'She Was Just Pure Evil': How Dorothea Puente, 'The Death House Landlady,' Got Caught. How Did Dorothea Puente Kill Her Victims? When they came to me, they were so sick, they weren't expected to live.". According to Serial Killer Timelines by Chris McNab, after her first marriage ended, Puente became involved in criminal activity. Investigators were initially searching for . The marriage only lasted two years. Her lawyers argued that she might be a thief, but not a murderer. After declaring "the Samaritans" bankrupt, Dorothea Puente promptly set up a new boarding house on 2100 F Street in a large 16-bedroom Victorian house in the early 1970s. But, behind the scenes, Puente had embarked on a path that would lead her to murder. In Female Serial Killers, Peter Vronsky details how Puente hosted a dinner for social workers and the residents who suffered from alcoholism every few weeks "where the quality of her food and care was put on display.". An outreach counselor withVolunteers of America had placed him at Puente's boarding houseand she was alarmed to learn he had seemingly vanished in October 1988, according to Sactown Magazine. To many, Dorothea Puente seemed like an angel. EXCLUSIVE: Grandmother, 86, who arranged for her daughter-in-law, 27, to be lured to India and murdered in Could WhatsApp be BANNED in Britain? [11], Puente has been featured on numerous true crime television shows, including Crime Stories,[12] Deadly Women,[13] A Stranger in My Home,[14] World's Most Evil Killers,[15] and Worst Roommate Ever.[16]. Eventually, the "Death House Landlady" would then drug her tenants to the point of rendering them incapacitated. Gray would continue to use the surname Puente for more than twenty years. He and Puente struck up a pen pal relationship while she was in prison and he fell in love. In the 1980s, she worked as a personal caretaker who drugged her clients and stole their valuables. After drugging and robbing a former patient, Puente bought an airplane ticket to Mexico. After an autopsy was done, medical examiners found a large amount of codeine in her system, and although her death was labeled "undetermined cause," it was believed to be a suicide. All the tenants had died from a cocktail of drugs, including the sedativeDalmane, which Puente obtained dozens of prescriptions for, claiming it was to help her boarders sleep. She was the sixth of seven children but didnt grow up in a stable family environment. This piece follows what appears to be the most accepted timeline of Puente's life, but some things remain known only to Puente herself. During the 1992 proceeding, investigators revealed that Puente - who was then 63 - had been killing the tenants for money, making $4,000 a month from cashing their social security checks. Although lawyers showed that Puente had gotten dozens of prescriptions of the sedative Dalmane between 1985 and 1988 and that all of the bodies had Dalmane in their system, there was no concrete proof that Puente had been the one to administer the drugs. According toLARB, the only person who seemed to notice something was Brenda Trujillo, Puente's former cellmate, who lived at 1426 F Street briefly. She eventually opened an unlicensed boarding house that she operated throughout the '70s, catering to disabled, elderly, and homeless people. 104-107. Owen Brewer/Sacramento Bee/Tribune News Service via Getty ImagesDorothea Puente awaiting arraignment in Sacramento, California on November 17, 1988. Dorothea Puente had several children with McFaul but didnt raise them. Her father died of tuberculosis when Puente was eight while her mother, an alcoholic, routinely abused her children and died in a motorcycle accident a year later. Preview. [citation needed], Suspicion was first aroused when neighbors noticed the odd activities of a homeless alcoholic known only as "Chief", whom Puente stated she had "adopted" and hired as her handyman. Investigators soon found the decomposing body of an elderly man inside. Gray-haired landlady, Dorothea Puente, made headlines as one of the most shocking serial killers in Sacramento history. I made them change their clothes every day, take a bath every day and eat three meals a day When they came to me, they were so sick, they werent expected to live.. Dick Schmidt/Sacramento Bee/Tribune News Service via Getty ImagesDorothea Puente after her arrest in Los Angeles, en route back to Sacramento. Everson Gillmouth, 77. More than 130 witnesses were called to the stand by the prosecution, and eventually the devilish landlady was convicted for three of the murderers and ordered to serve back-to-back life sentences. For years, the disappearances of these so-called shadow people who lived at the margins of society went unnoticed. Dorothea often took in the elderly and homeless and placed them as her tenants. She lost her first boarding house after getting caught signing her own name to tenants benefit checks. Puente struck out on her own when she was 16. This time, she was tried for grand theft, robbery, and forgery. The prosecution stated that Puente used sleeping pills to drug her tenants, suffocated them, and then hired convicts to bury them in the yard. This is the disturbing story of Dorothea Puente, the Death House Landlady.. Upon apprehension, she was charged with a total of nine murders. But their marriage was brief only three years and hinted at trouble beneath the surface. John OMara, the prosecutor, called over 130 witnesses to the stand. Gillmouth lived in Oregon, and when Puente was released after serving three of her five years, he drove out to pick her up at her halfway house in Fresno. Being escorted to a police car after her capture in 1988, serial killer Dorothea Puente told gathering reporters 'I used to be a very good person, at one time'. She pled guilty to two counts of forgery, serving four months in jail and three years' probation. While there, doctors diagnosed her as a pathological liar with an unstable personality. Puente and her family moved to Los Angeles in the 1930s to be closer to a veterans' hospital, but her father's condition continued to deteriorate. In 1948, she was convicted of forgery and sent to prison for four months, before working as a prostitute for years and then being arrested for running a brothel in 1960. LIFTING her apron over her head, Dorothea Puente beamed with pride at the freshly-baked cakes in front of her knowing her unsuspecting victims would be at her mercy moments after biting into Alvaro "Bert" Montoya, 51. The Story Of The Unsolved Delphi Murders And The Chilling Video Evidence Left Behind, Scaleless, Slimy, And Extremely Rare: Introducing The Deep-Sea Oarfish, What Stephen Hawking Thinks Threatens Humankind The Most, 27 Raw Images Of When Punk Ruled New York, Join The All That's Interesting Weekly Dispatch, Owen Brewer/Sacramento Bee/Tribune News Service via Getty Images. 'The contents might be what you'd never expected. Dorothea Puente, infamously known as the "Death House Lady," was responsible for the deaths of nine elderly and mentally disabled individuals, plus an additional unconfirmed six people (via Crime Museum).From April 1982 through November 1988, Puente ran a boarding house where she stole from her tenants to the tune of $5,000/month (via Murderpedia), before she would kill them with drug overdoses. But volatility seemed to follow Puente wherever she went and the new couple argued frequently about Puentes drinking and gambling. [9], Puente continued to accept elderly boarders and was popular with local social workers because she accepted referrals of the "tough cases", including drug addicts and abusive tenants. "She sat there so totally motionless and emotionless, one juror said of Puente's demeanor during the trial, the outlet reported. [citation needed], Granting a change of venue motion filed by Puente's lawyers, Kevin Clymo and Peter Vlautin III, a judge transferred the trial to Monterey County. On November 29, 1987, Trujillo wrote a letter to the Social Security Administration detailing her suspicions that Puente was stealing her SSI checks. Puente continued to collect Gillmouth's pension and wrote letters to his family, explaining that the reason he had not contacted them was because he was ill. She continued to maintain a boarding house, taking in forty new tenants. Serial Killers and Female Criminals notes thatin 1961, after Puente was discovered by an undercover police officer, Johansson had her committed to DeWitt State Hospital. This wasnt the first time Puente had been in trouble with the law. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. Her father died of tuberculosis in 1937; her mother, who worked as a sex worker, lost custody of her children in 1938 and died in a motorcycle accident by the end of the year. Serial Killers and Female Criminals claims that Puente "realized that there was an untapped population of alcoholics, senior citizens, and chronically ill people who were in need of care and, more importantly, [] received government money." Volunteers of America had placed him at Puente's boarding houseand she was alarmed to learn he had seemingly vanished in October 1988, according to Sactown Magazine. Puente, who took in people who were older, disabled, or otherwise ailing, would steal their Social Security and benefits checks and poison them by lacing their food with prescription medicine, according to The Los Angeles Times. I can't eat this any more! However, she was arrested before she could board the plane, and this time, her lawyer wasn't able to argue that she wasn't a flight risk. Their relationship developed quickly, and the couple was soon making wedding plans. Grandson of killer granny Dorothea Puente, who laced cakes with sleeping pills and then smothered them at her California boarding house, reveals how he shared a 'real connection' with her and . "In 1948, she stole some government checks and used them to buy clothes" in San Bernardino. Despite the seven bodies found in her yard (and the two other murders she was accused of), Puente pled not guilty to the nine charges against her. In 1993, after several days of deliberations and a deadlocked jury (due in part to her grandmotherly disposition), Dorothea Puente was ultimately convicted of three murders and received back-to-back life sentences. The reality, in fact, was that across a period of 10 years, Puente had meticulously murdered at least seven tenants at the boarding lodge she ran in Sacramento, California. MURDERER Dorothea Puente was charged and convicted of various killings where she victimized the elderly. Removed from her violent crimes, it actually makes perfect sense to use Puente's image on a cookbook, as she has the perfect visage of a kind old lady who probably knows a secret recipe or two that her tenants all would . Dalmane, which Puente obtained dozens of prescriptions for, claiming it was to help her boarders sleep. I had been removing it from the bone, one says in the documentary. Dorothea Puente, also known as the Death House Landlady, was a little-old-lady serial killer who preyed on the elderly and drug-addicted men and women of Sacramento, CA in the 1980s. Pathologists testified that they hadnt been able to fix the cause of death for any of the corpses. With her chiffon dresses, thick-rimmed glasses, grey hair and litter of kittens, Dorothea Puente looked like a sweet old lady even insisting to some, Call me Grandma.. Ultimately, Puente was convicted of just three murders and sentenced to life in prison. She had been drinking at a bar with a man who thought she was acting oddly,later realizingit was Puente, a wanted woman. By 1982, Puente was sent to prison for her thefts. Some of the remains were in a mummified state - bound in bed sheets, cloth and duct tape (above), Puente would lure her victims to their deaths by baking them cake laced with sleeping pills. Dorothea Puente was a convicted serial killer who ran a boarding house in Sacramento, California in the 1980s. Her time in prison was spent visiting the prison chapel, reading John Grisham books, and watching TV. However, it would be three more years before authorities could identify the body as one of the tenants in Dorothea Puentes house. In Worst Roommate Ever, one of the policemen who worked on the case recalls digging up the garden and finding pieces of cloth, egg shells, and leather pieces that looked like beef jerky. Unlike many who passed through Puentes boarding house, however, someone had their eye on Montoya. Those who stayed at the boarding house signed their checks directly over to her, while Puente claimed that she was doing this to protect the residents. Dorothea Puente looked like a sweet grandmother but looks can be deceiving. When the police arrived, Puente told them that Monroe had been depressed due to her husbands terminal illness. Her crimes ranged from drugging and robbery to check forgery and murder, and even when she was blatantly violating her parole, she managed to fly under the radar. Charged with a total of nine murders, Puente was flown back to Sacramento. Would you want that to happen to your children? Dorothea followed up the drugging by carrying out the tenants' murder and burying them in her backyard and garden. letter to change from full time to prn; bstrong charity rating; Application. Not everybody running them is being nefarious, but nefarious activity can crop up.. Shes been digging a lot of holes.. Dorothea Puente awaiting arraignment in Sacramento, California on November 17, 1988. In total, seven bodies were found in Puente's yard. Despite the fact that parole officers visited Dorothea Puente's boarding house numerous times and were aware of the stipulation that she stay away from elderly people and not handle government checks, nothing ever happened. She also established herself as a respected member in Sacramento's Hispanic community, funding charities, scholarships, and radio programs. Once there, Puente drugged him. Puente agreed even providing an extra shovel for them to do so. Dorothea Puente, who ran an unlicensed Sacramento boarding house, became infamous for actually killing residents in the 1980s. The fourth episode titled "Call Me Grandma" detailed her killings and how Dorothea was ultimately caught and convicted by law officials. Yes, Puente may haveappeared to be sweet older lady, but her demeanor hid her true identity: acold-blooded killer in pursuit of cash. Murderpedia . [citation needed], A few weeks later, the police returned after Malcolm McKenzie, a 74-year-old pensioner (one of four elderly people Puente was accused of drugging), accused Puente of drugging and stealing from him. In 1952, Gray married merchant seaman Axel Bren Johansson in San Francisco. During the initial investigation, Puente was not immediately a suspect, and she was allowed to leave the property, ostensibly to buy a cup of coffee at a nearby hotel. [8], Puente told Florez to stop while they were on Garden Highway in Sutter County and dump the box of "junk" on the riverbank at an unofficial household junk dumping site. There, she quickly got back to her old tricks. The social workers knew that Puente had a tendency to exaggerate, but they didn't realize that she was also pretending to be a doctor. The Untold Truth Of Dorothea Puente, The Death House Landlady, drugging elderly people and stealing their benefit checks, remained unidentified until police connected it. Dorothea Puente, ne Dorothea Helen Gray, was born on January 9, 1929, in Redlands, California. The tenant backed Puente up but then slipped the cop a note saying thatPuente was forcing him to lie, the magazine reported. In November 1985, Dorothea Puente hired a handyman named Ismael Florez to install some wood paneling in her home. Puente had Chief dig in the basement and cart soil and rubbish away in a wheelbarrow. I dont think anyone would pick this kind of life. One decomposed leg was found on one side of the garden, and a foot was found on the other (Pictured: Investigators compile miscellaneous body parts found in the ground, 1988). Culture Crossfire claims that parole officers made no fewer than 15 visits to Puente's home. For a while, social workers looked past what they considered to be Puente's "eccentricity" and admired her for dealing with "tough cases." Moise initially asked Puente where Montoya was, but Puente gave conflicting stories. The jury was deadlocked eleven to one for conviction on all counts, and the lone holdout finally agreed to a conviction of two first-degree murder counts, including special circumstances, and one second-degree murder count. Between 1982 and 1988, she killed nine people, all of whom were renting rooms at her boarding house. Dorothea Puente was captured in 1988 after killing seven residents and burying their dismembered bodies his her backyard, in Sacramento, California The seemingly sweet old lady proves looks can. I think you can only truly understand why so many people testified and asked you to spare Dorothea's life only if you have ever fallen down and stumbled on the road of life and had someone pick you up, give you comfort, give you love, show you the way. It wasn't the first tip authorities had gotten about Puente, either. The boarding house at 1426 F Street in Sacramento was included in the 2013 home tour held by the Sacramento Old City Association. Dorothea Puente was a California landlady who ran a boarding house in Sacramento during the 1980s. But as the police prepared to leave, Sharp slipped them a message. A few days later, police returned with a warrant and asked Puente if they could dig in the backyard, where they saw recently disturbed soil. Many of her victims had traces of the drug in them (via The Los Angeles Times ). The founder of MurderAuction - an auction house for serial killer memorabilia - Harder's macabre obsessions have also seen him befriend the likes of Charles Manson and Richard Ramirez. Corporate. Johansson wasn't pleased to find this out when he returned, so they would frequently argue as a result, often about Puente's gambling and drinking as well. Victims included Puente's boyfriend Everson Gillmouth, 77, and eight tenants who lived at the . During that time, it appears that they had two children together, although one was sent to live with relatives and the other was put up for adoption. In the documentary, police say: This could be my grandma, she was the little old lady next door. Even when someone disappeared from the boarding house, Puente was ready with an excuse. If anyone had their suspicions, they didn't voice them. It wasnt until 1988 that suspicions first arose about Puente, after one of her tenants, 52-year old Alvaro Montoya, went missing. Dorothea Puente, the Sacramento Victorian boarding house Landlady where police found seven bodies buried in her yard. ", Between 1985 and 1988, Puente is believed to have murdered at least seven people who lived at her boarding house. After she was released, he moved to be with her, The Los Angeles Times reported. Puente was arrested, returned to Sacramento, and held without bail. She got in serious trouble for the first time in her life after bouncing a check in San Bernadino and spent four months in jail. Her trial commenced in February of 1993 and she was tried for the killings of the following people - which include her former boyfriend and her eight tenants: Dorothea was convicted of three out of nine murder counts and sentenced to life in prison in August of 1993. For the rest of her life, she maintained her innocence, insisting that all of her boarders had died of "natural causes". She was later charged with two more murders in addition to the seven, bringing the total number of victims she had to nine. The police returned and searched the house, finding nothing, so they asked permission to dig up the garden so they could tell the social worker theyve done all they can. She maintained her innocence until her death. Then learn about Aileen Wuornos, historys most terrifying female serial killer. Then you will understand why these people believe Dorothea's life is worth saving. She even wrote a cookbook from behind bars: "Cooking with a Serial Killer.". After burying the victims on her property, she then cashed in on the victims' social security checks. McFaul left her in late 1948.[5][6]. Dorothea Puente ran a boarding house for the elderly, disabled, or otherwise ailing in Sacramento, California, but her motives were anything but altruistic. She was given five years' probation and ordered to pay $4,000 in restitution. The marriage only lasted two years. Sactown Magazine reports that Puente "granted few interviews [after the trial], observing a self-imposed gag order," and she maintained her innocence to her death, claiming that all the residents had died of natural causes. Six months after her release, she left Riverside. She had a traumatic childhood after being raised by alcoholic parents. When Dorothea Puente was 17 years old, she married 22-year-old GI Fred McFaul, and they moved to Gardnerville, Nevada. Like many of Puente's vulnerable tenants, Montoya had developmental disabilities and schizophrenia, and after he didn't show up to meet with his social worker, Judy Moise, in November 1988, Moise reported him missing. It was too late for them to arrest Puente, though. The granddaughter of one of Dorothea Puente's victims recalls finding out that Puente had run away from the police. James Gallop, 62. Silver-haired, dressed in a long red coat and wearing large rounded glasses, the 59-year-old resembled just a regular grandmother - proving looks truly can be deceiving. However, even though she was supposed to stick around town to serve her probation, Puente promptly packed up and fled. 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