Darren Deon Vann The Gary Strangler | Serial Killer
Darren Deon Vann
Born: 03-21-1971
The Gary Strangler
American Serial Killer
Crime Spree: July 2013 – October 2014
Death:
Darren Deon Vann is an American serial killer. He was arrested in October 2014, at the age of 43, for the strangulation death of 19-year-old Afrikka Hardy at a Motel 6 in Hammond, Indiana. After his arrest, he confessed to the murders of six more women in the state. He then led police to the women’s bodies, all of which were found in abandoned structures in Gary, Indiana.
His Background
Not much is known about Darren Deon Vann’s earlier life. We know that he was born on March 21, 1971 in Indiana. We know that he was ‘less than honorably discharged’ in 1993 after serving two years in the Marine Corps and that he married a woman 29 years older than himself.
His wife’s name was Maria Vann and the couple stayed together for 16 years. However, Maria filed for divorce in August of 2009, stating that they’d grown apart and their marriage was dissolved in 2011. Darren worked for a temp service.
His rap sheet however was a bit more revealing. He was reportedly arrested in Gary, Indiana for threatening the life of his ‘girlfriend’ and spent 90 days in jail. He was previously convicted in Travis County, Texas, of sexual assault and served five years in a state penitentiary there before being released on July 5, 2013. He was placed on the sex offenders data site and had to report to authorities wherever he lived. He moved back to Gary Indiana in 2013 after being paroled. 15 months later, 7 women were dead and Darren Deon Vann was the reason why.
Arrest and Investigation
When 19-year-old Afrikka Hardy was found strangled to death and dumped in the bathtub in a Motel 6, authorities used Hardy’s phone records and quickly located Darren Deon Vann. When the authorities caught up with Darren, he was found to have possession of several key pieces of potential evidence which included Hardy’s pink phone. He was arrested at once.
During police interrogation, Darren Deon Vann allegedly confessed to killing Hardy, leaving her body covered in used condoms, the waters of the running shower raining down on her corpse. He also told detectives there were more and agreed to take detectives into Gary, Indiana where six previously unknown female homicide victims were recovered from abandoned properties.
Sentenced
Darren Deon Vann accepted a plea deal with the state of Indiana and pleaded guilty to seven counts of murder. He was given life without parole.
source: murderpedia | wikipedia | ww.murderdata.org
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