Dark Stories: On This Day In True Crime History - Dark Stories True Crime Tours

1977: A Parking Ticket Brings Down the Son of Sam

David Berkowitz, a 24-year-old postal clerk from Yonkers, was arrested and charged as the Son of Sam, the .44-caliber killer who had terrorised New York City across 13 victims and more than a year of terror. The break came not from the massive task force that had spent several million dollars and chased hundreds of suspects, including a priest, freelance journalists, and ex-cops, but from a $35 parking ticket issued by Officer Michael Cataneo on the morning of July 31, 1977, the same night Berkowitz claimed his final victim. The ticket was traced to his 1970 Ford Galaxie.

Neighbours in Yonkers had long suspected something was wrong. Sam Carr, who lived on the street behind Berkowitz, believed Berkowitz had shot his black dog Harvey and had complained to police just days before the arrest. Berkowitz later claimed Harvey the dog had issued him mysterious commands to kill. After more than a year of dead ends, the Son of Sam was undone by a piece of cardboard.

Parking ticket placed on a car windscreen close-up

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Arrest Investigation Murder New York Police Serial Killer USA

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1899: Chung Yeung and Lem Kai Hanged at Fannie Bay Gaol for the Yam Creek Murder

In July 1898, a Chinese man named Chee Hung vanished from Yam Creek in the Northern Territory. Days later, human bones were discovered in a neighbouring garden. Investigators found that Chee Hung had been accused of stealing gold, shot while fishing at a billabong, and then his body was cooked and dismembered with an axe to prevent identification. Lem Kai and his accomplice Chung Yeung were arrested and tried at the Circuit Court in March 1899, where circumstantial evidence was overwhelming and both men were convicted of wilful murder.

On 10 August 1899, both men were hanged in the yard of Fannie Bay Gaol in the presence of the deputy sheriff, gaol officials, and four justices of the peace. The executioner and his assistant were prisoners serving time in the gaol itself.

Both condemned men admitted their guilt to a Chinese missionary who attended them before the execution, and they met their deaths with composure.

Workers washing mining tailings in the 1870s

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Australia Execution Murder Northern Territory NT Trial Yam Creek

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1987: The Hoddle Street Massacre: Seven Dead in Melbourne Shooting Rampage

On the evening of 9 August 1987, 19-year-old Julian Knight opened fire on motorists and pedestrians along Hoddle Street in Clifton Hill, a suburb of Melbourne, killing seven people and seriously injuring 19 others. Knight had been discharged from the Royal Military College, Duntroon just 16 days earlier following a fight and stabbing at a bar. He returned home to find his girlfriend had left him and his mother had converted his bedroom. Armed with multiple weapons, he took to the street.

After a police chase lasting more than 30 minutes, Knight was caught in nearby Fitzroy North and arrested. He was later sentenced to seven concurrent life terms, with a non-parole period of 27 years, for what the presiding judge described as ‘one of the bloodiest massacres in Australian history’. As Knight neared parole eligibility in 2014, the Victorian Government amended the Corrections Act to prevent his release unless he was in imminent danger of dying or physically incapable of causing harm.

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Australia Clifton Hill Fitzroy North Mass Shooting Massacre Melbourne Murder Prison Trial VIC

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1974: Nixon Resigns: The President Who Fell on the Watergate Scandal

On August 9, 1974, Richard Nixon became the first United States president to resign from office, undone by a scandal that began with a bungled burglary. On June 17, 1972, operatives linked to his re-election campaign were caught breaking into the Democratic National Committee headquarters at Washington D.C.’s Watergate complex, planting listening devices and stealing documents. Reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, guided by the anonymous source ‘Deep Throat’, exposed a vast White House political espionage program illegally funded by campaign donations.

Nixon’s administration destroyed evidence, obstructed investigators, and paid hush money to the burglars. The release of the ‘Smoking Gun’ tape proved Nixon had ordered the CIA to block the FBI’s investigation. Facing near-certain impeachment for obstruction of justice, abuse of power, and contempt of Congress, Nixon resigned rather than face removal. He was later pardoned by his successor, Gerald Ford. In total, 69 people were charged over Watergate; most pleaded guilty or were convicted.

Ontario, Canada - December 22 2017: Vintage Open Reel-to-Reel Ta. Vintage Open Reel-to-Reel Tape Deck Stereo Recorder with VU meters and knobs | ID 113751494 © Viktorus | Dreamstime.com

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Corruption Espionage Political Crime Scandal Trial USA

1977: A Parking Ticket Brings Down the Son of Sam

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1899: Chung Yeung and Lem Kai Hanged at Fannie Bay Gaol for the Yam Creek Murder

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1987: The Hoddle Street Massacre: Seven Dead in Melbourne Shooting Rampage

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1974: Nixon Resigns: The President Who Fell on the Watergate Scandal

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