[3], Treated like an outcast and a black sheep by his own family and teased by other children for his large size at a young age, Jesperson was a lonely child who showed a propensity for torturing and killing animals. She told investigators she drove them to a scenic overlook at the Columbia Gorge, where Sosnovske told her to pull over. What Is the Smiley Face Killers Theory? A journalist noticed the symbol and came up with the Happy Face Killer nickname. Angela Surbrize was the name of Jesperson's second-to-last victim. [1], At a very early ageas young as fiveJesperson would capture and torture animals. Jesperson's father denied being an abusive parent; however, while investigating for his book on the killer, author Jack Olsen was able to confirm much of the claimed abuse with other family members. [11] Jesperson gives the Jane Doe's name as Claudia. Victim 2: California Jane Doe. In November 1995, a judge released Pavlinac and Sosnovske from prison. Local police theorized the men simply got too drunk, fell into the water and drowned, but Gannon, Donovan, Duarte and Gilbertson investigated their deaths as the work of an organized group of serial killers dubbed "The Smiley Face Killers." And they were laughing," Pavlinac told investigators. Pentlands body was found in November 1992 after being discarded in Salem, Oregon. According to Jesperson, Pentland attempted to double the fee she charged for the sex he had been engaged in with her. [6] Although Jesperson was not successful with girls in high school, having never even attended a school dance or his prom, he did enter into a relationship after high school. In 1990, Taunja Bennett was found dead near a scenic overlook at the Columbia River Gorge in Oregon. According to former detective Kevin Gannon and Dr. Lee Gilbertson, when Booth was found, his body was in full rigor mortis, which normallydissipates within 24 to 36 hours after death. All calls are toll-free and confidential. Oddly,Geib's head and shoulders were sticking out of the wateras if he had gone for a swim. Check out never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! that, using genetic genealogy, they were able to identify a body found in 1993 as Patricia Skiple of Colton, Oregon. Kreuger, Peggy; Kendra Justice & Amy Hunt (March 2006). Police have not saidif a smiley face was present near the death site. As a child, he was cruel to animals he killed cats and snakes and, under the guise of hunting, inflicted pain on creatures like deer, rabbits, and coyotes. Jesperson murdered another woman in August 1992 at a Turlock, California truck stop. His friend told him to get out of the car while he parked. In March 2018, she was featured in an episode, titled "Put on a Happy Face", of the Investigation Discovery true crime series Evil Lives Here. The following morning, James did not show up for work. But a few days later, they got another call from Pavlinac. She maintains a very private lifestyle, so not much is known about her. She also said she was able to point to the location of Bennett's body based on where the brush had been cleared away. While police didn't get any hard evidence, the recordings demonstrate how Pavlinac attempted to convince her boyfriend he played a role in Bennett's death. Homan did not arrive for a golf outing the next day. Largely considered an urban legend, the Smiley Face Killer, like the Manchester Pusher, murdered his victims by drowning. He has said he strangled her because she wouldn't let him sleep. By Tim Stelloh. was 23 years old when he went missing in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Daun Slagle is the sole survivor of the "Happy Face Killer." She is the only person to survive an attack by the infamous serial killer. , 32, was found dead in September 1992. "She was that kind of woman. .css-m6thd4{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;display:block;margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;font-family:Gilroy,Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.2;font-weight:bold;color:#323232;text-transform:capitalize;}@media (any-hover: hover){.css-m6thd4:hover{color:link-hover;}}Idaho Murders: What Led Police to Bryan Kohberger, Adnan Syed: A Complete Timeline of His Trial, Appeal and Killing of Hae Min Lee. He would go on to share details of the crime on other restroom walls. T he Smiley Face death toll continues to climb, this time in Germany. A few days before his arrest, he wrote a letter to his brother in which he confessed to having killed eight people over the course of five years. Pavlinac had made the whole thing up. A "witchy" smiley face left at a murder site of the supposed "Smiley Face Serial Killer" seems to represent Charlie Manson. Brown also believes that the smiley face images found in some of the cases are likely nothing more than coincidences based upon making a guess at where the body entered the water and searching a wide . , 24, disappeared on January 19, 2008 from a bar in Woodlyn, Pennsylvania. Detectives first became aware of Pavlinac when she anonymously called them to report that she overheard Sosnovske at a bar bragging about killing Bennett. When that did not create the attention he desired, he wrote letters to media outlets and police departments confessing to his murders, starting with a six-page letter to The Oregonian in which he revealed the details of his killings. Victim 8: Julia Ann Winningham, 41. [15], Although Jesperson at one point claimed to have had as many as 160 victims,[16] only the eight women killed in Washington, Oregon, California, Florida, Nebraska, and Wyoming have been confirmed. In reality, smiley face is a joyous symbol to convey happiness and joy, which is used everywhere from message chatting to letters to wall decoration in our daily lives. Keith Hunter Jesperson was born in 1955 in British Columbia, Canada and is a serial killer. She was a mother and approximately 45 years old at the time she was killed. [5], That desire manifested in two attempted murders. Her actual identity is unknown, but "Susanna" which Jesperson has stated may have been her name was confirmed to be one of his victims because he knew about the tie wraps found around her throat. She claimed to have found a strange purse in the trunk of her car with a piece of denim from a pair of jeans inside -- When Bennett was found, her purse was gone and her jeans were missing the fly. The last known sighting of the Duquesne University graduate student was caught on asurveillance camera in the downtown area. You could tell where people had been in and out, the vehicles and everything else, limbs broke. One day, she watched, horrified, as he hung stray kittens from the family's clothesline. That this never happened. GILROY (CBS SF/AP) A victim of the Happy Face Killer has been identified nearly 30 years after her body was left near a rural Gilroy highway . Jesperson was born on April 6, 1955, in British Columbia, Canada. But Pavlinac claimed she knew where she and Sosnovske had left Bennett's body in the Columbia Gorge outside of town, and took investigators to the exact remote wooded area where Bennett was found. Create your free profile and get access to exclusive content. "Pavlinac has selfishly engaged in an obsessive and persistent obstruction of justice which deflected the investigation at an early stage, causing it to focus on her boyfriend, Sosnovske, while the real killer remained free to kill again and again," Lipscomb wrote in 1995. I'm thinking, 'My God, she is actually involved in this,'" Ingram said. Or 'I will cause trouble for your family. Their house bordered an apple orchard, and Jesperson killed stray cats and gophers that wandered nearby. In September 2009, Jesperson was indicted in Riverside County, California, on murder charges; he was extradited in December 2009. She threatened to call the police, and he strangled her. His friends went up to their room and never saw Welzien again. Jesperson eventually settled in Selah, Washington with his wife and three children. Sometime around 1957, Glatman posted Lonely Hearts adverts in newspapers to lure his victims in addition to prowling modeling agencies in Los Angeles, eventually posing as a photographer himself. In both cases, and as per usual . To learn more about this case, watch Snapped Notorious: The Happy Face Killer, streaming now on Oxygen. In September 1994, the body of a woman was found in Florida. After the body of his first victim, Taunja Bennett, was found, media attention surrounded Laverne Pavlinac, a woman who falsely confessed to having killed Bennett with the help of her abusive boyfriend, John Sosnovske. Victim 1:Taunja Bennett. jocks) usually after a night of drinking at a bar are kidnapped, tortured, murdered and then their . Published: Apr. Pavlinac told investigators during her last recorded statement on Feb. 26, 1990. The Santa Clara County Sheriffs Department. When Mahoney called Hurley to find out where he was waiting, Mahoney said he answered the phone, and she heard him ask someone where he was located. And she [said], 'Well, they told me I had to tell you thisbecauseif I told you then they would believe me,'" Carpenter said. "I said 'Why is she dead?'" Todd Geib was 22 years old when he went missing during the early hours of June 12, 2005, at a bonfire party in an orchard close to his home in Casnovia, Michigan. The Smiley Face Killers. When investigators asked him why he decided to come forward, Jesperson listed two reasons. Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. Site contains certain content that is owned A&E Television Networks, LLC. Jesperson, who was born in British Columbia in 1955 and moved to the US when he was 12, kept on killing until he was caught in 1995. Her identity remains unknown. [1] And that's how I remember her," said Melissa Gavin, her longtime friend. Jesperson would capture birds and stray cats and dogs around the trailer park where he lived with his family, severely beating the animals and then strangling them to death, something for which he claims his father was proud of him. Now 66, Jesperson is serving five non-consecutive life sentences in Oregon's state penitentiary. Because of their relationship, authorities connected her death to him. The first victim was found in 1997. Laverne Pavlinac is seen here showing investigators where Taunja Bennett's body was found, even though she had nothing to do with the crime. While many believe their deaths are just that accidental former NYPD detectives Kevin Gannon, Michael Donovan, Anthony Duarte and professor of criminal justice Dr. Lee Gilbertson are convinced that most of these drownings are homicides.