Richard Biegenwald
Encyclopedia
Richard Fran Biegenwald was an American
serial killer
, who committed his crimes in Monmouth County, New Jersey
. Between 1958 and 1983, Biegenwald killed at least nine people, and he is suspected in at least two other murder
s.
, Biegenwald was frequently beaten as a child by his alcoholic father. At the age of five, Biegenwald set fire to their home and was sent for observation at a Rockland County Psychiatric Center.
By the age of eight, Biegenwald was drinking and gambling
; at age nine he underwent electroshock therapy at New York
's Bellevue Hospital
. After his therapy, Biegenwald was placed in the State Training School for Boys in Warwick, New York
. During his years there, Biegenwald was accused of theft and inciting other inmates to escape. During trips to visit his mother in Staten Island
, he would steal money from her. When he was 11 years old, he set himself on fire in his mother's home. When Biegenwald was 16 years old, he graduated from the eighth grade and was released from the Training School to attend high school. Biegenwald dropped out of high school after only a few weeks.
Soon after dropping out of school, Biegenwald went to Nashville, Tennessee
, where he stayed for two years. Biegenwald stole a car in Nashville, and was arrested in Kentucky
by federal agents for transporting a stolen car across state lines. He was returned to his mother on Staten Island in 1958.
. There, Biegenwald robbed a grocery store, shooting and killing the clerk, Stephen Sladowski. Biegenwald fled the state after the murder, but was captured two days later in Salisbury, Maryland
, after shooting a police officer there. Biegenwald was extradited
to New Jersey
, where he was convicted of murder and given a life sentence. Biegenwald was released in 1974 for good behavior after 16 years imprisonment.
, and was wanted for failing to report to his parole
officer. Biegenwald was arrested in Brooklyn
in 1980 on the rape charge, but was released after the victim failed to pick him out of a lineup
. Biegenwald got married after being released, and he and his wife moved to Asbury Park, New Jersey
. There, Biegenwald was befriended by Dherran Fitzgerald, who would play a role in several of his future murders.
Biegenwald struck again on January 4, 1983, when he shot and killed 18-year-old Anna Olesiewicz in Ocean Township, New Jersey
. He had found the young woman walking down the boardwalk in Asbury Park, and lured her into his car. Olesiewicz's body was found by children playing in a wooded lot behind a Burger King
on Route 35 and Sunset Avenue, fully clothed with no signs of sexual assault
and with four bullets in her head. A friend of Biegenwald's wife went to police after Biegenwald showed her another young woman's body that he had hidden inside his Asbury Park home's garage.
, handguns, a machine gun
, Rohypnol, marijuana and a live puff adder
, as well as floor plans for several area businesses.
During questioning, Fitzgerald told police of a third body, that of a young woman, that Biegenwald had shown him hidden in his garage. Fitzgerald told police that he helped Biegenwald transport the body to his mother's house in Staten Island and bury it in the basement. Fitzgerald went on to say that while he was digging in the basement, he exhumed a body that Biegenwald had buried there some time before. Fitzgerald led police to three other bodies in addition to the two buried in Staten Island.
As the investigation went on, police located a ninth victim, William Ward, who was buried in a shallow grave in Neptune City, New Jersey
. Ward was a prison escapee whom Biegenwald had befriended. The friendship was apparently short lived, as Biegenwald shot Ward five times in the head and then disposed of the body.
Police only had enough evidence
to charge Biegenwald with five counts of first degree murder. Fitzgerald turned state's evidence
and his testimony was crucial in convicting Biegenwald. In return for his testimony, Fitzgerald was only charged with one count of possession of a weapon and one count of accessory to murder after the fact, and served a 10-year prison sentence. Fitzgerald was released from New Jersey State Prison
in 1994.
jury found Biegenwald guilty on all five counts of first degree murder. Biegenwald was sentenced to death by lethal injection
, but the sentence would later be overturned by an Appellate Court. Until his death, he was serving four life sentences without the possibility of parole
at New Jersey State Prison
.
in Trenton, New Jersey
, said Corrections Department spokeswoman Deirdre Fedkenheuer in an interview to the Associated Press
. An autopsy
revealed that Biegenwald died of respiratory and kidney failure.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
serial killer
Serial killer
A serial killer, as typically defined, is an individual who has murdered three or more people over a period of more than a month, with down time between the murders, and whose motivation for killing is usually based on psychological gratification...
, who committed his crimes in Monmouth County, New Jersey
Monmouth County, New Jersey
Monmouth County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey, within the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2010 Census, the population was 630,380, up from 615,301 at the 2000 census. Its county seat is Freehold Borough. The most populous municipality is Middletown Township with...
. Between 1958 and 1983, Biegenwald killed at least nine people, and he is suspected in at least two other murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
s.
Early life
Born in Rockland County, New YorkRockland County, New York
Rockland County is a suburban county 15 miles to the northwest of Manhattan and part of the New York City Metropolitan Area, in the U.S. state of New York. It is the southernmost county in New York west of the Hudson River, and the smallest county in New York outside of New York City. The...
, Biegenwald was frequently beaten as a child by his alcoholic father. At the age of five, Biegenwald set fire to their home and was sent for observation at a Rockland County Psychiatric Center.
By the age of eight, Biegenwald was drinking and gambling
Gambling
Gambling is the wagering of money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods...
; at age nine he underwent electroshock therapy at New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
's Bellevue Hospital
Bellevue Hospital Center
Bellevue Hospital Center, most often referred to as "Bellevue", was founded on March 31, 1736 and is the oldest public hospital in the United States. Located on First Avenue in the Kips Bay neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, Bellevue is famous from many literary, film and television...
. After his therapy, Biegenwald was placed in the State Training School for Boys in Warwick, New York
Warwick, New York
Warwick is a town in Orange County, New York, United States. The population was 30,764 at the 2000 census. The 2007 census population estimate is 32,669.The Town of Warwick is located in the southwest part of the county...
. During his years there, Biegenwald was accused of theft and inciting other inmates to escape. During trips to visit his mother in Staten Island
Staten Island
Staten Island is a borough of New York City, New York, United States, located in the southwest part of the city. Staten Island is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull, and from the rest of New York by New York Bay...
, he would steal money from her. When he was 11 years old, he set himself on fire in his mother's home. When Biegenwald was 16 years old, he graduated from the eighth grade and was released from the Training School to attend high school. Biegenwald dropped out of high school after only a few weeks.
Soon after dropping out of school, Biegenwald went to Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, where he stayed for two years. Biegenwald stole a car in Nashville, and was arrested in Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
by federal agents for transporting a stolen car across state lines. He was returned to his mother on Staten Island in 1958.
The first murder
After being returned to his mother, Biegenwald stole another car and went to Bayonne, New JerseyBayonne, New Jersey
Bayonne is a city in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. Located in the Gateway Region, Bayonne is a peninsula that is situated between Newark Bay to the west, the Kill van Kull to the south, and New York Bay to the east...
. There, Biegenwald robbed a grocery store, shooting and killing the clerk, Stephen Sladowski. Biegenwald fled the state after the murder, but was captured two days later in Salisbury, Maryland
Salisbury, Maryland
-Demographics:Salisbury is the principal city of the Salisbury-Ocean Pines CSA, a Combined Statistical Area that includes the Salisbury metropolitan area and the Ocean Pines micropolitan area , which had a combined population of 176,657 at the 2010 census.As of the census of 2000, there were...
, after shooting a police officer there. Biegenwald was extradited
Extradition
Extradition is the official process whereby one nation or state surrenders a suspected or convicted criminal to another nation or state. Between nation states, extradition is regulated by treaties...
to New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, where he was convicted of murder and given a life sentence. Biegenwald was released in 1974 for good behavior after 16 years imprisonment.
Back on the outside
Biegenwald worked odd jobs for the next three years and kept a low profile. In 1977, Biegenwald was suspected in a rapeRape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
, and was wanted for failing to report to his parole
Parole
Parole may have different meanings depending on the field and judiciary system. All of the meanings originated from the French parole . Following its use in late-resurrected Anglo-French chivalric practice, the term became associated with the release of prisoners based on prisoners giving their...
officer. Biegenwald was arrested in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
in 1980 on the rape charge, but was released after the victim failed to pick him out of a lineup
Police lineup
A police lineup or identity parade is a process by which a crime victim or witness's putative identification of a suspect is confirmed to a level that can count as evidence at trial....
. Biegenwald got married after being released, and he and his wife moved to Asbury Park, New Jersey
Asbury Park, New Jersey
Asbury Park is a city in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States, located on the Jersey Shore and part of the New York City Metropolitan Area. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was 16,116. The city is known for its rich musical history, including its association with...
. There, Biegenwald was befriended by Dherran Fitzgerald, who would play a role in several of his future murders.
Biegenwald struck again on January 4, 1983, when he shot and killed 18-year-old Anna Olesiewicz in Ocean Township, New Jersey
Ocean Township, New Jersey
Ocean Township is the name of some places in the U.S. state of New Jersey:*Ocean Township, Monmouth County, New Jersey*Ocean Township, Ocean County, New Jersey...
. He had found the young woman walking down the boardwalk in Asbury Park, and lured her into his car. Olesiewicz's body was found by children playing in a wooded lot behind a Burger King
Burger King
Burger King, often abbreviated as BK, is a global chain of hamburger fast food restaurants headquartered in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The company began in 1953 as Insta-Burger King, a Jacksonville, Florida-based restaurant chain...
on Route 35 and Sunset Avenue, fully clothed with no signs of sexual assault
Sexual assault
Sexual assault is an assault of a sexual nature on another person, or any sexual act committed without consent. Although sexual assaults most frequently are by a man on a woman, it may involve any combination of two or more men, women and children....
and with four bullets in her head. A friend of Biegenwald's wife went to police after Biegenwald showed her another young woman's body that he had hidden inside his Asbury Park home's garage.
Capture
Police surrounded Biegenwald's home on January 22, 1983, while Dherran Fitzgerald was visiting. Both Biegenwald and Fitzgerald were arrested, and a search of the home revealed a small cache of weapons and drugs. Police confiscated a pipe bombPipe bomb
A pipe bomb is an improvised explosive device, a tightly sealed section of pipe filled with an explosive material. The containment provided by the pipe means that simple low explosives can be used to produce a relatively large explosion, and the fragmentation of the pipe itself creates potentially...
, handguns, a machine gun
Machine gun
A machine gun is a fully automatic mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire rounds in quick succession from an ammunition belt or large-capacity magazine, typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute....
, Rohypnol, marijuana and a live puff adder
Puff adder
Puff adder is the common name of several snake species:* Bitis arietans, a venomous snake species found in Africa and the southern Arabian Peninsula* Bitis, any other member of this genus...
, as well as floor plans for several area businesses.
During questioning, Fitzgerald told police of a third body, that of a young woman, that Biegenwald had shown him hidden in his garage. Fitzgerald told police that he helped Biegenwald transport the body to his mother's house in Staten Island and bury it in the basement. Fitzgerald went on to say that while he was digging in the basement, he exhumed a body that Biegenwald had buried there some time before. Fitzgerald led police to three other bodies in addition to the two buried in Staten Island.
As the investigation went on, police located a ninth victim, William Ward, who was buried in a shallow grave in Neptune City, New Jersey
Neptune City, New Jersey
Neptune City is a borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 4,869.The Borough of Neptune City was incorporated on October 4, 1881, based on a referendum held on March 19, 1881...
. Ward was a prison escapee whom Biegenwald had befriended. The friendship was apparently short lived, as Biegenwald shot Ward five times in the head and then disposed of the body.
Police only had enough evidence
Evidence
Evidence in its broadest sense includes everything that is used to determine or demonstrate the truth of an assertion. Giving or procuring evidence is the process of using those things that are either presumed to be true, or were themselves proven via evidence, to demonstrate an assertion's truth...
to charge Biegenwald with five counts of first degree murder. Fitzgerald turned state's evidence
State's Evidence
State's Evidence is an independent film created in 2004 and released in 2006, directed by Benjamin Louis and starring Douglas Smith, Alexa Vega, Majandra Delfino, Kris Lemche, Cody McMains, and Drew Tyler Bell.-Plot summary:...
and his testimony was crucial in convicting Biegenwald. In return for his testimony, Fitzgerald was only charged with one count of possession of a weapon and one count of accessory to murder after the fact, and served a 10-year prison sentence. Fitzgerald was released from New Jersey State Prison
New Jersey State Prison
The New Jersey State Prison , formerly known as Trenton State Prison, is a state prison in Trenton, New Jersey operated by the New Jersey Department of Corrections. It accommodated over 1,900 prisoners as of January, 2005....
in 1994.
Sentencing
A Monmouth CountyMonmouth County, New Jersey
Monmouth County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey, within the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2010 Census, the population was 630,380, up from 615,301 at the 2000 census. Its county seat is Freehold Borough. The most populous municipality is Middletown Township with...
jury found Biegenwald guilty on all five counts of first degree murder. Biegenwald was sentenced to death by lethal injection
Lethal injection
Lethal injection is the practice of injecting a person with a fatal dose of drugs for the express purpose of causing the immediate death of the subject. The main application for this procedure is capital punishment, but the term may also be applied in a broad sense to euthanasia and suicide...
, but the sentence would later be overturned by an Appellate Court. Until his death, he was serving four life sentences without the possibility of parole
Parole
Parole may have different meanings depending on the field and judiciary system. All of the meanings originated from the French parole . Following its use in late-resurrected Anglo-French chivalric practice, the term became associated with the release of prisoners based on prisoners giving their...
at New Jersey State Prison
New Jersey State Prison
The New Jersey State Prison , formerly known as Trenton State Prison, is a state prison in Trenton, New Jersey operated by the New Jersey Department of Corrections. It accommodated over 1,900 prisoners as of January, 2005....
.
Death
Biegenwald died at St. Francis Medical CenterSt. Francis Medical Center
St. Francis Medical Center may refer to:*St. Francis Medical Center — Lynwood, California*St. Francis Medical Center - Colorado Springs, Colorado*St. Francis Medical Center — Cape Girardeau, Missouri...
in Trenton, New Jersey
Trenton, New Jersey
Trenton is the capital of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Trenton had a population of 84,913...
, said Corrections Department spokeswoman Deirdre Fedkenheuer in an interview to the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
. An autopsy
Autopsy
An autopsy—also known as a post-mortem examination, necropsy , autopsia cadaverum, or obduction—is a highly specialized surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse to determine the cause and manner of death and to evaluate any disease or injury that may be present...
revealed that Biegenwald died of respiratory and kidney failure.
Known victims
- Stephen Sladowski -- Shot to death in 1958 after a robbery attempt in Bayonne, NJ.
- Maria Ciallella -- Shot and dismembered on November 1, 1981. She was buried at Biegenwald's mother's house.
- Deborah Osbourne -- Stabbed to death on April 8, 1982. She was buried on top of Ciallella's body at Biegenwald's mother's house.
- Anna Olesiewicz -- Shot four times in the head on August 28, 1982 after being lured away from the Asbury Park boardwalk. Her body was left behind a Burger King in Ocean Township, NJ.
- William Ward -- Drug dealer shot and killed by Biegenwald at his home in Asbury Park in September 1982.