People are gripped by disturbing interview with notorious serial killer on death row

Netflix series and chilling podcasts have done a great job of telling us the stories of serial killers, but an interview with one notorious murderer himself has true crime fans captivated.

Richard Ramirez, otherwise known as The Night Stalker, was convicted in 1989 of killing 13 people in California between 1984 and 1985. He was sentenced to death, but died after spending more than 20 years in prison in June 2013.

After being arrested, Ramirez spoke to an interviewer about who he was and the crimes he'd committed, claiming he was 'just a guy' and that there was a lot of false information about him in the public.

Despite sitting in a jail cell, Ramirez remained collected and spoke 'from a script', telling the interviewer it would be 'improper for [him] to comment' on his previous convictions and ongoing cases.

Archive PL/Alamy Stock Photo

He then appeared to try and defend murder, saying: "Several killers do on a small scale what governments do on a large one. They are a product of the times and these are bloodthirsty times. Even psychopaths have emotions if you dig deep enough, but then again maybe they don't. "

Ramirez, who was in his mid twenties when he was arrested, said he 'gave up on love and happiness a long time ago' and claimed people 'in this day and age' are 'brainwashed', acting like 'puppets'.

"This country is founded in violence," he said, adding: "Violent delights tend to have violent ends... killing is killing whether done for duty, profit or fun."

After being accused of failing to appropriately answer the interviewer's questions, Ramirez expressed belief we are 'all evil, in some form or another', but admitted he himself is evil, but 'not 100 percent'.

Marmaduke St. John/Alamy Stock Photo

His responses had viewers hooked, so much so that many could actually see sense in the killer's words.

One viewer responded: "The man is obviously sick, but I absolutely agree with him when he said: 'Serial killers do on a small scale what government does on a large one'. That is just an indisputable fact."

Another commented: "'We are all evil in some form or another. Are we not?' He ain't lying...."

A third wrote: "'This country was founded on violence' well he was right there."

Ramirez's responses proved so interesting to some viewers that they wished there were more interviews with the killer, but his death in 2013 means much of his mind will remain a mystery.

Topics: Crime, True Crime, Viral, US News, YouTube

Emily Brown

Emily Brown is the Community Desk Lead at LADbible Group. Emily first began delivering news when she was just 11 years old - with a paper route. She went on to graduate with a BA Hons in English Language in the Media from Lancaster University before contributing to The Sunday Times Travel Magazine and Student Problems. She joined UNILAD in 2018 to cover breaking news, trending stories and longer form features, and now works as Community Desk Lead to commission and write human interest stories from across the globe.