Unknown: The Chicago Strangler Cases
Overview
The "Chicago Strangler" is not a single, identified serial killer, but a chilling pattern of unsolved murders that has haunted the city for two decades. The term refers to a cluster of at least 51 homicides of women, predominantly Black, who were strangled or asphyxiated between 2001 and 2018. Their bodies were often discovered in desolate locations on Chicago's South and West Sides—discarded in alleys, abandoned buildings, garbage cans, and vacant lots.
The similarities in victimology, cause of death, and geographic location led a nonprofit research group, the Murder Accountability Project, to suggest that one or more serial killers may be responsible. This theory, however, has been a point of contention with the Chicago Police Department, which maintains there is no definitive evidence linking all the cases to a single offender. The cases represent a complex and tragic intersection of violence, social vulnerability, and the persistent struggle for justice for marginalized communities. While one man has been convicted for one of the 51 murders, the vast majority remain unsolved, leaving dozens of families waiting for answers and a city grappling with the possibility of predators operating in the shadows for years.
A Pattern of Death Emerges
The series of killings began to form a recognizable, if unofficial, pattern in the early 2000s. Women were being found dead, almost all killed by strangulation or suffocation. The victims were frequently left partially or fully nude, suggesting a sexual component to the crimes, and disposed of in ways that aimed to conceal them. Many of the victims had backgrounds that made them particularly vulnerable, including histories of drug use and involvement in sex work.
These factors, combined with the locations of the bodies in areas often plagued by high crime rates and urban decay, contributed to a lack of widespread media attention and public outcry in the early years. The murders occurred in clusters, with eight women killed in 2003 alone. Another disturbing pattern emerged in November 2007, when two women, Theresa Bunn and Hazel Lewis, were found strangled and set on fire in trash cans just two days and less than two miles apart. Despite these alarming connections, the cases were largely investigated as individual homicides, and the idea of a serial predator was not officially acknowledged.
The Victims
The 51 women were not statistics; they were mothers, daughters, sisters, and friends whose lives were violently cut short. They ranged in age from 18 to 58. While many faced personal struggles, their stories are of individuals with hopes, families, and a right to justice. Activists, journalists, and projects like "Unforgotten51" have worked to ensure these women are remembered for who they were, not just how they died.
- Angela Ford, 32 — In 1999, the mother of two left home to pick up her children's report cards and never returned. She was found days later, having been sexually assaulted, beaten, and strangled, and remained in a coma for a year and a half before dying on January 4, 2001.
- Gwendolyn Williams, 44 — Described by her family as a protector and the oldest of six children, Gwendolyn was found raped and strangled behind a dollar store on June 12, 2002. Her sister remembers her as a fashionista and a fierce animal lover who was always there for her family.
- Nancy Walker, 55 — An entrepreneur who owned businesses, taught dance, and was deeply loved by her family, Nancy was found dead on March 19, 2003. Her dismembered body was discovered in garbage bags along an expressway 63 days after she was reported missing.
- Theresa Bunn, 21 — Eight months pregnant with her first child, a son she had already named, Theresa was found strangled and burned in a dumpster in Washington Park on November 12, 2007. Her family remembers her excitement about becoming a mother.
- Hazel Lewis, 52 — A mother, grandmother, and fiancée, Hazel was known for her kindness, often feeding the unhoused. Her body was found strangled and burning in a trash can behind an elementary school on November 14, 2007, just two days after Theresa Bunn.
- Diamond Turner, 21 — Last seen leaving a sports bar, Diamond's family filed a missing person report when they couldn't reach her. Her body was found by sanitation workers in a garbage can on March 3, 2017; she had been asphyxiated.
The Murder Accountability Project
In 2017, the quiet and horrifying pattern of unsolved strangulations was brought into the public spotlight by the Murder Accountability Project (MAP), a nonprofit organization that analyzes homicide data. Founded by former investigative journalist Thomas Hargrove, MAP uses a computer algorithm to detect clusters of homicides with characteristics that suggest they may be the work of a serial killer.
The algorithm flagged a massive cluster of 51 unsolved strangulations of women in Chicago, noting the unnaturally low clearance rate for this specific type of crime compared to other homicides in the city. Hargrove's analysis highlighted striking commonalities: 94 percent of the victims were found outdoors or in abandoned structures, and a clear sexual component was present in most of the crimes. Hargrove presented his findings to the Chicago Police Department, arguing that it was statistically improbable for 51 separate offenders to have committed these strikingly similar murders. MAP's involvement was instrumental in forcing a public conversation and pressuring law enforcement to re-examine the cases as a collective.
Police Investigation and Official Response
Following pressure from MAP and community activists, the Chicago Police Department (CPD) announced in 2019 that it would review the 51 unsolved cases. A team of detectives assigned to an FBI violent crimes task force was tasked with re-examining every piece of evidence.
Despite the review, the CPD has consistently stated that it has found no forensic evidence—specifically DNA—to link the cases together and support the single-killer theory. Officials have pointed out that of the more than 75 total strangulation murders of women since 2001, 25 had been solved, resulting in the arrests of 13 different men, suggesting multiple perpetrators are responsible for this type of crime in the city.
DNA evidence has been a significant challenge in the investigation. Of the 51 unsolved cases in the cluster, DNA was recovered from only 18 of the victims, yielding 21 distinct profiles. None of these profiles matched each other or any known offenders in the national CODIS database, complicating the theory of a single, prolific killer. This lack of DNA evidence has been a major obstacle to solving the murders and has fueled the debate over whether the pattern is the work of one or more "forensically aware" killers or simply a tragic symptom of a broader crisis of unsolved violence.
A Single Arrest: The Case of Diamond Turner
In January 2020, a breakthrough occurred in one of the 51 cases. Police arrested 52-year-old Arthur Hilliard and charged him with the 2017 murder of Diamond Turner. The arrest was made after DNA evidence from the scene—blood found in Hilliard's home—was finally processed and matched to Turner. Hilliard, who had dated Turner, was accused of killing her and dumping her body in a trash can behind his apartment building.
While the arrest brought a measure of justice for Diamond Turner's family, it did not solve the larger mystery. Hilliard was convicted of Turner's murder, but as of late 2026, his DNA has not been publicly linked to any of the other 50 unsolved strangulation cases. He was also convicted of concealing a homicidal death in a separate 2018 stabbing case and was reportedly a suspect in a third murder. Hilliard's arrest underscored the possibility that multiple individual predators could be responsible for the deaths, rather than a single "Strangler."
Aftermath and Legacy
The Chicago Strangler cases have left an indelible scar on the city, highlighting painful truths about which victims' lives are valued and which are overlooked. The majority of the women were Black, and many were from marginalized communities, leading activists and families to charge that their cases were not investigated with the urgency they deserved. The lack of resolution for dozens of families has created a legacy of enduring pain and mistrust.
In response, community activists, journalists, and students have launched initiatives to keep the victims' memories alive. The "Unforgotten51" project, started by journalism students at Roosevelt University, has sought to tell the personal stories of the women behind the statistics, humanizing them and pushing back against narratives that dismissed them. Organizations and community leaders continue to hold marches and demand accountability, insisting that the city cannot forget the 51 women. The unsolved cases serve as a grim reminder of systemic failures and the ongoing fight for justice for some of Chicago's most vulnerable citizens.
