The Craigslist Rapist : Guest Blog by Trench Reynolds

August 02, 2008

[Trench Reynolds blogs about Craigslist related crime at Craigs Crime List and is co-founder of the Coalition of Crime Bloggers]

I'm sure most of you are familiar with the Website Craigslist. In case you're not, it's a massive online classifieds site that has regional sites in most of the United States and major cities around the world. It was started in 1995, in San Francisco, California, by Craig Newmark and was originally intended as a personal site for him and his friends to communicate. Over a decade later, it's a multi-million dollar business.

You can get just about anything you want on Craigslist - furniture, jobs, dates, even concert tickets; however, Mark Antonio Humphries was looking for something a little different on Craigslist - Humphries was looking for victims.

Before we get to Humpheries, let me tell you about the other things you can get on Craigslist.

Craigslist has section called "erotic services". This is where the ads for "escort services" and "massages" reside. In other words, it's where Craigslist allows anyone to post ads for prostitution.

Humpheries, of Prince Georges County, Maryland, picked his victims from the erotic services section. Humpheries was otherwise known as the "Craigslist Rapist". From October, 2007 through July, 2008 Humpheries raped nine women that he met through Craigslist. The women were either escorts or were looking for one night stands. Humpheries would set up the meetings at empty apartments or motel rooms.

Humpheries slipped through the grasp of police more than once and at at one point he even went to the police himself, to fish for information.

On July 23, police finally caught up with Humpheries at an apartment in Hyattsville, Maryland. After police evacuated the building, Humpheries shot himself in the head. He died later that night.

Humpheries may go down in infamy as "the" Craigslist rapist, since he struck in an area near media-centric Washington, D.C.; however he is not the only one.

In DeKalb County, Georgia, 18-year-old Allen Jamar McDowell was arrested for the rape of two women he met through Craigslist. McDowell is also HIV positive.

In Tigard, Oregon, 52-year-old Ronald M. Leistiko was arrested for luring several women to his home through Craigslist and raping them.

In California, 24-year-old Waymon Livingston was arrested for raping a masseuse he contacted through Craigslist. The DNA from the rape linked him to a murder for which he is now facing life without parole.

Rape is not the only crime being committed through Craigslist. 19-year-old college student Donna Jou disappeared after leaving on a date with a man she met on Craigslist and 22-year-old nanny Katherine Ann Olson was killed after answering an employment ad. Her killer took out the ad allegedly just so he could kill someone.

Craigslist is also a hive for various scammers, fences, and thieves. Not that these crimes haven't been occurring since the dawn of the Internet, but I've never heard of so much crime being connected to one Website.

Please note that Investigation Discovery does not necessarily endorse any of the views expressed by guest bloggers and Investigation Discovery is not responsible for the information contained in guest posts.

Comments

[V.S.]

It's hard to find any other site of that scale, in terms of linking strangers. Newspaper classifieds are geographically limited, dating sites aren't as large because more people need housing, vehicles and stuff, and more people offer up these things, than are looking for relationships. Ebay only involves mailing stuff. Add a bit of psuedoanonymity (the police can trace it all, once they know they need to, which is probably too late) and it's inevitable a few bad people will turn it to their own ends.

[Shaylin Sanders]

I have been using CL since 1998 when it was just San Francisco and a few other cities. I have that in all of my years using this site, I have only had 1 bad thing happen. I have found employment, cars, items that I have purchased, and even concert tickets. I became an addict to the RnR section and met quite a few people that are now slightly more than aquaintances. I even went on a few dates...(a couple odd ones) but for the most part CL has never steered me wrong. A couple of years ago I got scammed out of 1600 bucks trying to rent a room in a house. I had that guy put in jail and used CL to network and find 11 other victims.

Crime is everywhere we look...It is ignorant to think otherwise. It is just better to play things safe. I learned my lesson through my victimization, but it has not made me lose faith in the site. It is people who are criminals, not websites.

[V.S.]

I just re-read my comment and realized that my meaning wasn't really clear. I don't think the problem is with Craigslist. Any time you connect strangers in an anonymous way there's a level of risk. We don't hear of as many problems from other sites because there is no website that connects strangers that is anywhere near as large as Craiglist.

However, the benefit, being able to connect with people to buy and sell cars and other stuff, find housing, build relationships. For every serious crime in CL there's thousands (at least) of other interactions that go well for all participants. Our household has bought it's last four cars through CL ads, looked at houses, apartments and land through CL (haven't gone with anything we found there yet, but we looked on CL and met people to see properties, with no problems), even used the personals and the worst that has happened is that other people haven't shown up when and where they said they would.

It's definitely a good idea to be alert, to meet previously-unknown people in public places and generally follow the same safety awareness you would for meeting strangers on the street. But CL is not any more dangerous than the newspaper classifieds or a grocery store bulletin board. It's just larger in scope.

[thick]

The craigslist rapist really took me by suprise, because i had just met the man 2 months before. I had no idea.

[Freddy]

Craigslist has a section called "erotic services" that advertises criminal activity. They choose to do nothing about it. If they had a section called "heroine for sale" how long do you think they would defend that? The management and shareholders at Craigslist clearly think prostitution is great, otherwise they would have gotten rid of this section long ago. Obviously the CEO, the EBAY stockholders, and others don't care that women' are getting robbed, beaten and raped by pimps and johns, as long as the traffic numbers are high in the monthly report.

Craiglist has turned itself into a cyberpimp.

Congratulations on taking the concept of community and turning it into something horrible and ugly, Craigslist.

[jack]

Except for the fact that heroin is not spelled with an e at the end, Freddy is exactly right. The people at the top of craigslist have completely lost their humanity. They just don't care.

[zbald1]

It's not just the "erotic services" category that's dangerous. All Craig's List postings are suspect. I was looking for a guy to clean my gutters, and the first guy made sexual advances. Another one beat me up and stole my money. Craig's List ignores reports from individuals and police departments, giving criminals safe haven.

[Santos]

The people that advertise in eroctic services are lying to themselfs.They need to call prostitution services.

[Heath]

What a jerk this guy was!

[BeckyM]

Oh puhlease! Use your common sense and Craigslist is no more dangerous then any other online service (i.e. AOL, Yahoo! groups etc...) The problem you have here is people not using common sense. 1.) Meet the seller/buyer at a location with another person with you. 2.) Don't give out your home address or phone number.

So when are you going to stop the Escort services that are advertised in my newspaper? Or the ones on television? Why are the Massage "parlors" shut down even though they have huge ads and even advertise that your masseuse will do it in lingerie?

Craigslist isn't the problem; people w/o common sense or looking for something for nothing are.

[BeckyM]

And I want to add... if you engage in prostitution (i.e. "call girls" - let's not pretty it up okay folks?) then you are increasing your chances big time for rape and murder. The same goes for those who are drug users.

Don't do drugs, hang out with others who do drugs, and don't engage in risky sexual behavior.

So where's an article about how AOL has been used numerous times, as well as MySpace to find a victim?

[Don]

Blaming Craigslist for crimes that take place by use of its infrastructure is like blaming gun manufactures for all the gun crimes in America, or like blaming night clubs for all the date rapes that take place or at best blaming the auto manufacturers for all the hit and run & drive by’s on our roads. Do you see where I am going with this?
Yes craigslist is doing its due diligence to limit ads in the services section, by requiring phone verified accounts and requiring advertisers to register, but remember the two most important ingredients to crime are need and opportunity.
As users of the internet we have to do our part to limit the opportunity by:
1. Verifying who is selling goods and services on line.
2. Using your credit card(s) wisely.
3. Asking for references and testimonials.
Remember if the deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

[CJ]

Craigslist is something that should be used with common sense...of course if you meet someone dont go in their home...especially alone! Of course if you advertise "massage therapy" you are going to get some seedy individuals...whats the difference if someone posts an ad in the newspaper or on craigslist? People need to use common sense when dealing with strangers. We cant protect everyone in the world...bad things are going to happen..its unfotrunate but true. If you choose to deal with strangers on craigslist or any other newspaper add or website you are taking a risk. Use common sense.