Gary M. Heidnik
Gary Michael Heidnik | |
|---|---|
Mugshot of Heidnik | |
| Born | November 22, 1943 Eastlake, Ohio, U.S. |
| Died | July 6, 1999 (aged 55) SCI Rockview, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Other names | Brother Bishop |
| Criminal status | Executed by lethal injection |
| Spouse |
Betty Disto
(m. 1985; div. 1986) |
| Children | 3 |
| Convictions | First degree murder (2 counts) Kidnapping (6 counts) Rape (5 counts) Aggravated assault (4 counts) Involuntary deviate sexual intercourse (2 counts) |
| Criminal penalty | Death (July 3, 1988) |
| Details | |
| Victims | 6 kidnapped 4 survivors 2 killed |
Span of crimes | November 26, 1986 – March 19, 1987 |
| Country | United States |
| State | Pennsylvania |
Date apprehended | March 24, 1987 |
Gary Michael Heidnik (November 22, 1943 – July 6, 1999) was an American murderer and serial rapist who kidnapped, tortured and raped six women, murdering two of them, while holding them captive in a self-dug pit in his basement floor in Philadelphia between 1986 and 1987. He was sentenced to death and executed by lethal injection in July 1999, the last person executed in the state of Pennsylvania as of January 2026. Heidnik later became one of the inspirations for the character of Jame "Buffalo Bill" Gumb in The Silence of the Lambs.