Ronald Joseph Dominique (born 9 January 1964), known as The Bayou Strangler, is an American serial killer and rapist who murdered at least 23 men and boys in the state of Louisiana between 1997 and 2006. On September 23, 2008, Dominique was found guilty and sentenced to several terms of life imprisonment without parole for his crimes. Following his conviction, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) stated that Dominique's was the most significant serial homicide case in the country over the past two decades in terms of both death toll and duration.
Background[]
Ronald Joseph Dominique, born Jan. 9, 1964, in Thibodaux, Louisiana, lived a quiet, seemingly unremarkable life. He was the youngest of six children, and his parents were poor laborers who lived in a trailer park located on the outskirts of the city.
During his school years, Dominique was known for his melancholic temperament, lack of communication skills and weight problems. These, coupled with his low self-esteem and poor health, made Dominique the target of bullying.
Shortly before graduating high school in 1983, Dominique discovered he was gay and began visiting local gay bars. However, some of Dominique’s classmates had seen him there, marking him as an even bigger target. Dominique vehemently denied accusations of being homosexual.
After leaving high school, he entered Nicholls State University, where he studied computer science. However, he quickly lost interest and dropped out in the mid-1980s.
With a lack of education, Dominique was limited to low-skilled labor. His inability to hold a steady job due to disciplinary problems forced him to rely on the financial support and hospitality of his relatives, especially his mother and older sister.
Dominique remained unmarried and without children, preferring to spend his free time in gay bars, much as he had years earlier. He often frequented these bars dressed as his idol, jazz singer Patti LaBelle. Despite being a regular in the local gay scene, he was unable to form serious relationships and was often regarded as an outcast.
Frustrated, Dominique began targeting others, which resulted in charges for minor offenses and sexual assault. In July of 1997, his violent tendencies escalated to murder.
One of the most prolific serial killers in United States history by victim count, Ronald Dominique, confessed to raping, binding and strangling 23 young men between 1997 and 2006.
Dominique often met his victims while driving his pickup truck or in gay bars, luring them with offers of alcohol, drugs, housing or group sex with his “girlfriend.” At times, he posed as a talent scout or claimed he wanted to film a porno. His victims were often young Black and Hispanic men between the ages of 16 and 46, drug addicts or sex workers. And more often than not, they accepted the offer.
Robert Dominque was a serial killer mentioned in Dexter: Resurrection as a part of Leon Prater's collection.