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Lee Lucas Genry'Devil's spawn'. The worst serial killer in the USA. According to his statement, he killed more than 600 people, 375 episodes have been proven
Date of Birth: 16.08.1936
Country:  USA |
Content:
- The Devil's Spawn
- Early Life and Troubled Childhood
- Early Criminal Activities
- A Life of Crime
- Continued Crimes and Arrest
- Arrest and Death
The Devil's Spawn
Henry Lee Lucas, also known as "The Devil's Spawn," was the most terrifying serial killer in the United States. According to his claims, he killed over 600 people, with 375 episodes proven. Henry Lee Lucas was an outstanding killer in many ways. He was one of the few who did not act alone and is considered, if not the record holder, then one of the leaders in the number of crimes committed. He committed some murders for money, which is also a rare occurrence among serial killers. While it cannot be said with certainty that he is the scariest killer of the 20th century, many researchers believe so.
Early Life and Troubled Childhood
Henry Lee Lucas was born on August 16, 1936, in Blacksburg, Virginia. From childhood, Lucas displayed an anomaly - long toes. Such anomaly characterizes individuals with genetic abnormalities and is sometimes found in serial killers.
His family was extremely dysfunctional, with his mother constantly abusing his father, who had lost both legs in a train accident. It is easy to imagine that young Henry became the target of his mother's violence. He was starved, beaten with sticks, and his head was slammed against the wall. He was forced to witness his mother, who occasionally worked as a prostitute, servicing clients. His mother dressed him in female clothing and mocked the pathetic appearance of the ten-year-old child. His mother's life philosophy (if it can be called the views of a half-crazy mother) excluded elements of attachment. Once, when she noticed that the child had become attached to a little mule, she shot the animal in front of him.
Henry's father was a chronic alcoholic who introduced his son to alcohol at the age of ten. Despite his unpleasant description, Henry's father was the only person who treated him kindly and with love.
Early Criminal Activities
In his childhood, Lucas killed and tortured small animals. In addition, he displayed elements of zoophilia from a young age. His numerous experiments with animals were accompanied by a large number of thefts, which he believed would help him acquire a profession and escape from his hateful home. It is also known that in his childhood, Lucas had a tendency to arson, which is one of the attributes of a serial killer. In 1951, Lucas committed his first murder at the age of 15, killing a young girl.
In the same year, Lucas was arrested for burglary and trespassing. He was sent to a juvenile facility. In the following years, he started using narcotics.
A Life of Crime
In 1953, a year after his release from the juvenile facility, Lucas was arrested again for attempted robbery and burglary. In the same year, he killed an elderly prostitute who reminded him of his mother. The woman was hit in the head with a hammer and then crushed by a van.
In 1956, Lucas escaped from prison and embarked on a series of car thefts. He was arrested again later that year and sent to a federal prison in Ohio.
After his release in 1959, Lucas settled in Michigan, where he lived with his sister. In the same year, his mother visited Michigan. Another argument with his mother pushed Lucas to his limit. In a fit of rage, he fatally stabbed her with a knife. Leaving the woman to die alone, Lucas went for a walk in the city. His mother died in the hospital. Henry was convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to 40 years in prison. After a year, he was transferred to the Ayonin psychiatric hospital. The diagnosis included psychopathy, sadism, sexual aberrations, inferiority complex, and schizophrenia.
Continued Crimes and Arrest
In 1961, Lucas attempted suicide multiple times. After being resuscitated, he decided to take as many lives as possible. Returning from the psychiatric hospital to prison, he obtained permission to access the prison archives. Studying criminal cases, Lucas delved into the intricacies of police work and hypothetically developed his own method of operation, eliminating mistakes and leaving no chance for the police.
In 1970, Lucas was released on parole. He protested against this decision, stating that if released, he would become a killer again. However, the psychiatrists were adamant that he was healthy. Lucas was essentially thrown out of prison by force. Two hours after being released, the monster killed a young girl.
Lucas met Ottis Toole, who became the mastermind behind their twisted criminal projects. The trio consisted of Lucas, Ottis Toole, and Toole's niece, Frida "Becky" Powell. Lucas took care of the child as if she were his own daughter, teaching her the basics of theft, robbery, and murder. At the same time, Toole studied the customs of cannibals from a book he happened upon. They developed a consistent method of committing crimes, characterized by killing the victim, raping them post-mortem, and then cooking and eating the remains. The bodies were buried far from the murder scene, making investigation difficult. The criminals were extremely cautious, choosing victims who they believed were moving to another state and would not be searched for some time.
In 1974, Lucas and Toole joined the satanic cult "Hand of Death" as hired workers. Their duty was to flood the county with corpses to instill fear in the population. They believed that if they had killed for entertainment, then for the sake of earning money, God had commanded them to do it. A man named Don Metrick became their curator. Metrick told Lucas, "From now on, you will do as you are told without question. You will be informed of who needs to be eliminated, and you will obey. If you do this, we will consider you one of us." The victims were part of the cult's black masses, during which they were mocked. The participants of the sect later consumed the bodies. However, no evidence of this cult was found later.
Arrest and Death
In June 1983, Lucas was arrested on suspicion of being involved in the murder of Kate Rich. Psychiatric examination revealed a wide range of illnesses and deviations in addition to the existing list. Hidden epilepsy, hypergraphia, and pyromania were discovered. Significant intoxication of the brain (Lucas smoked five packs of cigarettes a day) further burdened his mental disorder.
In July 1983, Lucas confessed to his numerous killings. However, he prolonged the process, confessing to one murder every five to six days.
Over a span of 500 miles, hundreds of bodies were discovered. Lucas could not remember all the details of the murders. Just like trying to recall the details of the last hundred conversations you had, it was impossible. Lucas couldn't either. However, small insignificant details that escaped the media and testimonies of Henry's acquaintances allowed for attributing to him between 47 and 89 murders with a very high degree of probability. However, the court required solid evidence, so Lucas was convicted of 11 murders that were proven.
In 1998, Lucas was sentenced to death in Texas, but then-Governor George W. Bush commuted his sentence to life in prison, as there was not enough evidence to prove his involvement in one of his murders in Texas.
In June 1999, Lucas was beaten to death by fellow inmates while in prison.
