Eddie Lee Mosley (March 31, 1947 – May 28, 2020) was an American serial killer and rapist who murdered at least 8 women in Fort Lauderdale, Florida between 1973 and 1987. He was arrested in 2001 following the results of a DNA profiling test, after being the prime suspect in several murders for many years. Before his arrest, two other men were wrongly convicted of several murders later attributed to Mosley: Frank Lee Smith, who spent 15 years in prison and died behind bars before he could be exonerated, and Jerry Townsend, who spent 22 years in prison before being released. Mosley's true victim count is unknown, with authorities speculating that he committed at least 16 murders and dozens of rapes. Crimes In the period between November 1971 and July 1973, almost 150 rapes of girls and women were recorded in the northwestern part of Fort Lauderdale. In all cases, the perpetrator was described as a young, tall black man with an athletic build and a scar on his left cheek, whom, under the threat of physical violence, lured them to wastelands and other isolated areas, where he choked and sexually abused the victims. source? On July 23, 1973, three rape victims identified Mosley as their assailant, who, due to his physique and tall stature, well matched the composite of the rapist. After his arrest, his photographs were shown to other victims, resulting in more than 40 women identifying him as the rapist. During this period, Eddie was also the prime suspect in the rape-murders of two black girls in Fort Lauderdale, killed in early 1973, but since there was not enough evidence, he was only charged with the assaults and subsequent rape. However, following a mental evaluation, he was found to be insane, and was ordered involuntary commitment at the Florida State Hospital, where he spent five years. During his imprisonment, no other similar rapes or murders were recorded. In January 1984, Mosley came under police suspicion again after the bodies of 36-year-old Geraldine Barfield URL and 54-year-old Emma Cook were found in northwestern Fort Lauderdale, raped and subsequently killed by suffocation. On May 17th, 1984, he was arrested for raping a 22-year-old URL At trial, he pleaded not guilty, claiming that the sexual intercourse had been with mutual agreement. His lawyers managed to successfully portray the rape as consentual sex, in which Mosley had promised the victim drugs, and in October of that same year, Mosley was acquitted and URL After committing two more murders in the vicinity of Fort Lauderdale, the Broward County Sheriff's Office contacted the FBI, which, based on provided data, compiled an offender profile which was very consistent with Eddie Mosley's. In the spring of 1987, Mosley came under police scrutiny again, for the February 24th rape and strangulation of 24-year-old Sentreyl Love. Exposure For the remainder of his life, Mosley was shuffled between various clinics and mental institutions in the state. In 2000, samples of his saliva and blood were taken for DNA testing, which proved his guilt in the following murders: 29-year-old Loretta Young Brown, killed in 1984; 34-year-old Vetta Turner, killed on July 9, 1973; 13-year-old Sonya Marion, killed in July 1979; 21-year-old Terri Jean Cummings, found dead in August 1979; and finally, the murders of Emma Cook and Teresa Giles, to which he had confessed in May 1987. In addition, he was connected to the April 1985 murder of 8-year-old Shandra Whitehead, who had been raped and killed in her home. Another Fort Lauderdale man, 38-year-old Frank Lee Smith, who was intellectually disabled, was convicted of her murder. In 1960, at the age of 13, Smith killed 14-year-old John Wesley Spahn, but was released from custody in the mid-1960s, only to be later charged with the shooting death of 38-year-old Herbert DeWitt in 1966, who was killed during a robbery. He pleaded guilty to that murder and was sentenced to life imprisonment, but released on parole in 1981. In April 1985, he was arrested and charged with killing Shandra, after the girl's mother wrongfully identified him as the killer, based solely on photographs she had been shown. Despite the lack of physical evidence linking him to the crime, Smith was found guilty and sentenced to death in 1986. From the beginning, he had claimed his innocence in this killing. He died on death row on January 30, 2000, from cancer-related complications, only months before a DNA test proved his innocence.  External links Jerry Townsend on the Innocence Project References Category:1947 births Category:2020 deaths Category:20th-century American criminals Category:American male criminals Category:American people convicted of indecent assault Category:American people convicted of robbery Category:American people convicted of attempted rape Category:American people convicted of murder Category:American murderers of children Category:Male serial killers Category:American serial killers Category: American rapists Category:People acquitted by reason of insanity Category:Serial killers who died in prison custody Category: Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in Florida Category: Criminals from Florida Category:People  from Fort Lauderdale, Florid
Eddie Lee Mosley (March 31, 1947 – May 28, 2020) was an American serial killer and rapist who murdered at least eight women in Fort Lauderdale, Florida between 1973 and 1987. He was arrested in 2001 following the results of a DNA profiling test, after being the prime suspect in several murders for many years. Before his arrest, two other men were wrongly convicted of several murders later attributed to Mosley: Frank Lee Smith, who spent 15 years in prison and died behind bars before he could be exonerated, and Jerry Townsend, who spent 22 years in prison before being released. Mosley's true victim count is unknown, with authorities speculating that he committed at least 16 murders and dozens of rapes. Crimes In the period between November 1971 and July 1973, almost 150 rapes of girls and women were recorded in the northwestern part of Fort Lauderdale. In all cases, the perpetrator was described as a young, tall black man with an athletic build and a scar on his left cheek, whom, under the threat of physical violence, lured them to wastelands and other isolated areas, where he choked and sexually abused the victims. Citation needed|date=May 2021 On July 23, 1973, three rape victims identified Mosley as their assailant, who, due to his physique and tall stature, well matched the composite of the rapist. After his arrest, his photographs were shown to other victims, resulting in more than 40 women identifying him as the rapist. During this period, Eddie was also the prime suspect in the rape-murders of two black girls in Fort Lauderdale, killed in early 1973, but since there was not enough evidence, he was only charged with the assaults and subsequent rape. However, following a mental evaluation, he was found to be insane, and was ordered involuntary commitment at the Florida State Hospital, where he spent five years. During his imprisonment, no other similar rapes or murders were recorded. In January 1984, Mosley came under police suspicion again after the bodies of 36-year-old Geraldine Barfield URL and 54-year-old Emma Cook were found in northwestern Fort Lauderdale, raped and subsequently killed by suffocation. On May 17th, 1984, he was arrested for raping a 22-year-old URL At trial, he pleaded not guilty, claiming that the sexual intercourse had been with mutual agreement. His lawyers managed to successfully portray the rape as consensual sex, in which Mosley had promised the victim drugs, and in October of that same year, Mosley was acquitted and URL After committing two more murders in the vicinity of Fort Lauderdale, the Broward County Sheriff's Office contacted the FBI, which, based on provided data, compiled an offender profile which was very consistent with Eddie Mosley's. In the spring of 1987, Mosley came under police scrutiny again, for the February 24th rape and strangulation of 24-year-old Sentreyl Love. Exposure For the remainder of his life, Mosley was shuffled between various clinics and mental institutions in the state. In 2000, samples of his saliva and blood were taken for DNA testing, which proved his guilt in the following murders: 29-year-old Loretta Young Brown, killed in 1984; 34-year-old Vetta Turner, killed on July 9, 1973; 13-year-old Sonya Marion, killed in July 1979; 21-year-old Terri Jean Cummings, found dead in August 1979; and finally, the murders of Emma Cook and Teresa Giles, to which he had confessed in May 1987. In addition, he was connected to the April 1985 murder of eight-year-old Shandra Whitehead, who had been raped and killed in her home. Another Fort Lauderdale man, 38-year-old Frank Lee Smith, who was intellectually disabled, was convicted of her murder. In 1960, at the age of 13, Smith killed 14-year-old John Wesley Spahn, but was released from custody in the mid-1960s, only to be later charged with the shooting death of 38-year-old Herbert DeWitt in 1966, who was killed during a robbery. He pleaded guilty to that murder and was sentenced to life imprisonment, but released on parole in 1981. In April 1985, he was arrested and charged with killing Shandra, after the girl's mother wrongfully identified him as the killer, based solely on photographs she had been shown. Despite the lack of physical evidence linking him to the crime, Smith was found guilty and sentenced to death in 1986. From the beginning, he had claimed his innocence in this killing. He died on death row on January 30, 2000, from cancer-related complications, only months before a DNA test proved his innocence. References External links Jerry Townsend on the Innocence Project Category:1947 births Category:2020 deaths Category:20th-century American criminals Category:American male criminals Category:American murderers of children Category:American people convicted of attempted rape Category:American people convicted of indecent assault Category:American people convicted of murder Category:American people convicted of robbery Category:American rapists Category:American serial killers Category: Criminals from Florida Category: Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in Florida Category: Male serial killers Category:People acquitted by reason of insanity Category:People from Fort Lauderdale, Florida Category:Serial killers who died in prison cus
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