Just how many did Samuel Little kill?
Samuel Little, the notorious American serial killer who died in 2020 at age 80, confessed to a staggering 93 murders spanning from 1970 to 2005 across 19 states. While the FBI has verified his involvement in at least 60 of these cases through DNA evidence and his chilling sketches of victims, questions linger about the full extent of his crimes. As investigators continue piecing together unmatched confessions, the true toll of Little’s decades-long spree remains a haunting enigma.
A timeline of terror
Samuel Little’s murderous rampage began in 1970, with his first confessed killing in Miami, Florida, targeting vulnerable women often overlooked by society. By the mid-1970s, he had struck in states like Georgia and Tennessee, strangling victims and evading capture through transient lifestyles. Investigators link him to at least 20 murders in this decade, many involving sex workers or drug users, whose cases went cold for years.
The 1980s saw Samuel Little escalate his crimes across the South and West, confessing to killings in Texas, Louisiana, and California. He described luring women into cars before assaulting and strangling them, often dumping bodies in remote areas. Confirmed cases include the 1987 and 1989 Los Angeles murders that led to his eventual conviction, with estimates of over 30 victims during this peak period of unchecked violence.
By the 1990s and into 2005, Samuel Little’s confessions point to murders in Ohio, Arizona, and beyond, totaling 93 claims. His final admitted killing occurred in Mississippi. While DNA has verified 60, including sketches aiding identifications, unmatched cases like those in Arkansas highlight the ongoing quest for justice for forgotten victims.
Confessions under scrutiny
Samuel Little’s 93 confessions paint a grim picture of unchecked predation, with victims primarily marginalized women strangled after assaults. While he provided detailed accounts and sketches for many, law enforcement has matched DNA or evidence to 60 cases, leaving 33 unresolved and fueling debates over his credibility.
Key verified murders include the 1987 strangling of Carol Alford in Los Angeles, the 1989 killing of Audrey Nelson in the same city, and multiple in Odessa, Texas, from the 1990s. Samuel Little often targeted sex workers, like Marianne in Florida (1971-72), whose cases lingered cold until his admissions.
Unmatched confessions, such as those in Arkansas and Nevada, highlight investigative gaps, with Samuel Little describing victims by appearance and location. Ongoing efforts by the FBI’s ViCAP program seek public tips to identify remaining Jane Does and close these haunting chapters.
Mapping the murders
Mapping the murdersSamuel Little’s confessions form a chilling chronology, starting with Mary Brosley in Miami in 1970, followed by Linda Alford in Prince George’s County, Maryland, in 1972. By 1974, he admitted to killings in Knoxville, Tennessee, and Homestead, Florida, often preying on transients whose disappearances went unnoticed for decades.
The 1980s timeline includes confirmed victims like Guadalupe Apodaca in Los Angeles in 1987 and Audrey Nelson in 1989, with confessions extending to Texas locales like Houston and Odessa. Samuel Little detailed strangulations in remote spots, evading justice through constant movement across state lines.
Into the 1990s, Samuel Little confessed to murders in Phoenix, Arizona, around 1996, and his last in Tupelo, Mississippi, in 2005. While 60 are verified, unmatched cases in states like Arkansas and Nevada persist, with his sketches aiding ongoing identifications of forgotten victims.
The unresolved tally
The confessions of Samuel Little, elicited during interviews with Texas Ranger James Holland from 2018 until his death, detail 93 murders, mostly of women from marginalized communities. While 60 have been verified via DNA and corroborative evidence, the remaining 33 hinge on sketches and descriptions, leaving families in limbo as investigators chase leads.
In states like Florida, Samuel Little admitted to multiple killings, including Hilda Nelson in 1971 and Rosie Hill in 1982, both strangled and discarded. Georgia cases span 1977 to 1984, with victims like Patricia Parker in Savannah, often linked through his vivid recollections of clothing and locations, though some await confirmation.
Samuel Little’s Ohio confessions include Cincinnati murders from 1981, such as an unnamed woman near Grove City, while Mississippi claims, like his 2005 Tupelo victim, round out the timeline. Ongoing FBI efforts aim to match these to cold cases, potentially elevating the verified count beyond 60.
The lingering mystery
While Samuel Little confessed to 93 murders, with 60 verified by the FBI, the true number may forever elude us—some unmatched cases could prove inflated claims, others hidden truths. As investigations persist, his legacy underscores the tragedy of overlooked victims, urging closure for families still seeking answers in this somber saga of American crime.
His known timeline
1970–1975
• Victims in Miami, FL and North Miami: several women (strangulation).
• Victims in the Washington, D.C. area.
• Victims in Houston, TX.
• Victims in Louisiana (cities unclear).
1976–1982
• Victims in St. Louis, MO.
• Victims in Mississippi.
• Victims in Georgia.
• Victims in Cincinnati, OH (multiple).
• Victims in Phoenix, AZ.
• Victims in Pasadena, CA.
1983–1984
• Three confirmed killings in San Diego, CA (strangulation).
• Arrested 1984 for assault in San Diego; imprisoned; released 1987.
1987–1994
• Victims in Los Angeles, CA (multiple).
• Victims in Las Vegas, NV.
• Victims in Ohio (Cincinnati, Cleveland).
• Victims in Arkansas.
• Victims in Florida (Tampa).
• Victims in South Carolina.
• Victims in Tennessee.
1995–2005
• Victims in Georgia.
• Victims in Mississippi.
• Victims in Louisiana.
• Victims in Texas.
• Victims in Arkansas.
• Victims in the Gulf Coast corridor.
2005–2012
• Murders taper; still admits to victims in the Southeast and Midwest.
• Arrested in Kentucky 2012, extradited to California.
2014
• Convicted for three Los Angeles murders committed 1987–1989.
2018–2020
• Confesses to 93 killings (FBI later verifies over 50 with high confidence).
• Dies 2020 in California custody.
Confirmed Murders
Annie Lee Stewart, 32, vanished into the margins of Cincinnati on October 11, 1981. Little strangled her and dumped her in the woods behind an apartment complex off Queen Anne Place in Grove City. For decades, her case sat cold. On August 23, 2019, a jury finally named her killer.
Mary Jo Peyton, 21, crossed paths with Little in a Cleveland bar in 1984. He lured her to an abandoned factory, strangled her, and tossed her body down a basement stairwell. Workers found her weeks later, on July 3, 1984. Little’s conviction came on the same 2019 date.
Carol Linda Alford, 41, was discovered in a Los Angeles alley on July 13, 1987. DNA under her fingernails and on her underwear cracked the case. She had been strangled and beaten. Her daughter identified her body. Little was convicted on September 25, 2014.
Audrey Nelson Everett, 35, turned up in a dumpster behind a Los Angeles nightclub on August 14, 1989. Naked from the waist down, beaten, and strangled, she had no identifying items. DNA tied Little directly to her murder; a 2014 conviction followed.
Guadalupe Apodaca, 46, was found on September 3, 1989, inside an abandoned auto shop after a boy’s soccer ball rolled toward a window. She had been strangled as Little kneeled on her chest. DNA closed the loop; he was convicted on September 25, 2014.
Zena Marie Jones, 30, disappeared from Memphis in July 1990. A fisherman found her body on the Arkansas side of the Mississippi River. Little later sketched her face and confessed. She was identified in 2022 when her family recognized the drawing. He was convicted in 2019.
Rose Evans, 32, accepted a ride from Little in Cleveland in 1991. He strangled her in an abandoned area. Another 2019 conviction.
Denise Christie Brothers, 32, a mother of two, was found strangled in Odessa, Texas on February 2, 1994. Little pleaded guilty in 2018, earning his fourth life sentence.
Inside the mind of America’s deadliest drifter
Jillian Lauren’s Behold the Monster: Facing America’s Most Prolific Serial Killer is a forensic dive into the life and lies of Samuel Little, the man linked to more than ninety murders across the United States. But this isn’t conventional true crime. Lauren positions herself inside the investigation, using hundreds of hours of interviews to break open a case that law enforcement had only partly understood.
Little drifted through the country for decades, targeting women society ignored: the poor, the transient, the addicted, the overlooked. He strangled quickly, left little forensic evidence, and kept moving. For years, police departments failed to connect the dots across jurisdictions. Lauren’s book excavates those blind spots and asks how a single predator evaded meaningful scrutiny for nearly half a century.
Behold the Monster is both investigation and indictment. It restores names to women erased from official attention and exposes the systemic failures—racial bias, jurisdictional fragmentation, institutional apathy—that allowed Little’s spree to continue. It’s a clear, unsentimental account of the cost of uncovering the truth.
