1. Richard Francis Cottingham was born on November 25,1946 and is an American serial killer who was convicted in New York of six murders committed between 1972 and 1980 and convicted in New Jersey of twelve murders committed between 1967 and 1978.
21 Facts About Richard Cottingham
1. 2.
Richard Cottingham was nicknamed by media as the Torso Killer and the Times Square Ripper, since some of the murders he was convicted of included mutilation.
3.
In 2009, decades after his first five murder convictions, Richard Cottingham told a journalist he had committed at least eighty "perfect murders" of women in various regions of the United States.
4.
Richard Cottingham was born on November 25,1946, in the Mott Haven neighborhood of the Bronx in New York City, the first of four children.
5.
In 1964, Richard Cottingham graduated from Pascack Valley High School in Hillsdale, New Jersey.
6.
Richard Cottingham's graduation yearbook stated that he was a member of the school's cross country and track team.
7.
On May 3,1970, Richard Cottingham was married at Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Queens Village, Queens.
8.
Richard Cottingham had three children, two boys and a girl, with his wife.
9.
Richard Cottingham was arrested on several lesser charges throughout his killing spree.
10.
On October 3,1969, Richard Cottingham was charged and convicted of drunk driving in New York City and was fined $50.
11.
On March 12,1974, Richard Cottingham was arrested in New York City for robbery and unlawful imprisonment on the complaint of another prostitute.
12.
Richard Cottingham offered to give O'Dell a massage and she rolled onto her stomach.
13.
Richard Cottingham began torturing her, nearly biting off one of her nipples.
14.
When it did not fire, Richard Cottingham came at her with the knife.
15.
Richard Cottingham was ultimately convicted in three of the cases and acquitted in one.
16.
Richard Cottingham took trophies like jewelry and other personal items belonging to his victims.
17.
Richard Cottingham was convicted of their murders on July 9,1984.
18.
The BCPO "exceptionally closed" the three cold case murders with agreement from the victims' families and evidence corroborating the confessions, but for several years kept this secret from the public to keep Richard Cottingham talking about other cases.
19.
In June 2022, Richard Cottingham was arraigned from his prison hospital bed for the 1968 murder of Diane Cusick.
20.
Richard Cottingham pleaded guilty in a court appearance on December 5, and officially admitted killing four other women during 1972 and 1973 in Long Island, New York: Mary Beth Heinz, Laverne Moye, Sheila Heiman, and Maria Emerita Rosado Nieves.
21.
Richard Cottingham's case has been discussed in several books and documentaries on serial killers.