Terrifying new claim about 'Killer Clown' (2024)

One of America's most prolific serial killers may have killed far more than the 33 victims known of today, a former detective who worked on the case says.

John Wayne Gacy, who was executed in 1994, is the subject of a new true-crime documentary series on streaming platform Peaco*ck called John Wayne Gacy: Devil in Disguise.

Fox News reports the documentary features interviews with investigators, family members, Gacy's ex-wife and even a rare prison interview with Gacy himself.

Picture: Marty Zielinski

The Chicago native, who was known as The Killer Clown due to his work as an amateur clown in his local community, raped and murdered at least 33 men and boys from 1972 until his arrest in 1978.

Rafael Tovar, a former Des Plaines Police detective who was involved in exhuming the remains of 26 of Gacy's victims from the crawl space in his house, participated in the documentary series.

Speaking to Fox News, Mr Tovar recalled a conversation he had with Gacy on their way to Cook County Jail.

"I flat out asked him if there were more victims," he said.

"I said, 'How many people did you really kill?' And he said, 'Well, I told my lawyer this number – 30-something. And you guys got about 32, 33 or 34. But 45 sounds like a good number.'"

Some of Gacy's confirmed victims.

Mr Tovar continued, "That stunned me a little bit. But I kept my cool. I then said, 'Well John, where are they? Let's recover them.' And he said, 'No, I'm not going to tell you guys. That's for you to find out. You guys are the detectives.' He would play this little game with you. But I know that there are probably more bodies out there because he was very factual before."

The former detective believes Gacy "liked the power to kill people, the power of death" because "it made him feel like a god".

"And I think that just got to him," he said.

"And he was smart. He got away for a long time. I would act star-struck like, 'John, tell me about this guy.' And it worked. He loved to talk. It made him feel powerful."

At least five people have died after multiple tornadoes ripped through central Alabama on Thursday.

The tornadoes moved across Alabama and neighbouring Georgia, according to the National Weather Service.

Multiple homes have been destroyed and more than 50,000 people left without power in the two states.

Happening now – exclusive video of massive tornado south of Birmingham hitting Meadowbrook, AL. #ALwx pic.twitter.com/ILWUlIhO1y

— 🚔 MN Safety 🚔 (@SafetyAlertsMN) March 25, 2021

It's unclear how many people have been injured.

Calhoun County Coroner Pat Brown told US media that five people, all believed to be adults, died in three separate homes.

Three family members were killed inside a wood-frame home in the east Alabama town of Ohatchee, while another man was killed in a mobile home in the same town.

Another woman died in a mobile home in Wellington, Alabama.

–Sarah Sharples

EXCLUSIVE

A Melbourne cafe owner who claimed he couldn’t find staff as people were only applying to advertised jobs for “Centrelink purposes” has been hit by a number of claims from former employees that he was “verbally abusive” and a “nightmare” to work with.

Adrian Rigotto, who runs Match & Co in Dingley, appeared on Today Extra earlier this month and claimed a $5000 hiring bonus wasn’t enough to find workers for his business.

Mr Rigotto said he had received 50 job applications for a vacancy but all the people that applied had done so to fulfil Centrelink requirements.

But former employees have hit back, alleging Mr Rigotto churns through staff because the workplace is “toxic”.

Several have alleged they were paid incorrect wages and breaks were denied when working long shifts.

The CEO of Twitter has been called out for sending a tweet as he was being questioned about his company’s role in the January 6 riots at the US Capitol.

Jack Dorsey, the co-founder and CEO of Twitter, was questioned in a hearing by the US Congress today. He appeared along with the heads of Facebook and Google.

The tech leaders were asked whether or not their platforms played a role in the riots at the US Capitol, which saw five people killed.

During the questioning, Dorsey tweeted a question mark, with a poll and the answers “Yes” and “No”.

Kathleen Rice, a Democratic Representative from New York asked Dorsey about the results of his poll. Dorsey said “yes” was winning.

Ms Rice responded: "Your multitasking skills are quite impressive."

Satellite photos of a stranded container vessel blocking the Suez Canal have emerged, showing just how tricky the crisis is.

The MV Ever Given, which is the same length as the Empire State Building, became jammed in the waterway after veering off course and running aground in a sandstorm on Tuesday local time.

It forced Egypt to abruptly one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes, impacting 10 per cent of global trade, as authorities try to dislodge it.

Some experts warned the shutdown could last weeks, potentially forcing ships to re-route around the southern tip of Africa, making their journeys significantly longer.

Stunning images have revealed the depth of the crisis, and how difficult the massive ship will be to dislodge.

Picture: Planet Labs / AFP

The Prime Minister is giving an update on the flood situation from Wauchope in NSW.

Scott Morrison announced $75,000 grants will quickly become available for producers directly affected by the floods. $50,000 grants will also be available for small business owners.

Mr Morrison said other disaster recovery payments are being rolled out via the emergency number with over 2000 responders taking calls.

“They have done a magnificent job getting emergency support to people,” Mr Morrison said.

“The clean-up now begins. The sun's out. The water's receding. There is going to be more difficulty ahead as we see up what, particularly for primary producers.

“Whether they are oyster farmers, dairy farmers or other producers across the district, they have got difficult days ahead.”

Mr Morrison said the NSW and federal government will share the cost of recovery funding in a 50-50 split.

“We will carry this load together as we have already carried so many other loads together over the last few years.

“What that means is we will be able to support small business grants for those directly impacted and John (Barilaro) can speak more to that, of up to $50,000 and, importantly, primary producer grants of up to $75,000.”

He said the $75,000 grants will be “critical” for producers and businesses to get back on their feet.

The Prime Minister also said rescue and clean up efforts are being assisted by the ADF’s 44th battalion, along with the SES and the Rural Fire Service.

Former US President Trump said he has more on time on his hands after being banned from Twitter.

“Actually I do,” he said after Fox News host Laura Ingraham asked if being banned from the social media platform had left him with more free time.

“And Twitter has become very very boring. I don’t know if you’ve heard,” Mr Trump said.

“A lot of people are leaving. A lot of people are off and it’s become a very boring deal.”

Mr Trump said he’s also more relaxed now he doesn’t have to deal with being concerned about spelling errors while firing off tweets.

Asked about the US Department of Homeland Security’s new focus on domestic threats to security, and monitoring of social media, Mr Trump said his concern was “BLM” and “Antifa”.

The DHS refined its focus after the attack on US Capitol on January 6.

“What I’m concerned about is Antifa and BLM and some of the things we witnessed over the frankly frightening period of time,” Mr Trump said.

He said the US had witnessed protesters “take over” the cities of Portland and Minneapolis in 2020.

“Had I not got the National Guard ready, you would not have Minneapolis anymore. It would have been burned down to the ground.”

Former US President Donald Trump says the new President is being handled with kid gloves by the media, as he lashed out over recent images from the US Mexico border.

In an interview with Fox News host Laura Ingraham, Mr Trump said Joe Biden was thrown “soft balls” in his first ever media conference today, when he took questions about the conditions faced by migrants at the Mexican border.

“They were strange questions and they were asked in an interesting way. They were thrown like soft balls,” Mr Trump said.

“It’s an interesting world. Nobody has ever seen anything like it.

"I noticed (Fox News journalist) Peter Doocy didn’t get to ask a question. They’re ready to rip the microphone away.

“If (CNN journalist) Jim Acosta was there, he’d ask very soft questions. It’s a whole different thing.”

Mr Trump lashed out at the conditions seen at the border, calling them “dangerous” and “insane”.

“They’re living in very dangerous conditions. There’s no testing for COVID-19 … what’s going on is absolutely insane,” he said.

“If you get cameras inside those facilities you’d see children on top of children. You’d see filth.”

Picture: Mandel Ngan / AFP

“What they're doing now is outrageous. They should finish the (border) wall. We have openings in the wall that could be closed up.

"If it weren’t for the fact we got sued eleven times … it took two and a half years to get the final sign off … they sued us for two and a half years.”

The former US President Donald Trump is set to appear in a rare one on one interview with Fox News journalist Laura Ingraham.

We’ll bring you the latest updates here.

A car belonging to an elderly woman who went missing during the NSW floods has been found more than a week after she disappeared.

Adele Morrison, 78, was last seen leaving her Port Macquarie home on Tuesday, March 16, to travel to Gloucester. Both areas of the NSW mid north coast were heavily impacted by flooding.

The missing red hatchback was discovered in the Bowman River yesterday, according to the ABC. Ms Morrison was not with the vehicle, and police and SES searches for the missing woman continue.