NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Gary C. Evans

Gary Charles Evans (October 7, 1954-August 14, 1998) was a confessed serial killer in and around the Capital District of Upstate New York. His penchant for stealing antiques and his multiple escapes from custody — including one that ended in his death — made him headline news in the area on numerous occasions. October 7 is the 280th day of the year (281st in leap years). ... 1954 (MCMLIV) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... August 14 is the 226th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (227th in leap years), with 139 days remaining. ... 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ... Serial killers are individuals who have a history of multiple slayings of victims who were usually unknown to them beforehand. ... The Capital District is an imprecise regional definition (much like Upstate New York) that generally refers to the four counties surrounding Albany, the capital of New York: Schenectady County, Albany County, Saratoga County and Rensselaer County. ... Upstate New York is the region of New York State outside of the core of the New York metropolitan area. ...

Early life

Gary Evans grew up in Troy, New York, where he was physically and emotionally abused by both parents until they divorced in 1968. His mother attempted suicide on numerous occasions. Likely at his mother's behest, Evans began stealing at a young age. He also reportedly abused and killed neighborhood pets, which is widely considered an early sign of antisocial personality disorder. His mother eventually married and divorced four times before coming out as a lesbian. She died in February 1983 from exposure after falling down unconscious in the snow outside a bar. Soon after his parents divorced, Evans left home and was often homeless, stealing from local drug dealers to survive. He spent several months in a county jail for breaking into a house in 1970. Looking west down Broadway at downtown Troy. ... Abuse is a general term for the use or treatment of something (person, thing, idea, etc. ... Divorce or dissolution of marriage is the ending of a marriage before the death of either spouse, which can be contrasted with an annulment, which is a declaration that a marriage is void, though the effects of marriage may be recognized in such unions, such as spousal support, child custody... Suicide (from Latin sui caedere, to kill oneself) is the act of willfully ending ones own life. ... Antisocial personality disorder (APD or ASPD) is a psychiatric diagnosis that interprets antisocial and impulsive behaviours as symptoms of a personality disorder. ... Coming out of the closet (very often shortened to coming out in winking reference to the public introduction of debutantes) describes the voluntary public announcement of ones sexual orientation, sexual attractions, gender identity, or (less commonly) paraphilia. ... A lesbian is a woman who is aesthetically, sexually, romantically and/or emotionally attracted to other women. ... A homeless man pushes a cart down the street. ... These lollipops, above, were found to contain heroin when inspected by the US Drug Enforcement Administration In jurisdictions where legislation restricts or prohibits the sale of certain popular drugs, it is common for an illegal drugs trade to develop. ...

In the mid-1970s, Evans shared an apartment with two old neighborhood friends, Michael Falco and Timothy Rysedorph. He also stepped up his thievery by studying antiques and jewelry. Evans became adept at speaking with antiques dealers and pretending to be a dealer himself, all the while casing for ways that he could break in to the establishments unnoticed while Falco or Rysedorph assisted. On one occasion, he was stymied by a shop's alarm system and resorted to tunneling under the outside wall to get in undetected. Evans was convicted of 15 antiques-related felonies during his life.

Early prison time and escape

Evans's lengthy prison record started on January 13, 1977, when he was sentenced for a burglary in Essex County, New York and sent to Clinton Correctional Facility. He was transferred to Great Meadow Correctional Facility and paroled on March 31, 1980, but was quickly back in jail for possession of stolen property while on parole. January 13 is the 13th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the album by Ash, see 1977 (album). ... Essex County is a county located in the state of New York. ... Clinton Correctional Facility is a maximum-security New York state prison located in the Adirondack village of Dannemora. ... March 31 is the 90th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (91st in Leap years), with 275 days remaining. ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... Parole can have different meanings depending on the context. ...

His name first came to public light on June 12, 1980, when he escaped over the wall of the Rensselaer County jail. He fled to the Troy Public Library, where police apprehended him on the outside ledge while onlookers cheered. Evans was treated as an extreme escape risk from then on, and was caught planning escapes on more than one occasion. With the additional escape conviction, Evans was sentenced on September 11, 1980, to Clinton Correctional and paroled from Attica Correctional Facility on December 29, 1982. He was arrested twice more the following spring and was in county jail until his early release on March 31, 1984. June 12 is the 163rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (164th in leap years), with 202 days remaining. ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... Rensselaer County is a county in the state of New York. ... September 11 is the 254th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (255th in leap years). ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... The Attica Correctional Facility is one of the most well known prisons in the United States, second possibly to Alcatraz. ... December 29 is the 363rd day of the year (364th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 2 days remaining. ... 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... March 31 is the 90th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (91st in Leap years), with 275 days remaining. ... 1984 (MCMLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Disappearances (1980s)

Evans immediately resumed his antiques and jewelry scams with his partners. On February 16, 1985]], Evans and Falco burglarized a flea market in East Greenbush, New York. About a week later, Falco became the first known associate of Evans to disappear. Evans convinced local criminals and law enforcement that Falco had fled to California. Only 13 years later would he reveal that he had shot Falco to death, rolled his body in a sleeping bag and disposed of it in a swamp near his sister's home in Lake Worth, Florida. Evans recounted that he thought Falco had stolen merchandise from him and that Falco would report him to the authorities. February 16 is the 47th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... A typical flea market shop in Europe Swap meet redirects here. ... East Greenbush is a town located in Rensselaer County, New York, USA. As of the 2000 census, the town had a total population of 15,560. ... Official language(s) English Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Area Ranked 3rd - Total 158,302 sq. ... Lake Worth is a city located in Palm Beach County, Florida, named for General William J. Worth, who led U.S. forces during the Second Seminole War. ...

Evans returned from Florida to Troy in April and, on April 21, 1985, stole $12,000 from local drug dealers. That led to a high-speed police pursuit through Cohoes and landed Evans back in custody. He was sentenced to another 2-to-4 years in Sing Sing the following July. April 21 is the 111th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (112th in leap years). ... This article is about the year. ... Cohoes is a city located at the northeast corner Albany County, New York, USA. It is called the Spindle City because of the importance of textile production to its growth. ... Alternative meaning: Sing Sing (band) Sing Sing Correctional Facility is a prison in Ossining, New York. ...

During his time in Sing Sing, Evans became friends with fellow inmate and infamous "Son of Sam" serial killer, David Berkowitz. Evans and Berkowitz lifted weights together and exchanged letters while in solitary confinement — letters which Evans sent to acquaintances as keepsakes. With police unaware that Falco was dead, let alone that Evans had killed him, Evans was paroled on March 1, 1988. David Berkowitz David Richard Berkowitz (born June 1, 1953 in Brooklyn, New York), better known by his nicknames Son of Sam or The . ... March 1 is the 60th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (61st in leap years). ... 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Soon after his release from Sing Sing, Evans started working with another neighborhood thief, Damien Cuomo (born September 10, 1961). Evans and Cuomo targeted a coin and jewelry store owned by 63-year-old Douglas J. Berry in Watertown, New York, several hours drive away from the Capital District. On September 8, Evans and Cuomo broke into Berry's store and, when Berry awoke in the back room, Evans shot him to death. September 10 is the 253rd day of the year (254th in leap years). ... 1961 (MCMLXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (the link is to a full 1961 calendar). ... Watertown is a city located in Jefferson County, New York. ... September 8 is the 251st day of the year (252nd in leap years). ...

On December 27, 1989, less than four months after Berry's murder, Cuomo left his apartment with Evans and was never seen alive again. Not until his 1998 confessions did Evans recount that he shot Cuomo to death and buried his body nearby soon after they left Cuomo's apartment. Similar to Falco four years prior, Evans believed Cuomo had been stealing from him and that he would turn him over to police. Evans convinced Cuomo's girlfriend (and mother of his child) that Cuomo had abandoned them and fled the area voluntarily. Barely a month later, Evans started a sexual relationship with her. Over the next several years, Evans spent much of his time with Cuomo's girlfriend and daughter, who had no idea that he was responsible for Cuomo's death. December 27 is the 361st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (362nd in leap years). ... 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

1990s

In October 1991, Evans spent two weeks on the roof of a building in Little Falls, New York casing a coin and jewelry shop on the first floor which was owned by Gregory Jouben, 36. On October 17, 1991, Evans walked into Jouben's shop, asked him to price a piece of merchandise, and then shot him to death. The small community in sparsely populated Herkimer County was outraged by one of the only murders of the year in the area. Little Falls is a city located in Herkimer County, New York. ... October 17 is the 290th (in leap years the 291st) day of the year according to the Gregorian calendar. ... 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Herkimer County is a county located in the state of New York. ...

In 1993, Evans stole over 800 antiques from a group shop in Quechee, Vermont. Evans used an engine crane to steal a thousand-pound bench out of an Albany cemetery, but he was arrested when his fence became nervous and turned him in. In early 1994, Evans agreed to assist the authorities by obtaining information on Jeffrey Williams, who was implicated in the high-profile murder of his girlfriend, Karolyn Lonczak. When Williams finally admitted his role, Evans was released on February 12, 1994, with police still unaware that Evans himself had killed at least four people at that point. [1] Quechee is a village in the town of Hartford, Windsor County, Vermont. ... Albany redirects here. ... In law enforcement, a fence is an individual who knowingly buys stolen property for later resale in a (usually) legitimate market. ... External link NASA Biography Categories: Stub | 1958 births | Astronauts ... February 12 is the 43rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated like the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal. // Events January Bill Clinton January 1 : North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) goes into effect. ...

Police needed Evans to stay clean before testifying against Williams. Instead, on March 20, 1994, Evans stole a valuable first American edition of the Havell of London printing of John James Audubon's Birds of America out of a library in Woodstock, Vermont. When Evans tried to sell the book through a prison inmate, he was turned in and wound up in federal prison. (The recovered book sold for over $300,000 at an auction in 2002.) With the shortened sentence he received for returning the book, Evans was released on June 6, 1996. March 20 is the 79th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (80th in Leap years). ... 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated like the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal. // Events January Bill Clinton January 1 : North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) goes into effect. ... John James Audubon John James Audubon (April 26, 1785 â€“ January 27, 1851) was a Franco-American ornithologist, naturalist, and painter. ... Woodstock, Vermont Woodstock is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, in the United States. ... June 6 is the 157th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (158th in leap years), with 208 days remaining. ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ...

After his 1996 release, Evans reunited with Rysedorph, and they continued committing burglaries. In January 1997, a shop in Great Barrington, Massachusetts was burglarized of $80,000 in merchandise. The following July, Evans sold antique jewelry in Albany which police later linked to the Great Barrington burglary. 1997 (MCMXCVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Great Barrington is a town located in Berkshire County, Massachusetts. ...

Manhunt leading to the end

Evans jumped probation on October 3, 1997. Early the following morning, Rysedorph made a phone call to his wife and was never heard from again. That morning, Evans shot Rysedorph to death when he had his back turned and then dismembered him with a chainsaw. Evans had suspected Rysedorph of stealing from him and also claimed Rysedorph tricked him into thinking Falco had stolen from him 13 years earlier. The disappearances of Evans and Rysedorph were too coincidental and authorities suspected that Evans had killed Rysedorph. They began a nationwide manhunt that lasted almost eight months. With the aid of Damien Cuomo's girlfriend, they finally caught up with Evans. On May 27, 1998, Evans was arrested without incident near St. Johnsbury, Vermont, near where he was living in a tent as a survivalist. October 3 is the 276th day of the year (277th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1997 (MCMXCVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... May 27 is the 147th day (148th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 218 days remaining. ... 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ... St. ... A survivalist is a person who anticipates a potential disruption in the continuity of local, regional or worldwide society, and takes steps to survive in the resulting unpredictable situation. ...

In reality, Evans had committed the perfect murders, with three of his victims unrecovered and two others a fair distance away, with no apparent connection to him. On June 18, 1998, although police had little hope of bringing murder charges, Evans surprised them by confessing to the murders of Falco, Cuomo and Rysedorph. He aided police in recovering all three bodies, including Falco's in Florida. Later, Evans also admitted to the murders of Berry and Jouben. The local news was abuzz with reports that their most notorious thief and burglar was actually a serial killer. June 18 is the 169th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (170th in leap years), with 196 days remaining. ... 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ...

Evans was indicted on eight counts of murder in Rensselaer County, New York on August 12, 1998, for the deaths of Falco, Cuomo and Rysedorph. Because Rysedorph's murder involved him witnessing Falco's murder and because it occurred after New York reinstated the death penalty in 1995, Evans was eligible to be executed for his crimes. The following day, he was arraigned on another count of murder in Little Falls for Jouben's death. Rensselaer County is a county in the state of New York. ... August 12 is the 224th day of the year (225th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ... Capital punishment, also referred to as the death penalty, is the judicially ordered execution of a prisoner as a punishment for a serious crime, often called a capital offense or a capital crime. ... Arraignment is a common law term for the formal reading of a criminal complaint, in the presence of the defendant, to inform him of the charges against him. ... Little Falls is a city located in Herkimer County, New York. ...

The day after his Little Falls arraignment, Evans was being transported from Rensselaer County to an Albany court. Unbeknownst to authorities, Evans had a handcuff key shoved deep into his sinus cavity and managed to free his hands while in the police van. When they reached the Troy-Menands Bridge, Evans suddenly kicked out the side window of the vehicle, jumped out and started running. When police cornered him, Evans leaped off the bridge and plunged to his death into the shallows of the Hudson River over 60 feet below. When authorities retrieved his body, they found the handcuff key up his nose and a razor blade taped to his ankle. The paranasal sinuses are eight (four pairs) air-filled spaces, or sinuses, within the bones of the skull and face. ... View of the Hudson in the 1880s showing Jersey City The Hudson River, called Muh-he-kun-ne-tuk in Mahican, is a river running mainly through New York State but partly forming the boundary between the states of New York and New Jersey. ...

References

Categories: 1954 births | 1998 deaths | People from Rensselaer County, New York | American serial killers | Burglars | Criminals who committed suicide 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... June 5 is the 156th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (157th in leap years), with 209 days remaining. ... The Albany Times-Union is a daily newspaper, serving the area around Albany, New York. ... 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ... June 28 is the 179th day of the year (180th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 186 days remaining. ... Image File history File links Noia_64_mimetypes_pdf. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Contents