Richard Trenton murdered seven people because he believed Nazis were trying to poison him

Known as the “Vampire of Sacramento,” Richard Trenton believed that he was being poisoned by Nazis who were trying to turn his blood into powder. Trenton thought that the only way he could survive was to drink the blood of others, leading him to murder and cannibalise seven people. He also believed he was being pursued by a Nazi UFO, a belief he apparently still holds in prison.

Fergus John Glen killed his brother for not complimenting his cooking

On March 7, 2003, a long running feud between two brothers culminated in a violent murder. After Fergus John Glen cooked dinner for his brother and their parents, he grew irritated when his brother was the only one to not thank him for the meal. Everyone else went to sleep, but Glen stayed up, drinking and stewing about the perceived sleight, eventually working himself into such a rage that he murdered his brother in his bed with an axe.

Brenda Spencer shot up her school because she “didn’t like Mondays”

On January 29, 1979, 16-year-old Brenda Spencer opened fire outside of an elementary school in San Diego. Firing 36 rounds with an assault rifle her father had given her, Spencer claimed the lives of the school’s Principal and custodian and wounded eight children, all of whom eventually recovered. When pressed on her motive for the slayings, Spencer replied that she had done it because she “hated Mondays” and thought it would “liven up the day.” This inspired Bob Geldof to write and record the 1979 single I Don’t Like Mondays with his band The Boomtown Rats.

Robert Lyons murdered his mother over Avril Lavigne tickets

In 2008, 39-year-old Robert Lyons brutally murdered his mother by stabbing her repeatedly with a kitchen knife before pouring household cleaning products over her body. The reason for his murderous rage? His mother had refused to spend thousands of dollars buying him skybox tickets for an upcoming Avril Lavigne concert. Lyons handed himself in shortly after the murder and was sentenced to 40 years.

Richard Angelo killed his patients trying to look like a hero

Nicknamed “The Angel of Death” in the media, Richard Angelo is an American serial killer who is estimated to have killed between 6-25 people. In a quest to fulfil his fantasies of being recognised as a hero, Angelo injected his patients with a lethal cocktail of drugs to induce cardiac arrest before trying to resuscitate them. Unfortunately, he was never successful in the second step, and was eventually caught and sentenced to 61 years in prison.

Joshua Davies murdered his girlfriend for a free breakfast

15-year-old Joshua Davies had a tumultuous relationship with his girlfriend, often joking about killing her to his friends. When one of them quipped back that he’d buy him a cooked breakfast if he actually went through with it, Davies lured his girlfriend into the woods and bludgeoned her to death with a rock. One of the bits of evidence presented at court was a text message that read “don’t say anything, but you may just owe me a breakfast.”

Kevon Watkins killed his sister over the WiFi password

In 2017, 16-year-old Kevon Watkins changed his family’s WiFi password so that he could play video games without interference. In the ensuing argument, Watkins’ aggressive behaviour caused his sister to intervene, resulting in a fight that ultimately led to her death after she was held in a chokehold for over 15 minutes. Watkins was found guilty of murder and sentenced to life in prison.

Franklin Paul Crow beat his roommate to death because there wasn’t any toilet paper

Credit: Ian Talmacs/Unsplash

In 2006, Florida resident Franklin Paul Crow bludgeoned his roommate – 58-year-old Kenneth Matthews – to death with a sledgehammer. The two had been living together for a year, and things had been cordial until an argument erupted over a lack of toilet paper in the apartment. After Matthews threateningly picked up a rifle, Crow grabbed a nearby sledgehammer and ruthlessly hit him over ten times, leaving his body unrecognisable.

Curtis Reeves shot a man for texting at the cinema

In 2014, Curtis Reeves – a 71-year-old retired police captain – fatally shot 43-year-old Chad Oulson inside a cinema. Reeves had confronted Oulson over the fact that he was continually texting during the film, with the notifications distracting other patrons. Oulson reacted by throwing his popcorn at Reeves’ face, enraging the former officer and causing him to produce his pistol and fire a single, fatal shot. Reeves’ invoked Florida’s ‘Stand Your Ground’ law in court, but was found guilty of second degree murder.

Jemma Lilley killed a stranger because it was on her bucket list

After she moved from America to Australia in 2010, Jemma Lilley developed an unhealthy obsession with serial killers and horror movies, which eventually progressed to the point that she added “murder” to her bucket list. In 2016, Lilley, with help from her flatmate, acted on her homicidal desires. After luring a teenager to her house, Lilley attempted to garrotte him before stabbing him repeatedly after the wire broke.