21st Century Murderers

Rank the Most Wicked 21st Century Murderers

Right IconThis ranking is based on an algorithm that combines various factors, including the votes of our users and search trends on the internet.

 1 
Charles Manson
(Led the Manson Family, a Cult Based in California)
Charles Manson
158
Birthdate: November 12, 1934
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Cincinnati, Ohio, United States
Died: November 19, 2017

Criminal and cult leader Charles Manson was the leader of the notorious Manson Family, a criminal cult that committed a series of murders in the late 1960s and early 1970s. He was arrested and imprisoned many times in his life and died in 2017 while serving his life sentence at California State Prison.

 2 
Richard Ramirez
(Serial Killer)
Richard Ramirez
299
Birthdate: February 29, 1960
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: El Paso, Texas, United States
Died: June 7, 2013

American serial killer, rapist, and burglar, Richard Ramirez terrorised the people of California, primarily Los Angeles, between 1984 and 1985 before being eventually captured by the police. The brutal criminal, also known as Night Stalker, was finally found guilty of 43 charges, including 13 murders and was sentenced to death. While on a death row, he died of cancer. 

 3 
Christopher Scarver
(Serial Killer)
Christopher Scarver
144
Birthdate: July 6, 1969
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Christopher Scarver is a convicted murderer whose physical assault on Jesse Anderson and serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer at the Columbia Correctional Institution resulted in the death of both Anderson and Dahmer. Already sentenced to life for killing a man named Steve Lohman, Christopher Scarver received two more life sentences for killing Anderson and Dahmer.

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 4 
Joseph James DeAngelo
(Serial Killer)
Joseph James DeAngelo
84
Birthdate: November 8, 1945
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Bath, New York, United States

Joseph James DeAngelo is an American serial killer, rapist and burglar who carried out his crimes for many years in 1970s and 1980s and was finally captured by the police in 2018. The former police officer and auto mechanic, who was known by various names like Golden State Killer and Visalia Ransacker, was sentenced to life in prison in 2020.

 5 
Oscar Pistorius
(South African Former Professional Sprinter and Convicted Murderer)
Oscar Pistorius
52
Birthdate: November 22, 1986
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Sandton, South Africa

From being an infant whose both legs were amputated below knee, Oscar Pistorius went on to become a top athlete with wins in Paralympic Games and other sporting events. The South African sprinter also became the first amputee runner to compete at the Olympics Games. However, later, he was convicted for the murder of his girlfriend and is currently imprisoned.

 6 
Whitey Bulger
(Crime Boss)
Whitey Bulger
22
Birthdate: September 3, 1929
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Died: October 30, 2018

Whitey Bulger was an Irish-American FBI informant and organized crime boss. His arrest and subsequent trial exposed FBI handler John Connolly who had helped Bulger in return for the latter's information about the Patriarca crime family. Bulger's life and work inspired the 2015 film Black Mass. Many fictional TV and film characters have also been inspired by Whitey Bulger.

 7 
Jean Harris
(Author)
Jean Harris
5
Birthdate: April 27, 1923
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Chicago, Illinois, United States
Died: December 23, 2012
 8 
Robert Pickton
(Serial killer)
Robert Pickton
17
Birthdate: October 24, 1949
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Port Coquitlam
Canadian serial killer Robert Pickton was convicted of murdering six women and later charged with the murders of 20 more women, mostly from Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. The latter charges were stayed. He received a life sentence without parole for 25 years. He wrote a controversial autobiography, too.
 9 
Scott Peterson
(Murderer)
Scott Peterson
35
Birthdate: October 24, 1972
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: San Diego, California

Former salesman, Scott Peterson, is a convicted murderer who is imprisoned in San Quentin State Prison. Peterson was convicted for the murder of his seven months pregnant wife, Lacy, and unborn son, Connor. Though Lacy’s family initially thought him to be innocent, evidence gathered later proved otherwise. The case attracted tremendous media attention and even inspired numerous movies and documentaries.

 10 
Patricia Krenwinkel
(American Convicted Murderer and Member of the Manson Family)
Patricia Krenwinkel
18
Birthdate: December 3, 1947
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Los Angeles, California, United States

A former member of the notorious Charles Manson's "Family," Patricia Krenwinkel is a criminal who has participated in multiple murders. She was part of the gang that murdered actress Sharon Tate, who was pregnant at the time of her death. Krenwinkel has been denied parole fourteen times and is currently incarcerated at the California Institution for Women.

 11 
Mary Bell
(Murder Convict)
Mary Bell
26
Birthdate: May 26, 1957
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland, England
Mary Bell was convicted of strangling 4-year-old Martin Brown and 3-year-old Brian Howe in 1968, when she was just 11. She committed the second crime with a 13-year-old friend named Norma Joyce Bell. After she was released in 1980, after 12 years, she took up various pseudonyms.
 12 
Susan Atkins
(American Murderer and Member of Charles Manson's Crime Family)
Susan Atkins
43
Birthdate: May 7, 1948
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: San Gabriel, California, United States
Died: September 24, 2009

Susan Atkins was an American murderer who was convicted for participating in eight killings, including the infamous Tate murders, carried out by members of the Manson Family. Sentenced to life imprisonment, Atkins was the longest-serving female inmate in California history at the time of her death. 

 13 
Darlie Routier
(Murderer)
Darlie Routier
29
Birthdate: January 4, 1970
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Altoona, Pennsylvania, United States
Darlie Routier was convicted of stabbing her 5-year-old son Damon to death in 1996 and sentenced to death by lethal injection. She was also charged with killing her other son, 6-year-old Devon, but not tried for it. Following multiple appeals by her, fresh DNA tests were ordered and are pending.
 14 
Diane Downs
(American Criminal Who Murdererd Her Daughter and Attempted to Murder Her Other Two Children)
Diane Downs
20
Birthdate: August 7, 1955
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Phoenix, Arizona, United States
Diane Downs killed her own daughter in 1983. She also tried killing her other children and then made up a story about how a man had tried carjacking her and had shot her children. She was sentenced to life plus 50 years but is eligible for parole at age 65. 
 15 
Leslie Van Houten
(American Convicted Murderer and Member of the Manson Family)
Leslie Van Houten
26
Birthdate: August 23, 1949
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Altadena, California, United States

Leslie Van Houten is a convicted murderer. A former member of the infamous Manson Family, Houten played a major role in the Tate-LaBianca murders of 1969. Since her highly publicized court trials, Leslie Van Houten has been portrayed in several films; she has been played by actresses like Kristen Hager, Tania Raymonde, Greer Grammer, Hannah Murray, and Victoria Pedretti.

 16 
Luka Magnotta
(Canadian Former Adult Film Star Who Was Convicted of Murdering Chinese Student Jun Lin)
Luka Magnotta
44
Birthdate: July 24, 1982
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Scarborough, Toronto, Canada

Luka Magnotta is a Canadian convicted murderer and former pornographic film actor. He was arrested for murdering Jun Lin, an international student from Wuhan. The murder was sensationalized by the media as Luka Magnotta mailed the victim's feet and hands to federal political party offices and elementary schools. The murder inspired a three-part documentary series titled Don't F**k with Cats.

 17 
Susan Smith
(Murderer)
Susan Smith
39
Birthdate: September 26, 1971
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Union, South Carolina

Susan Smith is an American murderer who was convicted for murdering her children, Michael and Alexander, who were three-year-old and 14-month-old respectively. She falsely claimed that her kids were kidnapped by a black man before being adjudged guilty of the crime. Sentenced to life in prison, Smith is currently incarcerated at the Leath Correctional Institution in South Carolina.

 18 
Issei Sagawa
(Japanese Murderer, Cannibal and Necrophile)
Issei Sagawa
22
Birthdate: April 26, 1949
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Kobe, Hyogo, Japan

Issei Sagawa is a Japanese murderer, necrophile, and cannibal. He garnered international attention when he murdered, mutilated, cannibalized, and raped Renée Hartevelt's corpse for several days in Paris in 1981. Although he was arrested, Sagawa was released two years later after being found legally insane. Issei Sagawa has been the subject of many documentary films.

 19 
Robert Maudsley
(Serial Killer)
Robert Maudsley
19
Birthdate: June 26, 1953
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Toxteth, Liverpool

Robert Maudsley is an English serial killer currently serving life imprisonment at Wakefield Prison, England. He committed three of his four murders in prison, forcing the authorities to keep him in solitary confinement. Maudsley's case was sensationalized as it was claimed that he had eaten part of the brain of one of his victims, although the PCC refuted such claims.

 20 
Katherine Knight
(Australian Murderer)
Katherine Knight
5
Birthdate: October 24, 1955
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Tenterfield, Australia
 21 
Leonard Peltier
(Activist)
Leonard Peltier
6
Birthdate: September 12, 1944
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Anishinabe (Chippewa) Turtle Mountain Reservation, North Dakota, USA
 22 
Tommy Lynn Sells
(Serial Killer)
Tommy Lynn Sells
14
Birthdate: June 28, 1964
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Oakland, California, United States
Died: April 3, 2014
 23 
Sally McNeil
(American Former Professional Bodybuilder Who Was Convicted for the Murder of Her Husband Ray McNeil)
Sally McNeil
1
Birthdate: September 30, 1960
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Allentown, Pennsylvania, United States
 24 
William Heirens
(Serial Killer)
William Heirens
10
Birthdate: November 15, 1928
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Evanston, Illinois
Died: March 5, 2012
 25 
Leslie Grantham
(Best Known for His Role of 'Dirty Den Watts' from the BBC Soap Opera 'EastEnders')
Leslie Grantham
5
Birthdate: April 30, 1947
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Camberwell, London, England
Died: June 15, 2018

Best known as the villain Dirty Den from the BBC soap EastEnders, Leslie Grantham initially worked as a soldier with the Royal Fusiliers of the British Army. Convicted of the murder of a cab driver in Germany, he spent a decade in prison. He later attempted suicide as aftermath of a sex scandal.

 26 
Javaris Crittenton
(Basketball player)
Javaris Crittenton
1
Birthdate: December 31, 1987
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Atlanta, Georgia, United States
 27 
Joey Merlino
(Crime boss)
Joey Merlino
3
Birthdate: March 16, 1962
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
 28 
Joseph Massino
(Criminal)
Joseph Massino
5
Birthdate: January 10, 1943
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: New York City, USA
 29 
Vincent Li
(Canadian Computer Software Engineer and Murderer)
Vincent Li
11
Birthdate: April 30, 1968
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
 30 
Arun Gawli
(Politician)
Arun Gawli
8
Birthdate: July 17, 1955
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Kopargaon, India
 31 
Phillip Adams
(American football player)
Phillip Adams
4
Birthdate: July 20, 1988
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Rock Hill, South Carolina, United States
Died: April 8, 2021
 32 
Randall Woodfield
(Serial killer)
Randall Woodfield
14
Birthdate: December 26, 1950
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Salem, Oregon, United States

Randall Woodfield is a serial killer and rapist linked to a total of 18 murders and is suspected of having killed up to 44 victims. He was dubbed the I-5 Killer or the I-5 Bandit by the media. He began committing sexual assaults and robberies in 1975 and started murdering people in 1980. He was finally arrested in March 1981.  

 33 
Caril Ann Fugate
12
Birthdate: July 30, 1943
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Lincoln, Nebraska, United States
 34 
Sada Abe
(Geisha, Criminal)
Sada Abe
6
Birthdate: May 28, 1905
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Kanda
 35 
Richard Cottingham
(Serial killer)
Richard Cottingham
15
Birthdate: November 25, 1946
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: The Bronx, USA
 36 
Assata Shakur
(American Political Activist and Member of the Black Liberation Army Who Was Convicted in the First-Degree Murder)
Assata Shakur
34
Birthdate: July 14, 1947
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: New York, New York, United States

Assata Shakur is a former member of the revolutionary organization 'Black Liberation Army'. Sentenced to life for murder, Shakur escaped from the 'Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women' and was eventually granted political asylum in Cuba. She is the first woman to be added to FBI's Most Wanted Terrorists list. Her life inspired the documentary film Eyes of the Rainbow.

 37 
David Gilbert
(Writer, Activist)
David Gilbert
3
Birthdate: October 6, 1944
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Brookline, Massachusetts, United States
 38 
Bobby Beausoleil
(Murderer)
Bobby Beausoleil
7
Birthdate: November 6, 1947
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Santa Barbara, California, United States
 39 
Robert John Bardo
(Murderer of actress and model Rebecca Schaeffer)
Robert John Bardo
8
Birthdate: January 2, 1970
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Edwards Air Force Base, California, United States
 40 
Alyssa Bustamante
23
Birthdate: January 28, 1994
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: California
 41 
Jodi Arias
(American Convicted Murderer of Her Ex-boyfriend, Travis Alexander)
Jodi Arias
15
Birthdate: July 9, 1980
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Salinas, California, United States
 42 
Erik Galen Menéndez
(American brothers who were convicted in 1996 for the murders of their parents)
Erik Galen Menéndez
6
Birthdate: November 27, 1970
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Blackwood, New Jersey, United States
 43 
Harry Aleman
(Mobster)
Harry Aleman
2
Birthdate: January 19, 1939
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Chicago, Illinois, United States
Died: May 15, 2010
 44 
Rod Ferrell
(Murderer)
Rod Ferrell
7
Birthdate: March 28, 1980
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Murray, Kentucky, United States

Rod Ferrell is an American cult leader and murderer. A member of the Vampire Clan, Ferrell claimed to be a vampire. It was later ascertained that he had become obsessed with a game called Vampire: The Masquerade. In 1998, Rod Ferrell became the youngest American on Death Row after pleading guilty to the double murder of a couple from Florida.

 45 
Irina Gaidamachuk
(Serial killer)
Irina Gaidamachuk
21
Birthdate: September 26, 1972
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Nyagan, Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, Soviet Union
 46 
Nikolai Dzhumagaliev
(Serial killer)
Nikolai Dzhumagaliev
4
Birthdate: November 15, 1952
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic
 47 
Yukio Yamaji
(Serial killer)
Yukio Yamaji
11
Birthdate: August 21, 1983
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Japan
Died: July 28, 2009
 48 
Evangelos Goussis
(Australian Former Kickboxer and Convicted of Murdering Two Victims)
Evangelos Goussis
2
Birthdate: September 14, 1967
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Evangelos Goussis is an Australian retired kickboxer and boxer. Although he had a successful boxing career, Goussis' personal life and his role in the infamous Melbourne gangland killings have overshadowed his professional achievements. Evangelos Goussis was found guilty of murdering two people of the 36 underworld figures who died in the killings.

 49 
Patrice Alègre
(French Serial Killer & Rapist)
Patrice Alègre
6
Birthdate: June 20, 1968
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Toulouse, France

Patrice Alègre is a French serial killer who raped and killed his victims. In 2002, he was convicted of six rapes, five murders, and an attempted murder and was sentenced to life imprisonment. Patrice Alègre's abusive childhood is said to be one of the reasons behind his sex-related crimes later in his life.

 50 
Wafa Idris
(First Palestinian female suicide bomber)
Wafa Idris
3
Birthdate: February 11, 1975
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Am'ari Refugee Camp, West Bank, Palestinian territories
Died: January 27, 2002