Straight Killers

Mikhail Viktorovich Popkov, known as the "Angarsk Maniac" and "Werewolf," is a former Russian police officer who murdered women across the Irkutsk region between 1992 and 2010. He typically approached women at night in his police vehicle, offering them rides before taking them to isolated locations where he sexually assaulted and murdered them using weapons including knives, axes, screwdrivers and ropes. Popkov was arrested in 2012 after DNA testing connected him to the killings and was subsequently convicted in multiple trials. By 2026, courts had established his responsibility for 91 murders and three attempted murders, making him one of Russia's most prolific serial killers. He is serving life imprisonment in a special-regime prison in Mordovia.

Mitchell Sims became one of America's most notorious transient serial killers after carrying out a series of murders across multiple states during the 1980s. Nicknamed the "Pizza Hut Serial Killer," Sims was convicted of abducting, robbing, and murdering pizza delivery driver John Harrington in Las Vegas, Nevada, while investigators also linked him to the murders of another pizza employee and a customer in South Carolina. His willingness to kill complete strangers during robberies, combined with his mobility across state lines, made him one of the FBI's most infamous traveling serial offenders before his execution in 2015.

Moses Sithole became one of Africa's most prolific serial killers after murdering at least 38 young women in and around Johannesburg, South Africa, between 1994 and 1995. Known as the "ABC Killer" because many of the murders occurred in Atteridgeville, Boksburg, and Cleveland, Sithole lured victims with false promises of employment before sexually assaulting and murdering them. His case shocked post-apartheid South Africa and remains one of the country's deadliest serial murder investigations.

Neil Entwistle murdered his wife, Rachel Entwistle, and their nine-month-old daughter, Lillian Rose Entwistle, at their home in Hopkinton, Massachusetts, in January 2006. After shooting both victims with a stolen handgun, Entwistle fled to his native England, initially claiming he had discovered the bodies before leaving the United States. Investigators quickly uncovered evidence contradicting his account, leading to his arrest in London and extradition to Massachusetts. In 2008, a jury convicted Entwistle of two counts of first-degree murder, and he was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.

Nicholas Hartman murdered his wife, Alisa Hartman, in Florida in 2012, beating her to death inside their home. The killing initially presented investigators with a suspicious domestic homicide scene, but evidence ultimately led to Hartman being prosecuted for his wife's death. He was convicted of murder and sentenced to 50 years in prison, bringing the case to a close after the investigation established his responsibility for Alisa's death.

Nicholas “Nick” Browning is an American man convicted of the 2008 murders of his parents and two younger brothers in Maryland. At the time of the offence, he was 15 years old and living in a suburban family environment. The case gained national attention due to the age of the offender and the deliberate nature of the killings. Browning was later convicted and sentenced to multiple life terms.

Patricia Dianne Krenwinkel was one of Charles Manson's most devoted followers and participated directly in the Tate-LaBianca murders that left seven people dead over two nights in August 1969. At the Tate residence, she chased and repeatedly stabbed Abigail Folger, and the following night participated in the murders of Leno and Rosemary LaBianca, later using their blood to write messages at the crime scene. Krenwinkel was convicted in 1971 of seven counts of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder and sentenced to death, which was reduced to life imprisonment after California temporarily abolished capital punishment. She has spent more than five decades in custody, becoming California's longest-serving female prisoner. Although parole boards have repeatedly found her suitable for release in recent years, Governor Gavin Newsom most recently reversed a parole grant in October 2025, finding that she continued to pose an unreasonable danger to society.

Paul Kenneth Bernardo became one of Canada's most infamous serial killers after committing a series of violent sexual assaults and the murders of three young women between 1987 and 1992. Before his arrest, Bernardo was responsible for numerous unsolved sexual assaults in the Toronto area, earning the nickname the "Scarborough Rapist." Alongside his wife, Karla Homolka, he murdered Tammy Homolka, Leslie Mahaffy, and Kristen French. His conviction remains one of the most significant criminal cases in Canadian history.