaran government's escalating, controversial anti-gang campaigns.

John O'Sullivan

It's remarkable how well prison gangs can hide their feuds until one terrible confrontation. In 2020, an interprison feud between the Aryan Brotherhood and Dead Man Incorporated escalated over an assault in the Roxbury Correctional Institution in Maryland. John O’Sullivan, a high-ranking DMI member in Maryland Correctional Institution at Jessup, was stabbed to death in response. Four Aryans were convicted of his murder following an investigation that revealed the structure and influence of their organization. The attorney for the state revealed that O’Sullivan was actually aiming to make peace with his gang’s rivals. Instead falling victim to violence dealt a more devastating blow than inflicting it.

Ezequiel “Wicked” Romo

The Blythe Street gang of California was hardly affected by Ezequiel Romo’s incarceration at the Centinela State Prison. He continued leading operations from inside, even ordering hits that would sometimes target his own men. The brutally efficient Romo was reportedly planning an alliance with the Mexican Mafia in 2024 when he was shanked by three men in front of corrections officers. Four hits of pepper spray couldn't stop the attackers. The attacked died of his injuries soon thereafter. The exact motivation for the hit was never fully determined, but the man fittingly known as “Wicked” had earned more than a few enemies.

Todd “Fox” Morgan

Robbery, assault and felony arms possession earned Todd “Fox” Morgan a life sentence at California’s Salinas Valley State Prison in 2002. That’s where his criminal career really exploded through drug smuggling operations with the Aryan Brotherhood. It all came to an end on October 23, 2025, when Morgan was fatally stabbed in the prison yard by two other lifers and a death row inmate. The already condemned killers did not hide their murder at all, but the motivation for it remains uncertain. The reportedly high-ranking Morgan’s business was certainly more discreet than his death, but now everyone is interested in this incident 23 years in the making.

Hugo Pinell

The San Quentin Six were practically celebrities after their 1971 prison break attempt fueled the riot that killed activist George Jackson. Their highly publicized trial was the longest in California history at the time, but few kept up with their fate afterward. Hugo Pinell was the only member to spend the rest of his life behind bars for his history of sexual assault and violent confrontations with guards. In 2015, at age 70, he was released into the general population of New Folsom Prison after spending 45 years in solitary confinement. But it would be only two weeks before Pinell was killed by prospects for the Aryan Brotherhood. As it so happens, the high-profile prison veteran’s murder sparked a riot.

Vincenzo Puccio

The law had finally caught up with Vincenzo Puccio when he was sent to Palermo’s Ucciardone Prison in 1986. But the ruthless Sicily hitman was said to have had plans for taking over the Corleonesi Family after his ascension in an associated gang. So on May 11, 1989, he was beaten to death by two fellow gangsters in a supposed act of self-defense. However, the coinciding killing of Puccio’s brother on the outside suggested a conspicuous concern for revenge. The killers were convicted of Puccio’s murder, with one agreeing to inform the government on Salvatore Riina for ordering the hits. In death, Puccio brought down the Corleonesi leadership after all.

Los Choneros members and splinters

The 2020 assassination of Los Choneros leader Jorge Luis Zambrano destabilized the criminal underworld of Ecuador. In particular, his organization began splintering into rival gangs spread across the country’s prison system. Finally, on February 23, 2021, four simultaneous riots left 79 inmates dead. A national state of emergency was declared to control prison violence, but Guayaquil’s Litoral Penitentiary experienced a riot in September that left more than a hundred people dead. Two months later, another riot in that very same prison saw 68 casualties. Thus, Los Choneros and its offshoots formally entered a gang war that continues to claim countless lives, in and out of prison.

Leandro Norero

One particularly consequential episode in Ecuador’s gang warfare began in the Latacunga Penitentiary in October of 2022. It wouldn't be until 2025 when authorities confirmed the wild circumstances surrounding Leandro Norero’s suspicious death in a prison riot. Evidence suggests this was a targeted hit ordered by Los Lobos leader Wilmer Chavarría Barré, who in the previous year had faked his death, altered his appearance, and relocated to Spain. He had one of his own traffickers killed, along with rival Samir Maestre Mena, in order to gain control of their routes. That one of the targets was in prison says a lot about Barré’s power even then, but law enforcement caught up three years later.

Andrew “Dumbo” Gallacher

Twenty years into his sentence at HMP Addiewell in Scotland, Andrew “Dumbo” Gallacher was believed to still be a prominent member of the Lyons Crime Family. He even famously survived an attack in August 2021. Still, the public seemed stumped when the enforcer was found dead of an apparent overdose just three months later. It wasn’t until 2025 when it was determined that he was forcibly given this cocktail by unknown parties with unknown motivations. This wound up being a historically devastating year for the Lyons, marked by the assassination of two leaders and the arrest of four members in Dubai. Confirming Gallacher’s murder was the beginning of the organization’s instabilities coming to light.

Giuseppe De Vito

The Canadian public was baffled by the sudden death of Giuseppe De Vito at the Donnacona Institution in 2013. This came just two weeks after the Rizzuto family smuggler’s estranged wife was convicted of filicide following revelations of De Vito’s double life. Over time, authorities determined that he was poisoned with cyanide on orders from Vito Rizzuto himself. “Ponytail,” as he was nicknamed, was apparently marked for death when he aligned with a rival gang’s conspiracy to take control of the Montreal Mafia. Although the full circumstances of De Vito’s death are speculation, his criminal ambitions ultimately led to nothing but tragedy.

Gulf Cartel in Apodaca

A particularly heated gang war in Mexico came to a boiling point on February 19, 2012, with a shocking sneak attack. With gang violence escalating in prisons at the time, Cereso Apodaca separated the members of the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas by cell blocks. But staff collusion allowed Los Zetas to swarm their rivals overnight and unleash a massacre. More than 40 Gulf Cartel members were reported dead, though one report offers a substantially higher death toll. This particularly brazen gangland incident enlightened the public to the extent of corruption and inadequate facilities within Mexico’s prison system. The government responded with an overhaul, but the massacre at Apodaca escalated tensions in the criminal world at large.

Rudolph Tyner

In 1979, Rudolph Tyner was sentenced to death for killing Bill and Myrtle Moon while robbing their South Carolina market. But his early execution in the Central Correctional Institution was the true historically shocking story. The victims’ son Tony Cimo hired serial killer Donald Henry Gaskins to assassinate Tyner during his appeal trial. On September 12, 1982, Tyner was killed with a makeshift C4 explosive planted in his cell. The headline homicide earned Gaskins the title of “Meanest Man in America,” as well as a death sentence that was carried out in 1991. Meanwhile, Cimo served less than three years of an eight-year prison sentence for commissioning this monumental act of revenge.

Necmettin Altındöken

The attempted assault and ultimate death of Özgecan Aslan in 2015 raised major concerns about women’s safety in Turkey. Ahmet Suphi Altındöken committed the murder with assistance from his father Necmettin and a friend. The Altındökens were both sentenced to life in an Adana prison, where they were both shot with a smuggled gun by Gültekin Alan in 2016. Ahmet survived his injuries, but Necmettin did not. The challenges in securing burial rights reflected a lack of public sympathy, though Alan’s supposed act of vigilantism was an ironic response to a crisis of violence. Altındöken was reportedly disguised as a woman for a secret midnight burial in an unidentified location.

Shining Path

The prisons of Peru were flooded with members of the Shining Path six years into the Maoist militia’s war with the government. So on the morning of June 18, 1986, inmates in Callao and Lima occupied their respective prisons to demand the release of 500 convicted terrorists. Negotiations broke down as the Shining Path launched a massive external attack on civilians in response. Thus, the government deployed several military branches to put down the prison insurgencies. At least 90 of the nearly 300 killed were illegally executed. While there can be no excuse for the horrors perpetrated by the Shining Path, this brutal collective loss hardly placed the Peruvian state on the moral high ground to the world.

Ian Watkins

There was a time when Ian Watkins was notorious as the lead singer for the popular Welsh rock band Lostprophets. Sadly, the reputation of the whole group was destroyed by the frontman's conviction on many counts of horrific sexual abuse in 2012. His stint in HM Prison Wakefield, expected to last nearly 30 years, was spent in fear of violent inmates seeking fame or simply crassly moralistic justice. Watkins barely survived a hostage situation in 2023. Two years later, two inmates were charged with stabbing him to death. That such a profoundly shocking moment in rock history was quickly brushed off as unsurprising has essentially sealed the ruin of Watkins’ s legacy.

Domenico Tripodo

The so-called “First ‘Ndrangheta war” was set up by the arrest of Domenico Tripodo in 1975. The charismatic crime boss was finally brought down by the hit he ordered on former underboss and prospective usurper Giovanni De Stefano. The victim’s brother Paolo then secured his revenge and ascension with the assistance of Raffaele Cutolo, the incarcerated leader of Nuova Camorra Organizzata. Tripodo’s death by stabbing on August 26, 1976 effectively put an end to the violent power struggle within ‘Ndrangheta. Paolo De Stefano took his place at the head of ‘Ndrangheta, only to himself be killed at the start of the gang’s second internal war nine years later. Power in organized crime is unstable enough without prison.

Billy Wright

Going by the wonderful nickname King Rat, Billy Wright was a prominent Northern Irish loyalist and leader of the Loyalist Volunteer Force. He was heavily involved in violent paramilitary activity during The Troubles and staunchly opposed the peace process, often killing innocent Catholic civilians. Wright was eventually arrested for making death threats and imprisoned in the high-security Maze Prison in 1997. Despite warnings about threats to his life, he was housed near inmates belonging to LVF’s rivals, the Irish National Liberation Army. On December 27, 1997, INLA members smuggled weapons into the prison and assassinated Wright inside a van, shooting him multiple times at close range. The hit raised serious concerns about security failures at the facility, with many suspecting collusion by prison authorities.

Felix Mitchell

Known as Felix the Cat, Felix Mitchell was a notorious Oakland drug lord who led a heroin empire called The 69 Mob. At its peak, his enormous operation was generating up to $400,000 a month. But in 1985, Mitchell was convicted on charges of running a criminal enterprise and was sentenced to life in prison. On August 21, 1986, just one year into his lengthy sentence, Mitchell was fatally stabbed by another inmate at Leavenworth Federal Penitentiary. The killer’s motive remains unclear, though some reports suggest it was over a $10 drug debt. Mitchell’s lavish and controversial funeral in Oakland drew thousands of onlookers, featuring the likes of a horse-drawn carriage and a dozen Rolls-Royce limousines.

Rufus McCain

When you think of prisoners escaping from Alcatraz, you probably think of Frank Morris and the Anglin brothers, who disappeared into the night on June 11, 1962 and were never seen again. But over twenty years earlier, another attempt was made by Rufus McCain and four others. On the night of January 13, 1939, the five men attempted to escape Alcatraz, but unlike Morris and the Anglins, they were all caught before making it to the water. McCain and another inmate, Henri Young, were sentenced to 22 months in solitary for the attempt. They were eventually released back into the prison population, but Young, likely suffering the brutal psychological effects of isolation, stabbed McCain to death with a sharpened wooden spoon.

Lorenzo Chierici

A prominent Italian Fascist, ​Lorenzo Chierici served as Chief of Police under Benito Mussolini in 1943. After Mussolini’s ousting on July 25, Chierici was removed from his post but later reinstated by Prime Minister Pietro Badoglio as a lieutenant colonel in the Royal Italian Army. Following the Armistice of Cassibile, which ended fighting between Italy and the Allies, Chierici was arrested by the Nazis and handed over to the Italian Social Republic. Branded a traitor, Chierici was thrown in prison and was later murdered inside his own cell. The specific events remain unclear and the motives are still questioned, although most believe that he was silenced in order to prevent his testimony at the upcoming Verona Trial.

Angelo La Barbera

Even mob bosses aren’t immune to prison retaliations. Angelo La Barbera was a prominent Sicilian mafioso who, alongside his brother Salvatore, led the Palermo Centro family, playing a key role in the First Mafia War of the early ‘60s. Convicted of seven murders, La Barbera received a 22 year sentence in the Trial of the 114, which was one of the first large-scale efforts by the Italian state to confront the Sicilian Mafia. In 1975, he was imprisoned in Perugia, where, on October 28, he was fatally stabbed by three fellow inmates. Reports suggest the murder was ordered by the Greco family, possibly to prevent him from exposing politicians with ties to the Mafia.

Kurt Gustav Wilckens

This German anarchist became known for assassinating Argentine military officer Colonel Héctor Varela in 1923. Just a few years earlier, Varela had killed hundreds during a brutal suppression of striking laborers in Patagonia, and Wilckens wanted revenge. He surrendered immediately after the assassination and was imprisoned in Buenos Aires, and his presence drew attention owing to his strong political stance. On June 15, 1923, Wilckens was murdered by Jorge Ernesto Pérez Millán, a right-wing paramilitary officer who was smuggled into the prison. Millán’s killing of Wilckens was also motivated by revenge, fueling the cycle of political violence that was prevalent in Argentina at the time.

Tung Kuei-sen

This Taiwanese gangster was a member of the United Bamboo Gang, which is one of the country’s most powerful Triads. Tung gained international notoriety for his involvement in the 1984 assassination of Henry Liu, a prominent journalist critical of the Chinese Nationalist Party, which rules the Republic of China in Taiwan. After years on the run, Tung was eventually captured, extradited to the United States, and sentenced to life in prison. He served his time in Pennsylvania’s Lewisburg Federal Penitentiary, and on February 21, 1991, Tung was stabbed in a prison brawl over cigarettes. He was grievously injured and stayed alive for over a month, but he ultimately died from his injuries on April 3.

John Mansfield

Back in 2006, British man John Mansfield broke into the home of his 63-year-old neighbor, Ann Alfanso, and attacked her with a knife. Alfanso died after receiving dozens of stab wounds, and police say that Mansfield had hoped to rob her of her spare change. Mansfield was sent to HMP Whitemoor, where he was detained in the close supervision centre owing to his history of violence with other inmates. According to prison officials, those held in CSC are often considered the worst of the worst and are prone to inflicting violence on other inmates. Indeed, on April 13, 2025, Mansfield died from horrific head injuries that were sustained in an attack. He was 63 years old - the same age as Ann Alfanso.

Yvan Colonna

A Corsican nationalist, Yvan Colonna was convicted for the assassination of Claude Érignac, a French prefect of Corsica who was killed in an act of resistance against French rule. Arrested in 2003 after years on the run, Colonna consistently denied involvement but was ultimately sentenced to life in prison. On March 2, 2022, Colonna was violently attacked by fellow inmate and radicalized Islamist, Franck Elong Abé. The assault was reportedly motivated by religious grievances, with Abé claiming that Colonna had “disrespected Muhammad.” Colonna was in a coma for three weeks, but he never recovered and died on March 21. His death sparked outrage and protests in Corsica, further reigniting tensions between the French government and Corsican nationalists.

Rodolfo Cadena

Nicknamed Cheyenne, Rodolfo Cadena was a prominent leader of the prison gang Mexican Mafia, or La eMe. Born in San Antonio and raised in California, Cadena became involved in gang activity at an early age, leading to his incarceration at age sixteen for murder. While imprisoned, he rose through La eMe’s ranks, eventually seeking to unify various gangs, including the Nuestra Familia, in order to reduce violence. However, this initiative was opposed by La eMe leaders, who ordered hits on rival gang members, undermining Cadena’s peace efforts and even marking him for death. On December 17, 1972, Cadena was ambushed by NF members, stabbed approximately fifty times, thrown from the third story floor, and stabbed another dozen times on the ground.

Larry Davis

This Bronx native gained notoriety in 1986 after engaging in a huge shootout with the NYPD, during which six officers were shot and wounded. Davis evaded capture for over two weeks before surrendering. Though acquitted of attempted murder, Davis was later convicted in 1991 for the murder of suspected drug dealer Raymond Vizcaino and sentenced to 25 years to life. On February 20, 2008, while incarcerated at New York’s Shawangunk Correctional Facility, Davis was fatally stabbed multiple times by fellow Crip inmate Luis Rosado. Davis lost an incredible amount of blood in the attack, and the prison nurse called for emergency transport after being unable to treat him. He was already dead by the time he arrived at St. Luke’s Hospital.

Jesse Anderson

Everyone remembers or knows about Jeffrey Dahmer being murdered in prison. But what some people forget is that there was another victim that day. He was Jesse Anderson, an inmate serving life in prison after murdering his wife and blaming the attack on two Black men. Anderson was serving time alongside Dahmer in Wisconsin’s Columbia Correctional Institution, and they were both scheduled to clean the prison gym with another inmate, Christopher Scarver. Anderson was severely beaten by Scarver while out on detail, and he died two days later from his injuries. Like Dahmer, it’s believed that Anderson was killed for targeting Black men in his crime.

Polly Bartlett

While the story is locally regarded as a fanciful folk tale, Polly Bartlett is said to be the first serial killer in the history of Wyoming. Bartlett reportedly owned a beautiful lodge, which would house rich travelers heading west in the mid 19th century. She would provide them with a warm meal and whiskey, but would poison the meal, steal their belongings, and bury the travelers on her property. Investigators later found a total of 22 bodies buried around the lodge. Bartlett was later arrested for the murders and put in a jail cell to await trial. But before it could even begin, Bartlett was shot through the cell window by a German immigrant named Otto Kalkhorst.

Earl Krugel

This violent activist was an acting member of the Jewish Defense League, a far-right organization that purports to physically resist antisemitism. In November of 2001, Krugel was arrested after receiving a large shipment of gunpowder. When questioned, Krugel admitted that he was making an explosive device in order to bomb both the King Fahd Mosque in Culver City and the office of Arab-American congressman Darrell Issa. He was sentenced to twenty years in prison, serving his time in Phoenix’s Federal Correctional Institution. On November 4, 2005, Krugel was using an exercise machine when a neo-Nazi named David Jennings approached from behind and bludgeoned him to death with a block of concrete.

Munna Bajrangi

Born Prem Prakash Singh, Munna Bajrangi was a notorious Indian gangster and politician from Uttar Pradesh. Active primarily in the 1990s, Bajrangi was linked to multiple criminal activities, including extortion and various murders, serving as a professional contract killer. Bajrangi later gained notoriety after allegedly killing a member of the legislative assembly, Krishnanand Rai, in 2005. On July 9, 2018, just a day after being transferred to Baghpat jail for a court hearing, Bajrangi was shot dead inside the prison. His assassin was fellow gangster and prisoner Sunil Rathi. When asked why he had murdered Bajrangi, Rathi said that he had called him chubby.

Richard Huckle

One of Britain’s most notorious criminals was Richard Huckle, a young man who spent a lot of time in Malaysia. While there, Huckle spent his days doing freelance photography, studying IT, and working as a Christian missionary. But it was also during this time that Huckle committed dozens of horrible sexual offenses. Huckle was eventually arrested by the National Crime Agency and convicted of 71 counts of sexual assault, resulting in life in prison. On October 13, 2019, Huckle was killed in his cell by a fellow inmate named Paul Fitzgerald. This attack shocked the prosecution that was trying Fitzgerald for the murder, who called it a “sadistic” and “prolonged” attack. Fitzgerald was given an extra 34 years for killing Huckle.

Nikolay Radkevich

A Russian serial killer from the early 20th century, Nikolay Radkevich began his spree after being expelled by the Cadet Corps. Wanting to purge the world of what he considered depraved and immoral women, Radkevich killed three sex workers between June and September of 1909. He was finally apprehended on September 17, immediately after killing his third and final victim in a hotel. He was sentenced to eight years in the Katorga, a Russian form of punishment in which prisoners were sent off to Siberia to perform forced labor. Radkevich spent four years in these brutal conditions before he was killed by fellow inmates.

John Jairo Moreno Torres

Known as Johnny the Leper from a childhood injury, Colombian killer John Jairo Moreno Torres caused trouble from a young age. He dropped out of school at 13 and joined the most feared gang in Bogotá, selling drugs and committing a number of violent crimes. He officially killed four people throughout his time as the gang’s leader, but it’s believed that he may have murdered up to 20. He also committed a number of assaults before he was apprehended in February 1998, still just a teenager. He was sent to Bogotá’s La Modelo prison and was violently executed by other prisoners, who shot Torres twelve times with a smuggled firearm.

Colin Hatch

Called both “highly dangerous” and a “menace to the public,” Colin Hatch was sentenced to life back in 1994 for committing an unspeakable crime. Hatch had a history of similar behavior and was sent to a maximum facility in Yorkshire called HM Prison Full Sutton. He remained in the prison for almost two decades, but his life was cut short in February of 2011. In what prison officials called “an incident,” Hatch was ambushed by another inmate named Damien Fowkes, who had a history of attacking prisoners involved with a certain type of crime. Ian Huntley, another prominent victim of Fowkes, survived his attack. Hatch was not so lucky, and he died from the injuries that Fowkes had caused.

Enriqueta Martí

Known by creepy names like The Vampire of Barcelona, Enriqueta Martí was a Spanish serial killer who is thought to have murdered twelve victims in the early 1900s. Unfortunately, the records of these crimes are quite scarce, owing to both the time period and the economic situation of her victims, leading some to question Martí’s guilt. Adding to the general confusion is the lack of a trial. Martí was arrested and held in the Reina Amàlia jail but was killed before her trial could begin. The official story is that Martí was attacked by her fellow inmates and publicly hanged on the jail’s patio.

Billy Chemirmir

Throughout the late 2010s, Texas man Billy Chemirmir would pose as a maintenance man and break into the homes of elderly women. He would then attack the women while they were alone and smother them with a pillow. While Chemirmir was officially convicted of just two deaths, police believe that he is responsible for dozens of murders around the greater Dallas area. He was convicted of the deaths of Lu Thi Harris and Mary Brooks, resulting in two life sentences in the H. H. Coffield Unit of Texas. While inside, Chemirmir made some inappropriate comments about the family of his cellmate and was subsequently beaten to death - and possibly even stabbed with a pen.

Robert Liberty

In 1966, Robert Liberty attempted to take his own life but failed and was placed in the Orange County Medical Center. There he met 31-year-old Marcella Landis and the two entered a relationship. Soon after, Liberty strangled Landis to death with a stocking. He was declared legally insane and placed in a state hospital until 1969 when he was deemed fit to re-enter society. He soon killed two more people - his roommate, Thomas Astorina, and Robert Irion, a nurse who worked at the state hospital. Liberty was arrested again following an FBI manhunt and once again pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. But before his trial could take place, Liberty was strangled and killed by a cellmate named Timothy Dudley.

Robert Simon

Known as Mudman by his peers, Robert Simon was a member of the Philadelphia-based Warlocks Motorcycle Club, an outlaw club with a reputation for violence. Even by their standards, Simon was known as a dangerous renegade and was supposedly made the club’s enforcer owing to his history of reckless violence. Aside from committing armed robbery and arson, Simon is also known to have killed two people - his teenage girlfriend, Beth Smith Dusenberg, and a New Jersey police officer named Ippolito Gonzalez, who had pulled Simon over during a routine traffic stop. The killing of Gonzalez sent Simon to New Jersey State Prison, where he was beaten to death by cellmate Ambrose Harris while awaiting execution.

Leslie Bailey

Some crimes are so horrible that the people who commit them have to be segregated in prison. That was the case with English serial killer Leslie Bailey, who was a “Rule 43” inmate at Whitemoor Prison. This meant that Bailey had to be separated from the rest of the prison population, as officials feared that he would be attacked. The rule stems from Bailey’s past, as he was linked to various unspeakable crimes, including the deaths of three individuals. Bailey was known to roam with a gang of criminals, and police believe that they were guilty of even more crimes and deaths. Regardless, justice came for Bailey, despite his position in prison. In October of 1993, Bailey was found strangled to death in his cell.

Edwin Kaprat

With most of his victims being elderly women, Florida man Edwin Kaprat earned the moniker The Granny Killer. Kaprat’s first victim was a 27-year-old man named Lee Bugay, who had been beaten over the head with a pipe. He then killed a number of elderly individuals throughout 1993, often committing arson in the process and staging their deaths as accidents. An anonymous individual phoned the police and told them to look into Kaprat, who had previously been jailed for the death of Bugay. His fingerprints were found at one of the crime scenes, and Kaprat was arrested and sentenced to death. But on April 19, 1995, Kaprat got into a fight with fellow inmates Mario Lara and Rigoberto Sanchez-Velasco and was fatally stabbed.

Roch Thériault

Considered one of the most notorious criminals in Canadian history, Roch Thériault was a cult leader who founded the doomsday cult Ant Hill Kids in the 1970s. Claiming to be a prophet, Thériault went by the name Moïse and was known to manipulate his followers, committing horrific acts including physical abuse and murder. The cult was disbanded in 1989 when Thériault was arrested for assault, and he was later convicted for the murder of follower Solange Boilard. While serving his time in Dorchester Penitentiary, Thériault was stabbed in the neck by his cellmate, Matthew MacDonald. MacDonald then reportedly walked to the officers’ station and handed them the shiv, saying, “Here’s the knife, I’ve sliced him up.”

Carl Williams

A prominent drug trafficker, Carl Williams was a powerful figure in the Australian underworld. He played a large role in the Melbourne gangland killings that occurred between 1998 and 2010, with officials believing that he is responsible for at least ten of the 36 contract killings. He was eventually put away on four counts of murder, having personally ordered their deaths. The victims were Jason and Lewis Moran of the prominent Moran family, criminal associate Mark Mallia, and Michael Marshall, who was shot and killed in front of his young son. Williams was sent to HM Prison Barwon, where fellow inmate Matthew Charles Johnson bludgeoned him to death with the handle of an exercise bike.

Roger Kibbe

Dubbed the “I-5 Strangler,” Roger Kibbe was responsible for the assault and deaths of at least eight women. His killing spree mostly occurred around Sacramento, California between 1977 and 1987, and he would hunt for his victims along the interstate highway, hence the nickname. He was eventually arrested in 1988 and received an initial prison sentence of 25 years to life. In the following years, more life sentences were added to this as further evidence of his other murders were discovered. On February 28th 2021, while at the Mule Creek State Prison in California, the ‘I-5 Strangler’ was strangled to death by his cellmate, Jason Budrow, who reportedly did it in retribution for his crimes.

Gerard John Schaefer

Gerard John Schaefer was working as a sheriff's deputy in Florida when he abducted two young female hitchhikers and tied them up in a remote forest. The teenagers were able to escape after he was called away on police duty. Although he claimed he only wanted to show them the risks of hitchhiking, he was apprehended and charged with false imprisonment and aggravated assault. While out on bail, Schaefer abducted and killed two other girls, and was re-arrested after their decomposed bodies were found in the woods. Schaefer was sentenced to serve two concurrent life terms at the Florida State Prison where, in 1995, he was killed by another inmate, Vincent Rivera. Rivera was handed an additional 53 years for the murder.

Sidonio Teixeira

In 2008, Sidonio Teixeira was sentenced to life imprisonment for taking the life of his young daughter and also attempting to murder his son. While serving his sentence at the Long Lartin top security prison in Worcestershire, England, Teixeira was attacked by another inmate while at the prison workshop. The culprit, Victor Castigador, reportedly put a stone in a sock, which he used to beat Teixeira, who later succumbed to his injuries. Castigador, who claimed to have been purging the world of evil, was found guilty in 1990 of the murders of two security guards and was serving a life sentence already. He was subsequently issued a whole-life order by the Birmingham Crown Court for killing Teixeira.

Donald Leroy Evans

Although he was only found guilty of two murders, Donald Leroy Evans admitted responsibility in the killings of over 70 people. If true, this would make him one of the most prolific serial killers in U.S. history. On August 1st 1991, Evans took the life of his last victim - Beatrice Louise Routh in Mississippi. He was arrested four days later and eventually sentenced to death. His crimes also resulted in convictions at the federal level and in the state of Florida. In 1999, while sitting on death row, a fellow inmate named Jimmie Mack decided to bring Evans’ execution date a little closer. The two were reportedly in the prison shower when Mack stabbed Evans to his death.

Nikolai Fefilov

Over the span of six years, Nikolai Fefilov reigned terror in the town of Sverdlovsk in the then-Soviet Union. In all, he had a victim count of seven, all of whom were female. Fefilov had served in the Soviet Army and it is believed that the motivation for his crimes came from being rejected by a woman he loved. He was arrested in 1988, after being caught by a senior Soviet official trying to dispose of his last victim’s body. Fefilov was in jail awaiting trial when he met his demise at the hands of his cellmate on August 30th 1988. Conspiracies soon arose that his murder was arranged in order to prevent a potentially sensationalized trial. Those claims have, however, never been confirmed.

Laron Williams

In October 1977, Laron Williams claimed the life of a sex worker in Nashville, Tennessee. Before his trial, he bargained a plea deal that came with a sentence of 10 years imprisonment. He was still serving his time in 1981, when he escaped from the Memphis Correctional Center. While on the run, Williams killed an additional two people - a police officer who tried to arrest him and a Catholic priest. He was recaptured soon after and sent back to prison, this time with two death sentences. On July 8th 1985, Williams was descended upon by a group of other inmates, reportedly for being on the prison phone for too long. He was left severely injured and ultimately died at a nearby hospital.

Daniel Camargo Barbosa

Born in Colombia in 1930, Daniel Camargo Barbosa had a pretty troubling childhood. Prevented from furthering his education by financial constraints, Barbosa eventually fell into a life of crime. He began with petty thefts before escalating into abducting, assaulting and murdering young girls. Barbosa first went to prison in Colombia, where it is believed that he claimed the lives of more than 80 girls. He escaped from prison and fled to Ecuador, where he continued his despicable actions, later owning up to 72 murders in the country. Barbosa was incarcerated for 16 years but his sentence was cut short just five years in when he was killed by another inmate, who happened to be one of his victims’ nephews.

Lenko Latkov

Between 1999 and 2000, Lenko Latkov committed three murders in the Haskovo Province of the People’s Republic of Bulgaria. All of his victims were elderly women, although he also targeted young boys and girls, who he apparently only assaulted. Latkov was suspected of carrying out three other murders, but none of them were confirmed before his death. Prior to his trial, he first received psychological evaluations, before being transferred to a prison where he was held. Alas, Latkov never got the opportunity to answer for his crimes. On the 13th of September 2003, his cellmate Sami Bayram Aptullah, who had been locked up for attempted murder, succeeded in killing him following a heated argument.

Lloyd Avery II

You may know Lloyd Avery II from John Singleton’s seminal film “Boyz n the Hood.” While he didn’t have a large role, it was an important one, as he was one of the Bloods who shoots and kills Ricky Baker. Later, Ice Cube avenges Ricky and kills Avery in a drive-by. Eight years after the movie came out, Avery was sentenced to life in prison after murdering two people in a shooting. He was placed in Pelican Bay State Prison alongside cellmate Kevin Roby, a Satanist who was serving time for killing his own sister. On September 4, 2005, Roby strangled Avery to death, supposedly after Avery tried converting Roby to Christianity.

Hélio José Muniz Filho

Hélio José Muniz Filho or Helinho, as he was more commonly called, was imprisoned for 201 years for the deaths of 65 people. Born and raised in Pernambuco, Brazil, Helinho was a vigilante killer, who sought to “clean up the city” by taking out people he deemed to be evil. No matter how good his intentions may have been, this was considered a crime in the eyes of the law and he was arrested in 1998. Helinho’s actions seemed to have won him favor among the residents of the town, as over 3,000 people reportedly signed a petition demanding his release. While serving his sentence, however, he was violently attacked by three inmates and later died of his injuries at a hospital.

Artur Kitaev

Just as the Soviet Union fell in the early 1990s, Artur Kitaev embarked on a spree of sex crimes and murders. This earned him the nickname ‘last sex maniac of the USSR’. During that period, Kitaev had gotten a job as a driver for an auto company. With his official vehicle, he preyed on young female hitchhikers around the city of Smolensk, claiming the lives of six of them. Kitaev was arrested in July of 1992 and sentenced to death two years later, although this was eventually commuted to a life term. The Russian killer remained in prison until September 2019 when an argument with his cellmate ended in a brutal attack that ultimately resulted in Kitaev’s demise.

Thor Nis Christiansen

Born in Denmark, Thor Nis Christiansen was brought to the U.S. by his parents at the age of five. Although a bright student in high school, Christiansen later lost interest in his studies and dropped out to work at a gas station. Around this time, he began harboring despicable thoughts, which he then made a reality after stealing a pistol from a friend. He was responsible for the deaths of four women, but his murderous spree came to an end when his intended fifth victim survived the ordeal and led the police to him months later. While serving a life sentence at Folsom State Prison, Christiansen was wounded in the exercise yard by an unidentified prisoner and later succumbed to his injuries.

José Antonio Rodríguez Vega

Dubbed “El Mataviejas” which translates to “The Old Lady Killer” in English, José Antonio Rodríguez Vega reigned terror on elderly women in Cantabria, an autonomous community in Spain. In the span of just eight months, Rodríguez Vega warmed his way into the hearts and homes of several women in the area and took the lives of at least sixteen of them. Upon his arrest, Rodríguez Vega confessed to the crimes, but later recanted his confession during his trial. Regardless, he was found guilty and sentenced to 440 years in prison. After only serving a fraction of his sentence, Rodríguez Vega met his end at the hands of two inmates at his prison in Salamanca, who brutally attacked him in the common area.

John Geoghan

It was the investigation into John Geoghan that opened the floodgates for the Catholic Church abuse allegations that permeated the 2000s. Geoghan was a Roman Catholic priest who was accused of horrible crimes throughout the greater Boston area. Following a thorough investigation into the countless allegations, Geoghan was convicted of sexual abuse and sentenced to ten years in prison in the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center. While there, he met Joseph Druce, a murderer who had been abused in boarding school. Desiring revenge against Geoghan and what he represented, Druce confronted the ex-priest in his cell, jammed the door closed, and proceeded to stomp him to death.

Léopold Dion

The crimes of Léopold Dion are pretty tragic. Not only because they involve the deaths of four people and the assault of many others, but because a large number of them could have been prevented. Dion had been convicted twice of crimes involving assault, but in both cases, he was released early by a parole board. He later succeeded in cutting short the lives of four young boys before he was arrested again - this time for good. Dion was convicted of just one murder and received the death penalty, although this was later commuted to a life sentence. He was attacked and killed in prison by a fellow inmate, who was acquitted of the crime on the basis of insanity.

Lee Roy Martin

Born and raised in Gaffney, South Carolina, Lee Roy Martin lived a seemingly normal life. He worked in a textile mill and had a wife and three children. Behind that facade, though, was a maniac who reigned terror on women in the area and was responsible for the deaths of four people. After placing two calls himself to a newspaper editor, Martin was spotted close to a crime scene by two local residents and was later arrested by police. He was sentenced to four consecutive life terms but only served about four years before he was put out of his misery by another inmate at the Central Correctional Institution in South Carolina.

Charles Schmid

The “Pied Piper of Tucson,” Charles Schmid was a serial killer who claimed the lives of three young ladies in the 1960s. Schmid was known for hanging out with a group of teenagers in the Tucson area, and when he wanted to know what taking a life would feel like, he sought his victims within that group. In the end, it was one of those same friends who was instrumental in helping the police build a winning case against him. After successfully escaping from the Arizona State Prison in 1972, Schmid was recaptured and sent back, where he met his end just three years later in a horrific attack by two other inmates.

Robert Pickton

One of the most notorious serial killers in Canadian history, Robert Pickton was convicted of murdering six people, although he was charged with 21 and later confessed to 49. He mostly targeted sex workers in downtown Vancouver, picking them up and taking them to his pig farm, where he would kill and dispose of them. He was sentenced to life in prison and served his time in Quebec’s Port-Cartier Institution. On May 19, 2024, Pickton was reportedly stabbed in the head with a broken broom handle by prisoner Martin Charest. He was rushed to the hospital and put on life support, but he died of his injuries twelve days later.

James “Whitey” Bulger

Once the most wanted fugitive in America, James “Whitey” Bulger was an infamous mob boss who controlled the Winter Hill Gang in Somerville, Massachusetts. He also worked as an FBI informant for many years, which unsurprisingly, didn’t make him many friends amongst his criminal associates. Bulger lived as a fugitive for seventeen years, but was finally arrested in 2011 and handed two consecutive life sentences for his notorious crimes, including murder. He bounced around multiple prisons before being sent to the United States Penitentiary in Hazelton, West Virginia on October 29th, 2018. In less than twenty-four hours, Bulger was ambushed by several inmates and left for dead in an unrecognizable state.

Donald Harvey

While working as a hospital orderly in Ohio and Kentucky, Donald Harvey was responsible for the deaths of a self-proclaimed eighty-seven people. Harvey employed several methods in what he deemed as a mercy killing of his patients, including the use of poisons, suffocation and withholding essential medications. He pleaded guilty to thirty-seven murders to avoid the death penalty, and was sentenced to life imprisonment. But when you describe yourself as an “angel of death,” chances are you’re bound to get a taste of your own medicine at some point. This came in the form of James Elliott, a fellow inmate at the Toledo Correctional Institution in Ohio, who descended upon Harvey, being familiar with his crimes.

Richard Loeb

Richard Loeb and Nathan Leopold were two extremely intelligent students born to wealthy parents and fantasized about committing the perfect murder. They found their victim in the young Bobby Franks, who paid the ultimate price on May 21st, 1924. The two got rid of the body but mistakenly dropped a pair of eyeglasses at the scene, which were traced back to Leopold. They managed to evade the death penalty and were sentenced to life imprisonment instead. But while Leopold maintained a stellar record through his sentence and was eventually granted parole in 1958, Loeb’s story took a gruesome turn. He met his end at the hands of another prisoner at the Stateville Penitentiary in Illinois, who viciously attacked him in the shower.

Albert DeSalvo

1960s Boston, Massachusetts was terrorized by two criminals - one, dubbed the “Boston Strangler,” who killed thirteen women, and the “Green Man,” who broke into women’s homes and assaulted them. As police launched an investigation into the Green Man’s activities, they were pointed towards Albert DeSalvo, whom they arrested and charged with the crimes. While in custody, DeSalvo confessed to also being the Boston Strangler, but due to a lack of physical evidence, he was only tried for the Green Man allegations. DeSalvo was serving a life sentence when he died after being wounded by another inmate in the prison infirmary. Decades later, DNA evidence obtained from one of the victims would prove that DeSalvo was, in fact, the Boston Strangler.

Jeffrey Dahmer

One of the most infamous serial killers to ever walk the earth, Jeffrey Dahmer was responsible for the deaths of seventeen young men. His spree came to an end in July 1991, when an intended victim escaped from Dahmer’s apartment and led the police back to him. He pleaded guilty to all the charges leveled against him and received fifteen consecutive life sentences in Wisconsin, and an additional one in Ohio. In prison, Dahmer was reportedly unremorseful for his crimes, which reportedly infuriated the aforementioned Christopher Scarver, resulting in an attack in the prison gym that left Dahmer dead. When news of his death reached the public, Dahmer’s mother asked, “Now is everybody happy?”

What are some other memorable slayings behind bars? Report these incidents in the comments below.