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Steven Brian Pennell
Steven Brian Pennell (November 22, 1957 – March 14, 1992), known as The Route 40 Killer, was an American serial killer. He was Delaware's only known serial killer in modern history, being convicted of the murders of two New Castle County, Delaware women and suspected of killing three others. He abducted most of his victims from U.S. Route 40, near Bear.
The first victim was 23-year-old Shirley Anna Ellis, a nurse. On November 29, 1987, she left Wilmington Hospital around 6 PM, where she was assisting an AIDS patient, catching a lift on her way home on Route 40. Her body was later found by the roadside by two boys. She was partially nude, her legs spread out, hands and feet tied with adhesive tape. There were no signs of sexual assault, but she had been seriously abused, with her killer tying a string around her neck and hitting her head with a hammer before she died.
The second victim was 31-year-old Catherine A. DiMauro. On June 28, 1988, about seven months after the first murder, around 11:30 PM, she was seen walking down Route 40. At 6:25 AM, construction workers found her naked body at a construction site. No signs of sexual assault were found. Like Ellis, she was killed by hammer blows and strangulation, but unlike the first murder, DiMauro's body was covered in blue fibers.
Special police forces, along with the FBI's profiling unit, concluded that a serial killer was operating in close proximity to Route 40. Police and federal agents disguised as sex workers in attempt to gather information, with a task force of over 60 people being formed solely to capture the killer, but to no avail.
On August 22, 1988, 27-year-old sex worker Margaret Lynn Finner (née Jordan) disappeared. A number of witnesses had seen her enter a blue Ford driven by a white male near Route 13.
About three months later, her body was found by a hunter near the Chesapeake-Delaware Canal. Her body was so badly decomposed that the exact cause of death could not be determined, although signs of torture were visible on her remains. Finner was identified using dental records.
On September 18, Michelle Gordon, a local sex worker known for frequenting Route 40, was seen to enter a blue Ford van associated with Pennell. On September 20, her body was found on the rocks in the Chesapeake-Delaware Canal. In the autopsy, it was discovered that she had been drugged with cocaine, which had caused her heart to stop while she was being tortured.
On September 23, 26-year-old Kathleen Anne Meyer, of Brookmont Farms, disappeared. A police officer saw her get into a blue Ford on Route 40, at 9:30 PM. He was able to write down the license plate number, which turned out to belong to Pennell's car. Her body was never found.
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Steven Brian Pennell
Steven Brian Pennell (November 22, 1957 – March 14, 1992), known as The Route 40 Killer, was an American serial killer. He was Delaware's only known serial killer in modern history, being convicted of the murders of two New Castle County, Delaware women and suspected of killing three others. He abducted most of his victims from U.S. Route 40, near Bear.
The first victim was 23-year-old Shirley Anna Ellis, a nurse. On November 29, 1987, she left Wilmington Hospital around 6 PM, where she was assisting an AIDS patient, catching a lift on her way home on Route 40. Her body was later found by the roadside by two boys. She was partially nude, her legs spread out, hands and feet tied with adhesive tape. There were no signs of sexual assault, but she had been seriously abused, with her killer tying a string around her neck and hitting her head with a hammer before she died.
The second victim was 31-year-old Catherine A. DiMauro. On June 28, 1988, about seven months after the first murder, around 11:30 PM, she was seen walking down Route 40. At 6:25 AM, construction workers found her naked body at a construction site. No signs of sexual assault were found. Like Ellis, she was killed by hammer blows and strangulation, but unlike the first murder, DiMauro's body was covered in blue fibers.
Special police forces, along with the FBI's profiling unit, concluded that a serial killer was operating in close proximity to Route 40. Police and federal agents disguised as sex workers in attempt to gather information, with a task force of over 60 people being formed solely to capture the killer, but to no avail.
On August 22, 1988, 27-year-old sex worker Margaret Lynn Finner (née Jordan) disappeared. A number of witnesses had seen her enter a blue Ford driven by a white male near Route 13.
About three months later, her body was found by a hunter near the Chesapeake-Delaware Canal. Her body was so badly decomposed that the exact cause of death could not be determined, although signs of torture were visible on her remains. Finner was identified using dental records.
On September 18, Michelle Gordon, a local sex worker known for frequenting Route 40, was seen to enter a blue Ford van associated with Pennell. On September 20, her body was found on the rocks in the Chesapeake-Delaware Canal. In the autopsy, it was discovered that she had been drugged with cocaine, which had caused her heart to stop while she was being tortured.
On September 23, 26-year-old Kathleen Anne Meyer, of Brookmont Farms, disappeared. A police officer saw her get into a blue Ford on Route 40, at 9:30 PM. He was able to write down the license plate number, which turned out to belong to Pennell's car. Her body was never found.