conviction_status birth_place image_size conviction_penalty charge image_caption birth_date article_title name image_name
in prison philadelphia , pennsylvania 220px life imprisonment murder 1979 return to the u.s. mugshot and a 2001 mugshot taken upon his 15 may 1940 ira einhorn
 ira samuel einhorn ira einhorn.png
ira einhorn

ira samuel einhorn -lrb- born may 15 , 1940 -rrb- , known as `` the unicorn killer '' , is an american environmental activist convicted of the murder of his ex-girlfriend holly maddux .
on september 9 , 1977 , maddux disappeared following a trip to collect her things from the apartment that she and einhorn had shared in philadelphia .
eighteen months later , police found maddux 's partially mummified body in a trunk in his closet .
it had been packed with styrofoam , air fresheners and newspapers .
after his arrest , einhorn fled the country and spent 23 years in europe before being extradited to the us .
he took the stand in his own defense , claiming his ex-girlfriend had been killed by cia agents who framed him for the crime because he knew too much about the agency 's paranormal military research .
he was convicted and is currently serving a life sentence .
his moniker , `` the unicorn , '' came from his name , einhorn -- unicorn in german .
