Jerry Brudos' house

This is the former home of serial killer Jerry Brudos, aka "the Shoe Fetish Slayer."

It is situated at 707 Edina Lane NE in Salem, Oregon.

He lived at this house until his arrest in May 1969.

Brudos murdered four young women between January 1968 and April 1969. Three of his victims were killed at this property.

Brudos claimed that he developed a shoe fetish at the age of five after he happened across a pair of high heels in a junkyard.

As a teenager, he spent nine months in the psychiatric ward of Oregon State Hospital for abducting and sexually assaulting a young woman.

Murders

Brudos' first known murder took place on January 26th, 1968.

That Friday, 19-year-old Linda Slawson visited this house while she was selling encyclopedias in Northeast Salem.

After answering the door to the young saleswoman, Brudos discreetly lured her down into his basement while his wife and two children were inside the house. Once there, he struck her with a piece of wood and then strangled her to death.

Following the murder, he dressed Slawson's body in women's underwear and shoes.

Before disposing of her remains in a nearby river, Brudos chopped off her foot and stored it in his basement freezer so that he could fit it with different types of high-heel shoes.

In the eighteen months that followed, Brudos brought three more victims back to this address. He also attempted to abduct two other women.

23-year-old Jan Susan Whitney was murdered after her car broke down on November 26th, 1968. Sensing an opportunity, Brudos offered the young woman a ride. Shortly afterwards, he strangled her to death in his car.

On March 27th, 1969, he abducted 18-year-old Karen Sprinker at gunpoint and drove her back to his house. Once they arrived, he forced her to pose in various clothes in his garage while he took photographs. Brudos took the photograph of Sprinker that is shown in the image above. He later strangled her to death.

His last known victim was 22-year-old Linda Salee. On April 23rd, 1969, Brudos abducted Salee at gunpoint and brought her back to his garage, where he eventually murdered her.

Arrest and incarceration

The police narrowed in on Brudos as a suspect in May 1969 after three university students reported that a suspicious "Vietnam veteran" had been calling them and asking them to meet. One of the women who accepted this invitation described him as a large man with red hair and freckles.

This description piqued the interest of investigators, as there were reports that a man with red hair and freckles had recently attempted to abduct two young girls.

Sensing that they might be onto something, the detectives convinced the woman to arrange another meeting with her suitor.

When the man showed up at the rendezvous spot, the police were waiting for him. Although Brudos identified himself using his correct name, the address he gave turned out to be fake.

After learning that he was lying, investigators ran a background check on him and discovered that he had been convicted of sexual crimes in the past.

For a short while afterwards, the police kept Brudos under surveillance. However, they were forced to arrest him after they spotted him loading his belongings into his car.

During questioning, he quickly confessed to his crimes. One month later, he pleaded guilty to three murders and was sentenced to life in prison.

On March 28th, 2006, Brudos died from liver cancer at the age of 67.

Media

The character Buffalo Bill in The Silence of the Lambs (1991) was loosely based on Brudos.

Actor Happy Anderson portrayed him in the first season of the Netflix psychological crime series Mindhunter.