Albert DeSalvo Boston Strangler: Confirmed By DNA

Albert DeSalvo was the Boston Strangler, according to DNA evidence. Testing has confirmed a link between DeSalvo and victim Mary Sullivan.

DeSalvo initially confessed to killing 11 women between 1962 and 1964 in Boston. He later stated that the confession was a fabrication. His identity as the Boston Strangler was never confirmed.

As reported by Syracuse.com, DeSalvo’s remains were exhumed last week for extensive DNA testing. The results revealed that DNA found at the scene of Sullivan’s murder matched DeSalvo.

The results are considered conclusive, as they exclude 99.9 percent of the population. There is now little doubt that Albert DeSalvo was the Boston Strangler.

As explained by TruTV.com, the murders of 13 women are attributed to the Boston Strangler. Eleven of those women remain “official” victims.

A majority of the victims were middle-aged or elderly. They all lived alone, and were killed inside their homes. Authorities never found evidence of forced entry.

The women were sexually assaulted, then strangled with their own clothing.

Although DeSalvo confessed to the killings, many have argued that his confession was an elaborate lie.

An initial DNA test, performed in 2001, reportedly cleared DeSalvo of Mary Sullivan’s sexual assault. While authorities pointed out that the testing did not clear DeSalvo of her murder, others disagreed.

Sullivan’s family, specifically her nephew Casey Sherman, insisted that Sullivan’s killer was still at large.

Numerous theories and myths about the Boston Strangler, or Stranglers, have persisted throughout the years.

Despite popular opinion that Albert DeSalvo was the Boston Stranger, he was never arrested or convicted of the killings.

The DNA tests have removed doubt, as DeSalvo’s DNA was discovered at the scene of Sullivan’s murder. Sullivan was the last known victim of the Boston strangler.

DeSalvo was killed in prison while serving a life term for a series of rapes. He had a history of bizarre sexually related crimes.

Authorities have identified Albert DeSalvo as the Boston Strangler through DNA. However, for conspiracy theorists, the mystery will never be solved.

[Image via Flickr]