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Richard Biegenwald: The Thrill Killer Part 1

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Feb 19, 20244 min read

Updated: Feb 29, 2024

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The beginning of the end:


Courtesy: The Courier Post 1983

It was a cold January day in 1983. Two young boys are playing in a wooded lot behind a Burger King off Route 35 in New Jersey when they make a gruesome discovery. ..the decomposing body of 18-year-old Anna Olesiewicz with four bullets in her head.



The daughter of a local fire chief, she is only one of many victims of Richard Biegenwald. A once troubled child turned serial killer.


Those interested in true crime often feel the need to understand criminals. We wonder what could possibly be going on inside their head? We question if we knew the person, would we have seen the signs? And we ponder deeper questions, such as what makes a killer? And are they born or bred?


The argument between nature versus nurture is often at the heart of many psychological research studies, and yet there is no definite answer. The circumstances vary from one killer to another. And sometimes, you have a killer who seems both born and bred to become a truly heinous monster.






Richard Biegenwald: The Thrill Killer



Courtesy: The Record 1983

In part1, we'll introduce you to one of those monsters and his first-known cold-blooded murder. 



Richard Biegenwald had spent most of his life in psychiatric wards and other facilities by the time he was 18.


He was only ever convicted of six murders. However, he’s been linked to eight, and after his conviction, his defense attorney tried to get him to confess to 25 more victims in order to avoid the death penalty. His own defense attorney would later say he believed there were at least 150 people who fell victim to Biegenwald during the course of his life.











Stephen Sladowski: The First Known Victim


Murder victim Stephen Sladowski Courtesy: The Jersey Journal



Stephen Sladowski, 47, was the assistant city attorney for Bayonne, New Jersey, and a local deli shop owner who was gunned down on Dec. 18, 1958. It was just before Christmas and he had been closing down the store he operated with his wife when he was shot at close range.


18-year-old Biegenwald and his accomplice, James Sparnroft, 18, later admitted to the deadly incident. They stole Sladowski's wallet, but did not steal any money from the register.


Biegenwald was arrested for the crime days later after a shootout with Troopers in Maryland and was sentenced to life in prison. However, he was granted parole in 1974.


Sladowski had worked as a prosecutor for the city for 15 years. He was a father of four who was working to pay for his children's education, according to a family member. Newspaper articles from the time described him as a deeply religious man who never missed Mass. More than 1,000 people braved freezing temperatures to attend his memorial mass.



The face of grief: Murder victim Stephen Sladowski's wife reacts to the news of her husband's passing. Courtesy: The Jersey Journal

In part 2, we'll tell you about Biegenwald's next victims, how he was eventually caught and why there are believed to be many more.


 

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