The Craigslist Killer
Craigslist is a popular website in the US, commonly used for buying goods or services. However, for Philip Markoff, it was a tool he used to commit crimes while leading a double life.
Philip Markoff grew up in a small town in New York, excelling academically and participating in various student groups and activities, including the National Honor Society. After completing high school, he became a pre-med student at the Albany campus of the State University of New York. Markoff dedicated much of his time to studying and volunteering at the Albany Medical Center Hospital's emergency room. In his free time, he enjoyed long evenings with friends and playing poker.
In 2005, Markoff met Megan McAllister while volunteering at the hospital. Both were SUNY students and quickly became lovers. Markoff graduated in just three years with a bachelor's degree in biology and gained admission to the Boston University School of Medicine. McAllister also planned to study medicine but, not being accepted, the couple moved to Boston, and Megan put her plans on hold. In 2008, Markoff and McAllister got engaged, and the wedding date was set for August 14, 2009. McAllister focused on planning the wedding while Markoff visited casinos. Due to his gambling addiction, Markoff accumulated a debt of $130,000.
In April 2009, the Boston police investigated two separate attacks on women who had advertised erotic services online and planned to meet their 'client' in a luxury hotel. On April 10, 2009, 29-year-old escort Trisha Leffler was tied up and robbed at gunpoint in a hotel by a man who had responded to an ad she posted on Craigslist. Four days later, Julissa Brisman was found murdered in the doorway of her Marriott hotel room. She had tried to fend off her attacker when she was shot. She had advertised erotic massages on Craigslist and had arranged to meet a man named "Andy" in her hotel room. Police believed the same attacker was connected to the attempted theft of Cynthia Melton, an exotic dancer providing lap dance services. Markoff had scheduled a meeting with her at a hotel in Rhode Island. The three incidents were similar in that the motive seemed to be theft, the attacks were on women offering sexual services, the dates were close together, and two of the women were bound with tie-wraps. Throughout all of this, Markoff's fiancee remained oblivious, believing he was 'beautiful inside and out.'
Thanks to camera footage and electronic evidence, the police identified the perpetrator in the three incidents as a young, blond man of about 6 feet tall. Police found an email sent to Julissa in response to her Craigslist ad, and the electronic trail led them to Philip Markoff's apartment in Boston. The police followed Markoff for several days and eventually stopped him while he was driving to a local casino with his fiancee Megan. During the search of Markoff's apartment, the police found a gun, bullets matching those in the Brisman case, tie-wraps, duct tape, a laptop with emails to Brisman, multiple prepaid phones, and stolen women's underwear, two of which belonged to Leffler. After finding the evidence, Markoff was charged with murder. Markoff pleaded not guilty. Markoff's trial was postponed until March 2011.
Initially, Megan McAllister stood by Markoff, thinking he was innocent. However, in June 2009, she visited him in prison to end their relationship. While in prison, Markoff made several failed suicide attempts. On August 15, 2010, Markoff was found dead in his prison cell, a year and a day after the date his wedding was supposed to take place. It was determined that he had committed suicide by self-inflicted cuts and suffocation. Before dying, he wrote the name 'Megan' with blood on his cell wall.