Son of Sam serial killer revealed why he shot random people 40 years on in rare TV interview
The Son of Sam serial killer terrorised New York in the late 1970s, killing six random people and injuring several more.
The horrific murderer's acts have become a topic of discussion once again due to Netflix’s latest true crime instalment, Conversations With a Killer: The Son of Sam tapes. Netflix released this yesterday, and it is made up of secret tapes of an interview conducted in prison with The Son of Sam Killer, David Berkowitz.
His interviews included in the Netflix documentary are not the only time Berkowitz has agreed to be interviewed, however.
He appeared on CBS News to mark the 40-year anniversary of his arrest following what was, at the time, the biggest manhunt in American history. A fictionalised version of the killer was also notably included in Mindhunter, in part due to his conversation with the real-life FBI agent who inspired the show.
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Berkowitz carried out his reign of terror in 1976 and 1977, ending in 1977 when he was arrested. In 1978, he was sentenced to six consecutive life sentences, which he continues to serve today.
In 2017, he agreed to speak to Maurice DuBois where he spoke about why he shot random people in a rare TV interview.
At the time of his arrest, Berkowitz claimed he had been told to carry out the killings by the devil who spoke to him via his neighbour’s black dog Sam. Despite being a popular theory amongst psychologists, this was later debunked and he would admit that this was not the true reason he shot people.
Many were shot while they sat in parked cars, and none of the victims had any connection to Berkowitz.
In the interview carried out by DuBois, the first he agreed to for ten years, the Son of Sam killer said when asked about why he carried out the killings that he ‘hated’ the name Son of Sam.
He said: “As far as I’m concerned that’s not me… that was a demon. That was a demonic entity that I was serving.
“That was just a break from reality and I thought I was doing something to appease the devil.
“I’m sorry for it, but I really don’t want to talk about it.”
He went on to say that he had felt he was ‘serving him’ when he carried out the killings, saying that he felt someone had ‘taken over his mind and body’.
Berkowitz stated he ‘regrets it with all his heart’, but when pushed by DuBois about his actions, said: “You know it’s just the way things turned out. It’s regrettable but that’s it.”
Many who watched the interview were not convinced by Berkowitz, who claims to be a 'born-again Christian'.
One comment on the YouTube upload of the interview said: "Why is it that every murderer always claims they found Jesus like they're supposed to get forgiveness and the world is supposed to just hug them and move on?"
Another said: "Doesn't matter if he found Jesus. He is one of the most evil killers."
Conversations With a Killer: The Son of Sam is available to watch on Netflix now.
Topics: TV and Film, TV, Crime, True Crime, Documentaries, Netflix, US News
Michael Slavin