The true story of Louisiana serial killer Ronald Dominique’s ten-year murder spree, the men he slayed, and the detectives who hunted him down.
In 1997, the bodies of young African American men began turning up in the cane fields of the quiet suburbs of New Orleans. The victims—many of them transient street hustlers—had been brutally raped and strangled, but police had no leads on the killer’s identity. The murders continued, leaving southeast Louisiana’s gay community rattled and authorities desperate for a break in the case. Then, Detectives Dennis Thornton and Dawn Bergeron came together as task force partners, indefatigable in their decade-long effort to track down the killer.
In 2006, DNA evidence finally linked the murders to a suspect: the unassuming Ronald Joseph Dominique, who had lived under the radar for years, working as a pizza deliveryman and meter reader. But who was Ronald Dominique and what led him to commit such heinous crimes?
With direct access to the investigation, Dominique’s confession, and all of the killer’s body dump sites in throughout the state, author Fred Rosen enters the warped mind of a murderer and captures a troubled, disturbing, and broken life. As with the many other serial killers he has covered, including Jeffrey Dahmer (the Milwaukee Cannibal) and Dennis Rader (the BTK Killer), Rosen provides a horrifying and fascinating account of the lengths to which a bloodthirsty monster will go to lure and brutalize his victims.
“Praise for Fred Rosen:”
“Although the FBI once considered him the country’s most significant serial killer—twenty-three victims!—the Bayou Strangler hardly made national news. Fred Rosen takes us to the bars of the French Quarter, the dirt roads of rural Louisiana, and a little-known subculture. The prejudices he uncovers turned reporters away, but not two dedicated detectives, who emerge as heroes. This book makes a fascinating read not only as true crime but also as a biting social commentary.” —Ann Marie Ackermann, author of Death of an Assassin: The True Story of the German Murderer Who Died Defending Robert E. Lee
“How was one of the most prolific serial killers able to operate undetected for nearly a decade? Read The Bayou Strangler for the shocking truth.” —Jim Seeley, “Mr. True Crime” on social media
Praise for Fred Rosen
“The one true crime masterpiece I have read.” —The Guardian on Lobster Boy
“A truly unforgettable story, brilliantly written. A true crime classic.” —Dan Zupansky, host of Blog Talk Radio’s True Murder on Flesh Collectors
“A fast-moving, satisfying production of popular history.” —Booklist on Gold!
A former columnist for the Arts & Leisure section of the New York Times, Fred Rosen is an award-winning author of true crime and history books, including Gold!, Did They Really Do It?, and Lobster Boy. He is a regular on-air commentator for Investigation Discovery network’s Evil Kin and Evil Twins TV series.
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