Anthony Edward Sowell (August 19, 1959 – February 8, 2021) was an American serial killer and rapist known as The Cleveland Strangler. He was convicted in 2011 of murdering 11 women whose bodies were discovered at his Cleveland, Ohio, home in 2009. After being sentenced to death for the murders, Sowell died in prison from a terminal illness.
Background[]
Anthony Edward Sowell was born and raised in East Cleveland, Ohio, one of seven children born to single parent Claudia "Gertrude" Garrison. Seven other children belonging to Sowell's sister also lived in the household, having moved in after her death following a chronic illness. Sowell had an extremely abusive and traumatic upbringing due largely to Garrison; according to Sowell's niece, Leona Davis, Garrison subjected them to physical abuse while her own children watched from adjacent rooms. In one incident, Garrison forced Davis to strip naked in front of the other children, then whipped her with electrical cords until she bled. Sowell himself began raping his niece on an almost daily basis for two years, starting when she was 10. It was reported by Davis that the other males in the household also committed the rapes.
On January 24, 1978, at the age of 18, Sowell entered the United States Marine Corps. He attended recruit training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island in South Carolina, then was further trained as an electrician at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. On July 13, 1978, he was assigned to the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, also in North Carolina. In 1980, he spent a year overseas in Japan with the 3rd Force Service Support Group, then returned to Cherry Point.
Sowell was ordered to Marine Corps Base Camp Butler in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan on January 20, 1984. A year later, he transferred to Camp Pendleton in California for three days until his discharge on January 18, 1985. During his seven-year Marine Corps career, he received a Good Conduct Medal with one service star, a Sea Service Deployment Ribbon, a Certificate of Commendation, a Meritorious Mast, and two Letters of Appreciation.
Once married to a fellow U.S. Marine, Sowell served in the military between 1978 and 1985, honorably discharged after climbing the ranks to sergeant. He later divorced and struggled with substance abuse and alcoholism and “acknowledged having family problems and increased aggressiveness when drinking,” according to the report.
In 1989, a woman who was three months pregnant attempted to leave Sowell's home. He bound her hands and feet with a tie and belt, then gagged her with a rag. She told police: "He choked me real hard because my body started tingling. I thought I was going to die." In 1990 he was charged with kidnapping, rape and attempted rape. He pled guilty to attempted rape, and served 15 years in prison. He was released in 2005.
Sowell worked in a factory until 2007 when he began collecting unemployment benefits. Neighbors said he earned a living selling scrap metal. They complained to the health department of a foul smell in the neighborhood. He was a member of an online dating service, where he said he was a "master" looking for a submissive person to train.
Arrest[]
On 29 Oct. 2009, following up on a neighbor's claims of a foul odor, authorities descended onto Sowell’s home, initially finding two bodies. The next day, another two victims were discovered in the crawlspace and another in the basement.
Sowell was arrested two days later on Halloween, and investigators eventually located all 11 victims on the property. The women were found in garbage bags and sheets, naked from the waist down, and strangled with everyday household items. Sowell was charged with 11 counts of aggravated murder and 74 counts of rape, kidnapping, tampering with evidence, and abuse of a corpse. He pled not guilty by reason of insanity but later changed his plea to simply "not guilty." He was convicted on all but two counts, including the murders of the eleven women whose bodies were found in his house in 2009. Jurors recommended the death penalty. Judge Dick Ambrose upheld the jury's recommendation. Soon after, he was instead placed on death row and imprisoned at Chillicothe Correctional Institution.
Victims[]
All of Sowell's known victims were African-American women of an either slender or morbidly obese build, 10 of the 11 women were mothers. Of these victims, seven of them were between the age of 44 to 53, three in their 30’s and one victim was 25.