These miraculous escapes were nothing short of life-saving. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’ll be looking at the luckiest individuals who narrowly avoided falling victim to notorious serial killers and escaped with their lives intact.
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00:00 A car started coming the other direction and that's when I broke loose and ran to the car.
00:05 I flew open their doors and jumped in on them.
00:09 Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're looking at the luckiest individuals who
00:13 narrowly avoided falling victim to notorious serial killers and escaped with their lives intact.
00:19 She was able to free her hands, unlock the trunk, and run for her life.
00:24 I turned and looked and he was chasing me down the road with a machete.
00:29 Teresa Thornhill escaped Robert Black
00:33 Between 1981 and 1986, Robert Black committed the sexual assault and murder of at least four girls
00:39 in the UK. I don't understand myself. I keep asking myself why.
00:44 I've got this fascination, weakness, or whatever I want to call it.
00:50 His list of victims could easily have included Teresa Thornhill if not for a narrow escape.
00:55 In April 1988, Thornhill was walking home when she was approached by Black in his van.
01:00 The criminal pretended to have engine trouble, and when she approached him,
01:04 he grabbed her and attempted to shove her into his van.
01:07 It's important to understand that a serial killer of the kind that Black was,
01:12 he was an obsessed serial killer, not an incidental serial killer.
01:17 He was destined to kill over and over and over again.
01:21 Remarkably, Thornhill fought back and screamed,
01:24 which alerted a nearby friend who rushed towards the scene.
01:27 Black then released Thornhill and hastily fled in his van.
01:30 He was eventually arrested in 1990 and convicted four years later
01:34 of multiple charges including the attempted abduction of Thornhill.
01:38 There was nothing in this man that he could ever have said, "I didn't mean to do it."
01:46 Because he got more aggravated in his depravity.
01:51 Roger Sproston escaped William Bonnen
01:54 Many hitchhikers in the United States have sadly fallen victim to depraved killers.
01:59 I mean, it was a very, very terrifying time.
02:01 Roger Sproston narrowly escaped such a fate in 1980,
02:04 when he hitched a ride to downtown Los Angeles with a man driving a red Ford Pinto.
02:09 Unbeknownst to him, the driver was William Bonnen,
02:12 a notorious killer who had already sexually assaulted and murdered more than a dozen men and boys.
02:16 Bonnen admitted to 24 murders that he had committed
02:20 and identified pretty much those individuals off that chart.
02:25 Sproston was unknowingly poised to become his next victim.
02:28 However, when Bonnen attempted to strangle the hitchhiker,
02:31 he managed to wiggle his fingers under the rope and fought his way out of the car.
02:35 Sproston quickly flagged down a police car and described Bonnen to the officers.
02:40 He was reportedly arrested just 10 days later.
02:43 Bonnen was arrested. They ID'd him, put his picture up, addressed, the whole bit.
02:48 Cynthia Vigil escaped David Parker Ray
02:51 Dubbed the "Toy Box Killer," David Parker Ray is believed to have murdered up to 60 women.
02:57 Dozens of women were taken into David Parker Ray's "Toy Box,"
03:01 a trailer-turned-torture chamber in truth or consequences.
03:05 Ray kept his victims captive in his trailer or toy box,
03:08 where he sexually assaulted them repeatedly, sometimes with other accomplices.
03:13 His reign of terror ended in 1999 after he kidnapped Cynthia Vigil.
03:17 He put his handcuffs on me and he had me in his trailer and he drove me to Elfin Butte.
03:23 Vigil was held captive for three days by Ray and his girlfriend, Cindy Hendy.
03:27 On the third day, while Ray was at work,
03:30 Vigil managed to unlock her chains and escape from the trailer after stabbing Hendy.
03:34 A neighbor took her in and promptly called the police, leading to Ray's arrest.
03:39 He was sentenced to 224 years in prison for kidnapping and torture,
03:43 but died of a heart attack one year later.
03:45 Ray died in prison in 2002 and took his evil secrets with him.
03:50 Vigil Jaramillo hopes by sharing her story, some of those secrets will be unearthed.
03:55 Please, you guys come forward. This man is a very sick man.
04:00 Jane Doe escaped Sean Great
04:03 Over the span of a decade, Sean Great murdered at least five women in Ohio,
04:08 including two of his former girlfriends.
04:11 This morning, investigators are piecing together the portrait of a possible serial killer.
04:16 In 2016, he abducted another woman, whose identity remains confidential.
04:21 Great held her captive in a house in Ashland, Ohio,
04:24 subjecting her to repeated sexual assaults over three days.
04:28 Despite the harrowing situation, the victim was able to use Great's phone
04:31 to call 911 while he slept and stayed on the line until police arrived.
04:36 Is there any way you can get out of the building?
04:38 I don't know without waking him and I'm scared.
04:41 Upon reaching the location, officers arrested Great
04:44 and discovered the bodies of two more women on the property.
04:47 The killer was indicted on 23 criminal counts,
04:50 including aggravated murder and kidnapping.
04:53 He pleaded guilty to the charges and was subsequently sentenced to death.
04:57 Death by lethal injection. The judge's ruling followed the jury's recommendation.
05:02 Court further orders that each of the death penalties be carried out by appropriate authorities.
05:06 Lisa McVeigh escaped Bobby Joe Long.
05:10 Today, Lisa McVeigh is a motivational speaker and police officer specializing in the sex crimes unit.
05:16 Her career path was greatly shaped by a traumatic experience during her teenage years.
05:21 It frightened me because where I worked at, I used to have to ride a bicycle
05:25 and I used to always wonder and worry, would I be the next victim?
05:28 And then you think, that can't happen to me.
05:31 But it did.
05:35 Back in 1984, McVeigh was abducted while riding her bike home from work.
05:41 Her captor was Bobby Joe Long,
05:43 a notorious serial killer who was already responsible for the deaths of at least eight women.
05:47 Long later confessed to at least eight murders over that eight-month span in 1984
05:53 and was sentenced to death.
05:55 A lot of lives just kind of right down the tubes because of me,
05:58 you know, in one way or another. And it's not a good feeling. It's not a pleasant feeling.
06:04 McVeigh was held captive for 26 hours, during which she was tortured and sexually assaulted.
06:09 However, she managed to build an unlikely connection with Long
06:13 and ultimately persuaded him to let her go.
06:15 So I told him, I said, listen, it's unfortunate how we met.
06:19 I could be your girlfriend. I could take care of you.
06:23 And no one ever has to know.
06:25 Reverse psychology, I guess.
06:26 Coddling him like a four-year-old child.
06:29 It worked.
06:31 Once freed, McVeigh provided crucial information to the authorities
06:35 that helped them apprehend Long less than two weeks later.
06:38 Jennifer Asbenson escaped Andrew Urtiales.
06:42 From 1986 to 1996, Andrew Urtiales targeted nine women and successfully claimed the lives of eight,
06:49 with only one eluding his murderous grasp.
06:52 What makes him different from other people that you've tried, even for horrible murders?
06:56 He enjoyed it. He went out and hunted women.
06:58 It's just like a wrecking ball, the damage he's done.
07:02 This is the most evil person I think I've ever met in my life.
07:05 That woman was Jennifer Asbenson.
07:07 In 1992, Asbenson accepted a ride to work from Urtiales
07:11 and gave him a fake phone number when he asked for her contact.
07:14 Infuriated, Urtiales waited for Asbenson and offered her another ride home,
07:19 during which he bound her hands and attempted to sexually assault her.
07:23 Asbenson got into Urtiales' car after he promised her a ride home.
07:26 Instead, he drove into the desert. That's when her living nightmare began.
07:32 He then forced her into his trunk and continued driving.
07:35 Fortunately, Asbenson freed herself and escaped by popping the trunk from inside.
07:39 It was hard to move on from it right away because nobody believed me.
07:47 It would take nearly five years for police to apprehend Urtiales.
07:50 He was eventually convicted of all eight murders,
07:53 but took his own life while awaiting execution.
07:55 Kate Moyer escaped David and Catherine Burney
07:59 In 1986, Australian couple David and Catherine Burney
08:03 embarked on a one-month killing spree that claimed the lives of four women.
08:07 The Burneys drove around, waiting to spot a single girl to abduct.
08:11 Stirling Highway was their favorite hunting ground.
08:14 Girls were enticed to the car by what they thought
08:17 was a harmless married couple asking for directions.
08:20 On November 9th, they abducted their fifth intended victim, Kate Moyer,
08:25 after giving her a late-night ride.
08:27 Moyer endured sexual assault from the couple
08:29 and was forced to sleep in their bed while handcuffed to David.
08:33 The following day, while David was at work and Catherine answered the front door,
08:36 Moyer escaped through a window and reported her harrowing experience to the police.
08:42 Catherine put the girl to one side.
08:44 Seeing her opportunity, the young lady, no clothes on,
08:52 jumped straight through the window.
08:54 Initially met with skepticism,
08:55 Moyer was able to convince officers through the detailed account she provided.
09:00 After the Burneys were arrested, David confessed to the killing spree
09:03 and disclosed the whereabouts of their victims' remains.
09:06 The Burneys were sentenced to life on four counts of willful murder
09:10 to be served concurrently.
09:12 That meant a 20-year minimum jail term.
09:15 But Justice Wallace said then,
09:16 "In my opinion, you should not be released from prison ever."
09:21 Carol Duranche Escaped Ted Bundy
09:24 By the time notorious serial killer Ted Bundy
09:26 attempted to abduct Carol Duranche in 1974,
09:30 the world was yet to know just how diabolical he was.
09:33 Bundy had approached Duranche at a mall in Utah
09:35 posing as a police officer investigating a carjacking.
09:38 A man approached me. He said he was a police officer.
09:43 He said, "Well, we found someone trying to break into your car."
09:48 He was polite. He asked me if I wanted to come out to the car with him
09:54 and see if anything was missing.
09:55 He asked Duranche to accompany him to a supposed police station,
09:59 but once in his car, he attacked her and tried to handcuff her.
10:02 What he wasn't prepared for was Duranche's fierce resistance.
10:05 The then 18-year-old fought back and managed to escape after jumping out of the car.
10:10 And it was really shocking to find out later that he was so angry I had gotten away.
10:16 He just drove somewhere else and killed someone else.
10:20 Using information provided by Duranche,
10:22 police identified and arrested Bundy the following year.
10:25 He was subsequently convicted of her kidnap and assault and sentenced to 1 to 15 years.
10:30 Bundy got his verdict that he was guilty.
10:33 He was going to be headed to a Utah State Prison.
10:36 Tracy Edwards escaped Jeffrey Dahmer.
10:40 If not for Tracy Edwards,
10:42 Jeffrey Dahmer's murderous spree might have continued much longer.
10:45 Edwards told police about Dahmer ending Dahmer's killing spree.
10:49 Former District Attorney Michael McCann says Edwards deserves the credit
10:52 for finally exposing Dahmer and his crimes.
10:54 Had that not happened, had Edwards himself been slain,
10:58 no one could tell how many more people might have been killed.
11:01 Edwards nearly lost his life when he followed Dahmer to his apartment
11:04 after meeting him at a local bar.
11:06 Once inside, Edwards noticed several unsettling details,
11:10 including a strong foul odor, boxes of hydrochloric acid, and a blue 57-gallon drum.
11:16 Before long, Dahmer had handcuffed one of his wrists
11:19 and brandished a knife which he pressed against his body.
11:22 I was shocked. I didn't know if he was for real or what, you know.
11:25 And I had some love, "What's going on, man?"
11:27 You know, and then he started telling me that he would kill me
11:30 if I didn't do what he said do, you know.
11:32 Yeah, I killed before, you know, and he'll do it again
11:34 if I didn't do everything he said.
11:36 Edwards initially played along, but once the opportunity came,
11:40 he punched Dahmer and escaped the apartment.
11:42 He would later return with police officers,
11:44 who discovered the human remains in the residence, and placed Dahmer under arrest.
11:49 Edwards testified during Dahmer's trial, helping to put him behind bars.
11:54 And you came up here to testify to the events, as you recall them,
11:58 that occurred on the late afternoon, early evening, early morning hours of
12:05 July the 22nd and the morning of July the 23rd, 1991.
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12:24 Rebecca Garday Escaped Gary Ridgway
12:29 With 49 confirmed murders, Gary Ridgway stands as one of the most prolific serial killers in
12:34 American history.
12:36 Somebody asked me how he got the way he is. Where did he come from?
12:39 And I said, he's not from outer space. He didn't come from Mars. He came from right
12:45 here in our community. And that's the scary part, right here in our neighborhood.
12:49 That number might have reached 50 had Rebecca Garday not narrowly escaped a
12:53 fateful encounter with him. Ridgway had picked up Garday while she was hitchhiking along the
12:57 Pacific Highway, looking to earn quick cash. Garday offered to perform an intimate service
13:02 on Ridgway and led him into the woods.
13:04 He was right in my face when he was attacking me.
13:09 He looked at me really strange. He always had weird, evil eyes.
13:16 Once there, he attacked her and attempted to strangle her. Fortunately, Garday was able
13:21 to fend him off and sought refuge in a nearby trailer home. As she engaged in certain illicit
13:26 activities at the time, Garday waited two years before reporting her harrowing experience
13:31 to the police.
13:32 I had finally got the courage to talk to the police. So one day out of the blue, I gave
13:41 them a call.
13:42 What other lucky individuals do you know have evaded a killer? Let us know in the comments
13:46 below.
13:47 The woman who brought Long to justice is now an officer of the law herself.
13:51 [Music]