How Jeffrey Dahmer’s younger brother disappeared from record

As Ryan Murphy brought the life and crimes of Jeffrey Dahmer back into the spotlight, many people have been left wondering what happened to the serial killer's younger brother.

True crime fans were given an insight into Dahmer's home life in Netflix's Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, which depicted him picking up roadkill with his dad and struggling to find common ground with his mum.

His brother David, who was six years younger than Dahmer, was featured in the series, but disappeared from the storyline as the killer began delving deeper into his crimes.

Dahmer was ultimately caught in 1991 and given 15 life sentences, but he was attacked in prison and died in 1994. Meanwhile, David disappeared off the map.

Dahmer's younger brother was 11 years old when he went to live with his mum in Wisconsin after she won custody following a battle with the boys' father.

PA Images / Alamy Stock Photo

In the biography The Shrine of Jeffrey Dahmer, Brian Masters wrote: "There was much discussion and worry over who should have custody of David and where he would live, but no thought was ever given as to what should happen to Jeff, or where he would be expected to live."

A decade after Dahmer's death, his dad Lionel appeared on Larry King Live alongside his new wife, Shari, and explained that David changed his name following Dahmer's arrest to allow himself to disappear. His new name is not known, with Lionel explaining the couple 'promised to keep [David] completely secret'.

Shari assured David now has 'a career' and a family, adding: "He's very happy. We're expecting a second grandchild. Everything is going well."

Lionel said the age gap between his sons meant they 'weren't as close as someone maybe that was one or two years different', and pointed out they also had different personalities. Dahmer was 'extremely shy', while David was 'very, very ebullient and outgoing'.

REUTERS / Alamy Stock Photo

The Larry King interview marks the last information that has been released publicly about David, though Netflix's upcoming series Conversations with a Killer: The Jeffrey Dahmer Tapes may shed further light on Dahmer's relationship with his brother.

Dahmer's mother, Joyce, passed away a few years after Dahmer in 2000, after she had been diagnosed with breast cancer.

Prior to her death, she had continued to speak with Dahmer following his arrest. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, she at one point recalled a conversation in which Dahmer told his mum he was 'so glad' he was locked up, adding: "I'd be afraid what I'd do if I weren't locked up."