Richard Ramirez

Last Updated on July 4, 2026

Richard Ramirez, aka the Nightstalker, was a serial killer.

He committed a string of home invasions, rapes and murders from 1984 to 1985.

He was sentenced to death and showed no remorse for his crimes.

Richard Ramirez died from cancer in June 2013.

He died whilst he was sitting on death row awaiting his execution in the gas chamber. 

Richard Ramirez Victims

Los Angeles

The Richard Ramirez murders began in 1984.

The rape and murder of Mei Leung was the first murder committed by Ramirez on April 10th, 1984.

However, this murder was only solved in 2009 when his DNA matched that found at the scene.

There is DNA evidence to suggest he may not have committed this alone.

No charges have been brought against the second suspect. 

Jennie Vincow was stabbed multiple times whilst she slept in her bed on June 28th, 1984.

Ramirez gained access by removing a mesh screen covering an open window.

He left a partial fingerprint at the scene.

On March 17th, 1985, Ramirez shot Maria Hernandez in the face and dragged her into her garage.

She survived the gunshot.

Her roommate, Dayle Okazaki, was in the kitchen and hid behind a counter.

As she looked over the counter, Ramirez shot her dead.

An hour later, Tsai-Lian, aka Veronica Yu, was dragged from her car and shot twice.

She was found by a policeman but died before reaching the hospital. 

Ramirez entered the home of Maxine and Vincent Zazzara on March 27th, 1985.

Upon finding Vincent asleep on the sofa, he put a gun to his head and shot him dead.

This woke up Maxine, and Ramirez bound her hands.

He demanded to know where they kept the valuables.

She managed to get free and grabbed an unloaded shotgun.

Infuriated by this, he shot her dead.

took a knife from the kitchen, which he used to mutilate her. 

On May 14th, 1985, he broke into the house of William/Bill and Lillian Doi.

He shot Bill in the face as he attempted to reach for his own gun and beat him.

He handcuffed Lillian and assaulted her after he had taken their valuables.

Bill died in the hospital, and he allowed Lillian to live.

Less than a month later, he broke into the house where Mabel Bell lived with her sister, Florence Lang.

He bludgeoned and sexually assaulted Florence before drawing a pentagram on her thigh with lipstick.

He bludgeoned and electrocuted Mabel with an electric cord.

They were both found alive two days later, but Mabel later died of her injuries.

Carol Kyle survived an attack from Ramirez after he broke in to steal valuables. 

He tied her up with her son, later letting her free to show him where their valuables were.

He sexually assaulted her and allowed her to redress before he handcuffed them back together.

In July 1985, Ramirez bludgeoned and stabbed Mary Cannon.

A few days later, he bludgeoned Whitney Bennett and strangled her with a cord that emitted sparks.

Fearing a religious intervention, he ran off, and Whitney survived. She needed 478 stitches in her head wounds.

Within days, he had killed Joyce Nelson by beating and kicking her to death.

Later the same day, he handcuffed Sophie Dickman and robbed her.

Ramirez used the money from fencing stolen items to purchase a machete.

He broke into the home of Maxon and Lela Kneiding, wielding his machete.

After realizing it was blunt, he shot them both in the head.

Within hours, he had broken into the property of the Khovananth family.

He shot Chainarong Khovananth in the head whilst he slept.

He sexually assaulted Somkid Khovananth and forced her to show him where their valuables were hidden. 

During August 1985, Ramirez shot Chris and Virginia Peterson, and both survived.

A few days later, he entered the home of Sakina and Elyas Abowath, and he shot Elyas dead whilst he slept.

He handcuffed and sexually assaulted Sakina and made her reveal the locations of her jewellery. 

San Francisco

The Night Stalker was discovered to have moved to the San Francisco area following the shootings of Peter and Barbara Pan. 

He shot Peter in the head at close range whilst he slept and beat and sexually assaulted Barbara.

He shot her in the head and left her to die.

After a press conference revealed his location, he returned to Los Angeles.

Los Angeles / Orange County

Ramirez attempted to enter the Romero property.

He was scared off after their son heard him outside in the garden.

He later broke into the home of Bill Carns and Inez Erickson.

Ramirez shot Bill three times and beat and bound Inez.

After this, he sexually assaulted Inez and took their valuables.

Both victims survived the attack.

The stolen car was found nearby, and police were able to recover a fingerprint.

The fingerprint belonged to Richard Ramirez.

After the Nightstalker was identified as Richard Ramirez, his mugshot was heavily circulated by police.

Night Stalker: The Shocking True Story of Richard Ramirez, the Serial Killer Whose Murder Terrorized Los Angeles (AD*) covers his crimes in more detail.

Richard Ramirez’s Arrest

Ramirez was arrested by police following a citizen’s arrest.

He was unaware that his image had been circulated in the media.

He was recognized by a woman due to pictures of Richard Ramirez in the press.

She was outside a convenience store and started shouting that he was the killer.

Due to the focus on Richard Ramirez’s teeth in his police sketch and in police descriptions, he was easily recognized by the public.

Upon noticing that he had been recognized and that he was being chased by the public.

He went on the run and attempted to carjack several passing cars.

Richard Ramirez’s capture came at the hands of a group of residents who chased him down the road.

They subdued him until the police arrived.

He was hit around the head with a metal pipe.

Richard Ramirez was beaten by the mob before the police arrived.

Richard Ramirez’s Childhood

Richard Ramirez had several accidents as a child involving head injuries.

As a result, he was diagnosed with epilepsy at 11.

Police were able to catch Ramirez due to a fingerprint in a stolen car.

His fingerprints were on file due to crimes he had committed in his younger years.

To avoid his abusive father, he would spend a lot of time with his older cousin Mike and would sleep in a graveyard.

They would smoke marijuana, and Mike would tell him brutal stories.

Mike would also show him gruesome pictures of torturing women during the Vietnam War.

Richard Ramirez’s cousin, Mike, shot his wife Jessie in the face during an argument.

Ramirez was a witness to the killing.

Mike was found to be insane and released after 4 years in a mental hospital.

This led to Ramirez starting to take LSD, breaking into people’s homes and becoming a Satanist.

He was convicted of a number of petty crimes.

He later committed several drug, burglary and car theft offences.

Night Stalker Richard Ramirez: The Horrifying True Crime Story of the Infamous Serial Killer (AD*) covers his early years in more detail.

Ramirez worked in a hotel briefly.

He was fired when he attempted to assault a guest at the hotel.

Her husband returned to their room and beat him before he was arrested for attempted rape.

The charges were later dropped.

Richard Ramirez Trial

Richard Ramirez, in court, put on a show for the public.

He was smiling and waving to the cameras.

Ramirez appeared in court with sunglasses as if he were a celebrity.

During his trial, Ramirez raised his hand to reveal a pentagram drawn on it and shouted, “Hail Satan”.

Much to everyone’s surprise, Ramirez would smile often during his trial.

There was a noticeable difference in his teeth.

A week after his arrest, he saw a prison dentist, who was concerned about the state of his teeth.

Over nine months, his teeth were worked on by Dr Alfred Otero, who repaired nine of his teeth.

Ramirez made numerous threats to shoot prosecutors and jurors.

Jurors were left terrified when, in an unrelated incident, juror Phyllis Singletary was shot and killed.

She had been murdered by her boyfriend, James Melton.

A plot to kill the prosecutor was foiled by jail workers who overheard Ramirez’s plans to take a gun to the courtroom.

On 20th September 1989, Ramirez was convicted of 13 counts of murder, 5 attempted murders, 11 sexual assaults and 14 burglaries.

He was sentenced to die in the gas chamber in November 1989.

After sentencing, he said, “Big deal. Death always went with the territory.”

Prison Life

Richard Ramirez’s wife was Doreen Lioy.

She married Richard Ramirez after a romance that started with prison letters.

This later turned to visits to see him and a proposal in 1988.

They married at San Quentin prison in 1996.

She was initially vocal in her defence of Ramirez.

They later separated, and she disappeared from the limelight.

Much like Ted Bundy, Richard Ramirez was handsome.

As a result, Richard Ramirez received letters from fans and admirers over the course of his sentence.

Philip Carlo’s book The Night Stalker: The Disturbing Life and Chilling Crimes of Richard Ramirez (AD*) features both interviews with Ramirez and a number of his female admirers.

It is believed that he received thousands of letters and hundreds of photographs from fans.

One writer wrote about their letters in Letters From The Night Stalker: A Decade of Correspondence with Richard Ramirez (AD*)

Many showed his pen pals in sexually suggestive poses, often at the request of Ramirez via his letters.

Richard Ramirez started drawing in prison, sending sketches to his pen pals.

A number of his signed artworks have been sold to private collections.

Richard Ramirez Appeals

The Night Stalker’s first round of appeals was unsuccessful in August 2006.

His appeal was delayed as there were 50,000 pages of records for the court to review.

His request for a rehearing was declined in September 2006.

He had several other appeals pending at the time of his death.

Richard Ramirez’s Death

Richard Ramirez died as a result of cancer.

Richard Ramirez’s date of death was June 7th, 2013.

He had Hepatitis C at the time of his death.

He was generally in poor health due to his previous substance abuse.

Richard Ramirez’s death was communicated to his next of kin.

They did not claim his body, so he was cremated by the state.

Media

In 2021, Netflix released a documentary documenting his crimes called Night Stalker: The Hunt For a Serial Killer.

It was also confirmed in Crime Scene: The Vanishing at the Cecil Hotel that Richard Ramirez had stayed at the famous Cecil Hotel.

He was seen returning to the hotel covered in blood.

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