The Most Infamous People Who Are Still In Prison

Throughout modern history, people have been both horrified and fascinated by crime and the criminals who perpetrate it. Indeed, crime fiction is one of the biggest-selling genres in the world of books, while gangster movies rank among some of the greatest classics of world cinema. And so it is little surprise when those who commit the most heinous acts achieve infamy, sometimes well before they are ever brought to justice. But when mass murderers, terrorists, and other infamous criminals are finally locked away, the public eye eventually moves on, and, for the most part, forgets they're still incarcerated.

Such figures still develop a mythic status among certain audiences, and news outlets often continue to report on the lives of criminals behind bars, with documentaries and interviews periodically updating the public on their status. Some of those prisoners — who once commanded vast drug cartels, led murderous cults or slaughtered untold numbers of victims — have found room for remorse and redemption, while others have constantly fought for their freedom. And still others, who once dominated the front pages, have simply faded away from public attention. Here are some of the most infamous prisoners of recent decades who are still behind bars.

One of America's most notorious serial killers, David Berkowitz is now in his early 70s. Brooklyn-born Berkovitz trained as an army marksman in the early 1970s, and reportedly became proficient with firearms. Little did the army know, it seems, that Berkowitz had serious mental health issues, and would soon begin a campaign of vicious attacks on strangers, mainly women, on the streets of New York. 

His first attack came in 1975, when he attacked a woman with a knife. She survived despite suffering numerous serious injuries. He soon turned to attacking random couples with a gun, earning him the name "the .44 Caliber Killer." He killed a total of six people and injured seven more. He has been behind bars since 1977, having been given a sentence of 365 years.

He now describes his actions during his killing spree as being propelled by a demon. At the time of his crimes, the killer sent disturbing letters to local newspapers in which he made reference to a demon who resided in the body of a neighbor's black dog, which he dubbed the "Son of Sam." Berkowitz has been denied parole a total of 12 times, and remains at Shawangunk Correctional Facility near New York. There he assists the prison chaplain with religious services and prayer groups, having become a practicing Christian behind bars.

There are many disturbing details concerning the case of Mark Chapman, who on December 8, 1980, gunned down Beatles legend John Lennon in broad daylight outside his New York apartment. Like many music fans of his generation, Chapman had become a Beatles obsessive as a teenager. However, as he came to adulthood he began to develop psychosis, and became transfixed on the idea of murdering public figures such as Lennon and fellow British rocker David Bowie, who was performing in a stage version of "The Elephant Man" in New York at the time.

Chapman encountered Lennon and his wife Yoko Ono on the street, and asked the singer to sign a copy of the couple's album, "Double Fantasy." Lennon then left, but Chapman remained outside Lennon's apartment building. When the couple returned just before 11 p.m., Chapman shot Lennon in the back. When it came to entering a plea, Chapman admitted he was guilty of the murder, rejecting an insanity defense. He stated at the time that it was in God's will to take responsibility for his actions.

Eligible for parole since 2000, Chapman, has had freedom denied to him a total of 12 times at the time of writing. A 13th parole hearing was scheduled for February 2024, but no decision has been announced as of mid-2024. It is likely he will die behind bars, with his legal team adamant that no administration would be willing to deal with the political fallout of his being released back into society, even if his crime took place over four decades ago.

The identification and arrest of Joseph James DeAngelo is one of the most impressive pieces of forensic investigation in modern times, offering closure for the numerous victims and their families who for decades believed the criminal would never be caught. DeAngelo's catalog of crimes is so enormous that, while active, he was given two separate nicknames, with investigators only coming to prove in recent years that a single man was responsible.

In the mid-1970s, DeAngelo was responsible for scores of break-ins, burglaries, and rapes in Sacramento, California, during which he would intimidate residents in the dark with a flashlight and gun to get what he wanted, before escaping into the night on foot or by bicycle. Known as the East Area Rapist, DeAngelo's familiarity with the area allowed him to escape from police time and time again.

In the 1980s, DeAngelo moved to Southern California, where he was responsible for dozens more rapes and murders, earning himself the name the Golden State Killer. He ceased being active in 1986, after which the investigation into his crimes became a cold case. He was finally arrested in 2018, after police used crime scene DNA to trace him through a commercial ancestry network, and confirmed his identity after secretly taking a sample of his DNA from his car. In court, he was sentenced to life for 13 murders and 13 rape charges, though his crimes are believed to run into the hundreds. A plea deal allowed him to escape a death sentence.

The British bare-knuckle boxer Michael Peterson, aka Charles Bronson, was 22 years old when he first went to prison in 1974 for armed robbery and wounding. Since then, he has spent the vast majority of his life behind bars due to consistent violent behavior, the vast majority of which has occurred while incarcerated, with Bronson frequently attacking prison guards, auxiliary staff, and other prisoners.

The most notorious incidents in Bronson's time behind bars include the taking of hostages, which first occurred in 1994, as well as a three-day protest in which he refused to come down from the prison roof. Altogether, he has taken 11 people hostage and taken part in nine different prison sieges. "Of the 50 years I have been in prison I have probably deserved a good 35 of it," he told a parole hearing in 2023 (via the BBC). "Because I have been very naughty. Not naughty-naughty but just naughty."

Bronson — who now goes by the name Charles Salvador — spends a total of 23 hours a day in his cell, but nevertheless has established himself as an accomplished visual artist, with his artworks often selling for thousands of pounds. His supporters claim he has softened in old age — he turned 71 in 2023 — and he has changed his name to Charles Salvador, meaning "Man of Peace." Nevertheless, he is still deemed unsuitable for release because of his record.

The crimes of serial killers Fred and Rosemary West are some of the most stomach-churning in British history. The couple came together when Rosemary (pictured above, center) was in her teens, and she had to care for Fred's two young children from a previous marriage while he was in prison for petty crimes. It is believed that in 1971, Rosemary, who had recently given birth and had anger and mental health issues since infancy, murdered Fred's older daughter and hid the body until his return, after which he disposed of it. When the daughter's mother came in search of her, she too was murdered, beginning a two-decade period of savage crimes that would include the abduction, incarceration, and rape of numerous young women and girls, and at least twelve murders.

The victims included several of Fred and Rosemary Wests' own children. The bodies of their victims were often interred in their own home, later dubbed the "House of Horrors." In 1973, Fred was put on trial for the rape and imprisonment of teenage nanny Caroline Owens, but the court ruled that the crimes against her had been consensual, and the Wests were simply fined.

The killers finally faced justice in 1994, when Fred was charged with 12 counts of murder and Rosemary with 10. However, Fred died by suicide in his cell before his trial was due to begin, while in 1995, Rosemary was sentenced to life in prison without parole. The house where they committed their crimes was destroyed the next year. An appeal lodged by Rosemary in 1996 failed, while another in 2000 was dropped, and she will likely die behind bars.

The disturbing story of Canadian killer Luka Magnotta gained renewed attention in 2019, thanks to the Netflix documentary "Don't F*** With Cats," which detailed how a group of online amateur sleuths tracked his crimes. Ontario-born Magnotta, who had been convinced of fraud while still a teenager, outraged internet users when in 2010, he posted a video on YouTube in which he killed two kittens. A campaign quickly began to find out the killer's identity, with experts believing that such behavior suggested that the killer would likely soon move on to human targets.

They were sadly proven right. Magnotta posted several more animal videos, and was identified as the likely kitten-killer by online sleuths. However, Magnotta still could not be found. In May 2012, Magnotta murdered Concordia University student Jun Lin, and posted a video of his death and mutilation online. He later dismembered the body and sent his remains to the offices of politicians and to schools.

He was arrested after being found in Berlin, Germany, where he was recognized while looking up details of his own crimes in an internet cafe. Later diagnosed as having schizophrenia, Magnotta has been in prison since being found guilty of Lin's murder in 2014. He is imprisoned in Canada, and was transferred from a maximum to a medium-security prison in 2022. In the video above, Magnotta, who had yet to commit his crimes, discusses how a rumor he was dating a notorious killer was affecting his modeling career. He later admitted he spread the rumor himself.

For those who know of him and the drug lord's long list of crimes, the name "El Chapo" strikes fear in the same way that Pablo Escobar once did. Thankfully, El Chapo, real name Joaquín Guzmán, has been behind bars since his arrest in 2019. From 1989, the Mexican gangster, who had developed a reputation in the drug trade over the course of a decade at that point, led a cartel in Sinaloa, Mexico, to traffic drugs around the world. Specializing in smuggling cocaine into the United States — sometimes using specially-designed tunnel systems — El Chapo reaped huge profits. He was also willing to use violence to maintain his grip on his drug empire, which soon spanned five continents. It is believed more than 1,000 murders have been committed by his network of enforcers.

El Chapo was first imprisoned in 1993, but in 2001 managed to stage a daring escape from his Mexican prison. He then spent years on the run while his empire continued to operate. He was arrested again in 2014, and escaped once more the following year. His 2019 life sentence came after his extradition to the U.S., and was accompanied by a restitution bill of $12.6 billion.

Joe Exotic emerged as an unlikely worldwide celebrity during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, when millions of people stuck in lockdowns turned to streaming services for entertainment. Exotic, real name Joseph Maldonado, was the subject of "Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness," the hit Netflix documentary series that followed Exotic and his team in the running of the Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park in Wynnewood, Oklahoma. The show also covered his dealings with other animal conservationists, such as his rival Carol Baskin, owner of Big Cat Rescue, and zoo operator Jeff Lowe. Exotic came across as an eccentric, whose career has also included multiple attempts to run for president.

The show was filled with shocking twists and turns, but perhaps none more so than the finale of season one, in which the self-styled Tiger King finds himself behind bars for the crime of attempting to hire two hitmen to murder Baskin. He was found guilty on two counts related to the planned hit, eight more for falsifying wildlife records, and nine counts of violating the Endangered Species Act for animal trafficking. 

Exotic is currently serving a 21-year sentence at FMC Fort Worth, though in 2024, he was transferred to Santa Rosa County Jail in Florida. There, he plans to proceed with a civil lawsuit for copyright infringement against a musician, who he says has stolen some of his musical compositions.

Ramzi Ahmed Yousef remains behind bars for his role in a string of planned terrorist attacks, including the deadly World Trade Center bombing in 1993. That attack killed six people and injured over 1,000 after a truck bomb exploded in the building's underground parking garage. Yousef, who was born in Kuwait, traveled to the U.S. from Pakistan with an accomplice to commit the attack, and was detained at the border briefly before being released.

The attack involved several conspirators, with Yousef escaping back to Pakistan on the evening of the attack. After investigators identified the conspirators through the charred remains of the rental van they had used to commit the attack, Yousef was tracked down and arrested in 1995. He was convicted two years later, after which his wide range of attack plans — which included the assassination of Pope John Paul II and the destruction of 11 commercial airliners — came to light. He is serving a life sentence without parole, and is now in his late fifties.

Richard Colvin Reid is a radical terrorist who attempted to make a martyr of himself just months after the horrors of the September 11 terror attacks of 2001. British-born Reid, who shared the fundamentalist Islamic ideology of the militant group Al-Qaeda, had embraced religion after a spell in prison. He was reportedly radicalized during trips to Pakistan, Afghanistan, and other countries.

On December 22, 2001, Reid boarded a flight from Paris to Miami wearing a pair of shoes loaded with explosives, which he attempted to detonate mid-flight before being restrained by passengers and crew. He was arrested after the plane redirected to Boston. Though he acted alone, he was proven to have been in contact with Al-Qaeda, who advised him on his actions. In 2003, Reid pleaded guilty to eight counts and received a life sentence for three of them, including the attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction. He is now behind bars in a supermax top-security prison in Colorado, with no possibility of release.

The stories of the Manson family — the alternative commune formed by would-be rock star Charles Manson in the 1960s — and the horrifying crimes they committed, have compelled and horrified the world for more than half a century. Often described as a cult, the group revolved around the charismatic, forceful, and ultimately psychotic Manson. His followers were taught that they must actively incite a race war, which he referred to as "Helter Skelter," named after the Beatles song. Under his direction, the Manson family killed at least nine people, though police continue to investigate the true number. The group themselves, who numbered around 100 at its peak, claimed to have killed 35.

The majority of Manson's followers are now dead, as is Manson himself, who died in prison in 2017 at the age of 83. He had spent nearly five decades behind bars after being convicted of first-degree murder in 1971. However, some members of the group who were involved in the murders are still alive in prison. Patricia Krenwinkel remains behind bars having been denied parole 10 times, as do Robert Beausoleil, Bruce Davis, and Charles "Tex" Watson," who have each had multiple parole requests rejected. However, former Manson Family member Leslie Van Houten was released on parole in 2023, having spent over 50 years in prison.