1. Edward Joseph Leonski was a United States Army soldier and serial killer responsible for the strangling murders of three women in Melbourne, Australia in 1942.
15 Facts About Eddie Leonski
1. 2.
Eddie Leonski was dubbed The Brownout Strangler, after Melbourne's wartime practice of dropping the electricity voltage to conserve energy.
3.
Eddie Leonski's self-confessed motive for the killings was a twisted fascination with female voices, especially when they were singing, and his claim that he killed the women to "get their voices".
4.
Eddie Leonski was initially arrested by Melbourne police, but was then transferred to US military authorities for prosecution.
5.
Eddie Leonski was court-martialed for murder under American military law, sentenced to death, and executed.
6.
Eddie Leonski was the first and only citizen of another country to have been tried and sentenced to death in Australia under the law of their own country.
7.
The sixth child of Russian-Jewish immigrants John Eddie Leonski, laborer, and his Polish-born wife Amelia, nee Harkavitz, in Kenvil, New Jersey, Eddie Leonski grew up in an abusive, alcoholic family.
8.
Eddie Leonski had been bullied by other neighborhood kids and called a mama's boy.
9.
Eddie Leonski was called up for the US Army in February 1941 and arrived in Melbourne, Australia, on 2 February 1942, after the United States had entered World War II.
10.
Eddie Leonski had been beaten and strangled, and because she was found to be in possession of her purse it was evident that robbery was not the motive.
11.
Eddie Leonski was last seen in the company of a young man who was described as having an American accent.
12.
Eddie Leonski confessed to the crimes and was convicted and sentenced to death at a general court-martial on 17 July 1942.
13.
Eddie Leonski's reported last meal was steak, eggs, toast, and coffee.
14.
Eddie Leonski's remains were eventually permanently interred in Section 9, Row B, Site 8 at Schofield Barracks Post Cemetery on the island of O'ahu, Hawaii.
15.
Eddie Leonski's grave is located in a section of the facility reserved for prisoners who died in military custody.