Lorenzo Gilyard's house

Lorenzo Gilyard's former house is located at 8335 Kenwood Avenue in Kansas City, Missouri.

Known as the "Kansas City Strangler," he is suspected of raping and killing 12 women between 1977 and 1993. In 2007, he was convicted of six murders and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Background

The former sanitation company supervisor had a history of violence toward women.

Between 1969 and 1980, Gilyard was repeatedly arrested for sexual assault and domestic abuse. His first two marriages ended following allegations of physical and sexual mistreatment.

While several women identified him in separate rape cases, the charges were often dropped.

He served only a single short jail sentence during this period for a conviction involving a minor.

Despite these repeated allegations, Gilyard avoided significant legal consequences due to a lack of evidence, out-of-court reconciliation agreements, and changes in the victims' testimony.

Murders

His first murder victim was 17-year-old Stacie Swafford, a homeless runaway who had recently arrived in the city.

Swafford disappeared on April 10, 1977, and was found strangled a week later in a vacant lot near East 45th Street and Euclid Avenue.

In 1979, Gilyard was charged with raping a woman and threatening to kill her partner. He was later found not guilty due to insufficient evidence.

Eight years later, he became the prime suspect in the murder of Sheila Ingold, a friend of his then-girlfriend. Ingold's body had been left in an abandoned van outside an auto body shop on Troost Avenue.

Police questioned Gilyard and took a blood sample, but eventually released him because the results were inconclusive.

Gilyard's last known murder occurred in January 1993, when he strangled Connie Lynne Luther (29) and left her body on a snowbank.

Serial killer

Authorities did not realize they were dealing with a serial killer until 1994, when they linked two of the cases. Before then, it was believed that the murders of sex workers between 1977 and 1993 were unrelated.

Despite this discovery, the "Kansas City Strangler" case went cold for another ten years.

In the early 2000s, investigators started using new technology to review forensic evidence from unsolved murders. They soon matched the DNA from Gilyard's blood sample to semen found on some of the victims' bodies.

On April 16, 2004, Gilyard was arrested and charged with killing 12 women. When police searched his property, they noticed that it was extremely neat and organized. Gilyard could tell officers which items were in each drawer and in what order they were arranged.

In 2007, he was found guilty of six of the murders and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Interview

Gilyard's case was featured in the documentary series Serial Killer with Piers Morgan. The house appears in episode two (S01E02).

During an interview with Piers Morgan, Gilyard stated he was innocent, despite his DNA being found on multiple victims. He also claimed police failed to conduct a new swab test after his arrest.

This was false, as authorities obtained a new sample in 2004.

After Morgan pointed out that the DNA evidence was conclusive, Gilyard became agitated and ended the interview.

Now aged in his mid-70s, Gilyard is incarcerated at Crossroads Correctional Center in Cameron, Missouri.