These criminals are the worst of the worst. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down infamous or dangerous criminals who have been sentenced to serve time in various American max or supermax security facilities, although carceral locations can often change due to transfers and legal proceedings.
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00:00 "In 2004, he was tried again on state charges in Oklahoma and convicted of 161 counts of first-degree murder."
00:07 Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down infamous or dangerous criminals
00:11 who have been sentenced to serve time in various American Max or Super Max security facilities.
00:16 Although, carceral locations can often change due to transfers and legal proceedings.
00:22 "I really feel pretty good. I feel like a star right now."
00:26 "No remorse, little emotion."
00:29 Richard Reid. Infamously known as the "shoe bomber,"
00:33 Reid is a British terrorist who, in December 2001, attempted to detonate explosives packed
00:39 into the shoes he was wearing while on an American Airlines flight from Paris to Miami.
00:43 "The bomb can be detonated by lighting the fuse on fire.
00:46 The resulting explosion could be enough to bring down a commercial aircraft."
00:50 This attempt was thwarted by the vigilant passengers and crew members on board.
00:55 "And I said, 'Excuse me, sir, what are you doing? What are you doing?' He ignored me.
00:58 I asked him almost three, four times, and he ignored me. So,
01:02 what I did is I just grabbed him and pulled him."
01:05 Following his arrest, Reid was tried in the United States on charges of terrorism.
01:10 He received life without the possibility of parole and is currently incarcerated in a Super Max prison,
01:15 specifically the ADX Florence in Colorado.
01:18 This facility is renowned for housing inmates requiring the highest level of security
01:23 and is often where individuals guilty of the most serious offenses in the U.S. are placed.
01:28 "The war hero is too big for me. I'm just a person who was given a task and I did it.
01:35 I think that it's going to take more than a terrorist to just stop my life."
01:38 Ross Albrecht.
01:38 "The FBI says the 29-year-old seemingly clean-cut entrepreneur
01:43 was living a secret life as a digital drug lord."
01:46 The founder of Silk Road, a dark web marketplace,
01:50 was sentenced in 2015 to life imprisonment. His platform facilitated the anonymous sale
01:55 of illegal substances and other illicit goods and services, earning millions in cryptocurrency.
02:00 "The FBI calls it the most sophisticated criminal marketplace on the internet.
02:05 Thousands of drug dealers used it to sell drugs and completely hide their identities."
02:10 Arrested in 2013, Albrecht was convicted for money laundering, computer hacking, and conspiracy.
02:16 The prosecution underscored the Silk Road's role in the digital underground trade,
02:20 marking a pivotal case in cyber law enforcement.
02:23 "We had no idea that anything like that was coming."
02:26 Albrecht's life sentences, served at a high-security facility, highlight the severity
02:31 with which the legal system addresses cybercrimes that have broad and dangerous
02:35 implications on public health and safety.
02:37 Alec Murdoch.
02:39 This former lawyer from a prominent legal family in South Carolina became the center
02:43 of a high-profile case that captured national attention.
02:46 "The legacy and legal influence of the Murdoch family in southeastern South Carolina
02:51 dates back to the early 1900s."
02:53 In 2021, Murdoch was convicted of the murder of his wife Maggie and their son Paul,
02:58 amid a web of financial fraud and misdeeds.
03:01 "In the murder of your wife Maggie Murdoch,
03:04 I sentence you for a term of the rest of your natural life."
03:10 His trial unveiled a shocking narrative of deceit, financial desperation,
03:14 and ultimately violence, leading to life without the possibility of parole.
03:19 High-profile inmates like Murdoch are often placed in maximum security to ensure their
03:24 safety and prevent escape, although they may be transferred at a later date as circumstances dictate.
03:29 "Would you ever do anything to harm Maggie?"
03:32 "I would never hurt Maggie."
03:35 Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.
03:36 Often described as the mastermind behind the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks,
03:41 Mohammed remains detained at Guantanamo Bay's Camp Delta.
03:45 "By his own words, he said he was responsible for the 9/11 operation from A to Z.
03:51 That was in a 2007 confession."
03:53 His role in planning the attacks that led to the death of nearly 3,000 people and caused
03:58 extensive destruction, including the collapse of the World Trade Center towers,
04:02 places him at the center of one of the most significant terrorist plots in history.
04:06 "Today he appeared with four others accused of training the hijackers,
04:10 helping financially, and finding flight schools for them."
04:14 Arrested in 2003 in Pakistan, Mohammed has faced various charges related to terrorism and murder.
04:19 His detention at Guantanamo, a high-security military facility,
04:23 reflects the extraordinary nature of his alleged actions, and the ongoing legal and ethical debate
04:29 surrounding the treatment and rights of detainees in the context of global terrorism.
04:33 "Of nearly 800 men and boys who've been detained at Guantanamo Bay,
04:37 39 remain. About a quarter were cleared for release as far back as 2010, but are still waiting to leave."
04:46 Dylan Roof
04:47 "The suspect in Wednesday night's deadly church massacre, now in custody."
04:51 Roof was found guilty for the racially motivated massacre at the Emanuel African Methodist
04:56 Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina in 2015, where he murdered nine African-American
05:01 churchgoers. This heinous act was intended to incite racial tensions and violence.
05:06 Roof, who embraced white supremacist ideologies, was found guilty on 33 federal charges,
05:12 encompassing hate crimes. In 2017, he received a death sentence, marking a rare federal execution
05:19 order aimed at denouncing racially motivated violence.
05:22 "The first person in America to be given the death penalty in federal court for a hate crime."
05:28 Roof's incarceration on federal death row under maximum security conditions is not only a
05:33 consequence of his acts, but also serves as a stark reminder of the deadly impact of hate and bigotry.
05:39 "The U.S. Supreme Court rejected his bid to have his conviction overturned.
05:42 He can still pursue other appeals though."
05:45 John Floyd Thomas Jr.
05:47 One of Los Angeles' most prolific serial killers, Thomas Jr. was arrested in 2009
05:53 and linked through DNA evidence to a series of brutal murders spanning several decades.
05:57 "This is a scary story, people. L.A.'s most prolific serial killer may have been caught."
06:03 His crimes mainly targeted elderly and vulnerable women in the Los Angeles area.
06:08 His method of operation typically involved breaking into the homes of his victims,
06:12 where he would then attack and murder them.
06:14 "The murder victims in all cases under review were older white women,
06:18 most of them lower income widows living alone."
06:21 Thomas Jr. was convicted of multiple counts, and this shed light on a series of cold cases
06:26 that had remained unsolved for years. Thomas Jr. was incarcerated in a maximum security prison,
06:32 reflecting the threat he poses to public safety.
06:34 Terry Nichols
06:36 "On April 19th, 1995, a rental truck filled with homemade explosives detonated
06:41 outside the Alfred P. Murrow Federal Building in Oklahoma City."
06:44 This co-conspirator in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing is serving multiple life sentences
06:49 without the possibility of parole at ADX Florence, the aforementioned maximum security federal prison.
06:55 The bombing, one of the deadliest terrorist attacks on U.S. soil prior to September 11,
07:00 2001, resulted in the deaths of 168 people and injured over 600.
07:06 Nichols received federal and state charges for conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction
07:11 and involuntary manslaughter.
07:13 "In 2004, he was tried again on state charges in Oklahoma
07:17 and convicted of 161 counts of first-degree murder."
07:20 His incarceration at ADX Florence, known for its stringent security measures,
07:25 is indicative of the perceived ongoing threat he poses.
07:28 "Even decades later, Americans still try to find rationale and reason,
07:32 and explanation for acts of senseless terror, and hope that they will never happen again."
07:38 Dennis Rader
07:40 The BTK killer carried out a series of murders spanning from 1974 to 1991.
07:46 "I am BTK. I'm the guy they're after."
07:48 His criminal activities caused widespread fear and garnered extensive media coverage,
07:53 particularly in and around Wichita, Kansas.
07:55 "I really feel pretty good. I feel like a star right now."
07:59 "No remorse. Little emotion."
08:02 "He just talks like he's coming home from the day at the office."
08:05 These crimes went unsolved for decades until a renewed investigation,
08:10 aided by advances in forensic science, led to his arrest in 2005.
08:14 "The police and a cast of dozens proudly announced his capture
08:18 to the citizens of Wichita and the world."
08:20 He received 10 consecutive life terms and is incarcerated at the Eldorado Correctional
08:25 Facility in Kansas, a maximum-security prison.
08:29 This facility is designed to house inmates who have committed serious felonies,
08:32 ensuring high levels of security and surveillance.
08:35 Danilo Cavalcante
08:38 This Brazilian national was convicted of murder in the United States,
08:42 and subsequently undertook a daring escape from a Pennsylvania prison in September 2023.
08:47 "His escape was not seen by the tower guard.
08:50 That guard, by the way, is on leave and being investigated."
08:53 He was deemed guilty for the murder of his ex-girlfriend,
08:56 which authorities described as an attempt to silence her from
08:59 revealing his wanted status in Brazil for another murder.
09:02 Cavalcante's escape prompted a massive manhunt involving multiple law enforcement agencies,
09:07 highlighting the challenges of managing high-risk inmates.
09:10 "Cavalcante's capture came after a night of nail-biting tension.
09:14 He was first spotted around 1 a.m. by a drug enforcement plane
09:18 using thermal night vision cameras."
09:20 His escape underscores the importance of maximum-security measures in prisons
09:25 to prevent prison breaks to ensure public safety,
09:28 especially with inmates who have a history of violence and flight risk.
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09:45 Joaquin Guzman
09:49 El Chapo was once deemed the world's most powerful narco,
09:52 and is serving a life sentence plus 30 years in ADX Florence.
09:56 "Like the rest here, segregated and on permanent lockdown 23 hours a day."
10:01 His leadership of the Sinaloa cartel involved the large-scale smuggling of illegal substances
10:06 into the U.S., leading to widespread violence and corruption.
10:10 Captured in 2016 after two dramatic escapes from Mexican prisons,
10:14 Guzman's trial in 2019 resulted in convictions for money laundering
10:18 and involvement in organized crime.
10:20 "He tunneled out of the last Mexican prison where he was locked up and rode to freedom
10:24 on an underground motorcycle."
10:26 His imprisonment under maximum security conditions is a testament to his perceived
10:30 risk of escape and ongoing threat to public safety.
10:33 "A jailbreak that no one has ever succeeded in pulling off, and dare we say probably never will."
10:39 "You would think not, but he's done it before, as you mentioned, just not in the United States."
10:43 "Twice, that's true."
10:44 What other criminals could be on this list? Let us know in the comments.
10:47 The jury decided in the fate of Boston Marathon bomber
10:50 Joharzar Nayev has reached a verdict. They have sentenced him to death.
10:54 [Music]