Darren Deon Vann
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Darren Deon Vann (born March 21, 1971) is an American
serial killer A serial killer (also called a serial murderer) is a person who murders three or more people,An offender can be anyone: * * * * * (This source only requires two people) with the killings taking place over a significant period of time in separat ...
. He was arrested on October 18, 2014, for the murder of 19-year-old Afrikka Hardy at a
Motel 6 Motel 6 is an American chain of motels with locations in the United States and Canada. The chain was founded in Santa Barbara, California, in 1962 by William W. Becker and Paul Greene, and derives its name from the fact that rooms initially cos ...
in
Hammond, Indiana Hammond ( ) is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. Located along Lake Michigan, it is part of the Chicago metropolitan area and the only city in Indiana to border Chicago. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the Li ...
and has confessed to the murders of six other female victims in
Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...
. He led police to those women's bodies, all of which were found in five abandoned structures in
Gary, Indiana Gary ( ) is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 69,093 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it Indiana's List of municipalities in Indiana, eleventh-most populous city. The city has been historical ...
. Before the police investigated the murders for which Vann was detained, Thomas Hargrove, founder of the Murder Accountability Project, together with a Gary, Indiana deputy coroner, attempted to persuade police that there were 18 similar murders pointing to a serial killer in the Gary, Indiana area.


Background

Vann was born on March 21, 1971, in
Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...
. He was married 16 years to Maria Vann who was about 30 years older than him. He was reportedly arrested in Gary, Indiana for threatening the life of his girlfriend. He was charged with a
class D felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "''félonie''") to describe an offense that r ...
and spent 90 days in jail. Vann was previously convicted on September 28, 2009, in
Travis County, Texas Travis County is located in Central Texas. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 1,290,188. It is the List of counties in Texas, fifth-most populous county in Texas. Its county seat and most populous city is Austi ...
, of a
sexual assault Sexual assault is an act of sexual abuse in which one intentionally Physical intimacy, sexually touches another person without that person's consent, or Coercion, coerces or physically forces a person to engage in a sexual act against their w ...
committed in
Austin Austin refers to: Common meanings * Austin, Texas, United States, a city * Austin (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin (surname), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin Motor Company, a British car manufac ...
in 2007 and sentenced to five years in a state penitentiary, being released on July 5, 2013. His wife, Maria Vann, filed for a divorce in August 2009 and their marriage was dissolved in 2011. He also received an "other than honorable" discharge from the
United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...
in 1993 after joining in 1991.


Suspicions

In August 2010, Thomas Hargrove, a reporter with the
Scripps Howard The E. W. Scripps Company, also known as Scripps, is an American broadcasting company founded in 1878 as a chain of daily newspapers by Edward Willis "E. W." Scripps and his sister, Ellen Browning Scripps. It was also formerly a media conglom ...
news service, used an algorithm (later the basis of the Murder Accountability Project which Hargrove founded) to analyze crime data which strongly suggested a serial killer was at work in Gary, Indiana. Hargrove repeatedly urged the local authorities to investigate 15 suspicious deaths in the period 1980-2008 identified by his work. The local authorities denied there was any evidence showing a serial killer was at work. A Gary deputy coroner, whose suspicions were also rebuffed by the local police, agreed with Hargrove and also added 3 suspected victims to the list.


Arrest and investigation

When 19-year-old Afrikka Hardy was found strangled in a Motel 6, authorities used Hardy's phone records and located Vann. Upon apprehension, Vann was found to have possession of several key pieces of potential evidence which included Hardy's phone. During police interrogation he
allegedly In law, an allegation is a claim of an unproven fact by a party in a pleading, charge, or defense. Until they can be proved, allegations remain merely assertions. Types of allegations Marital allegations There are also marital allegations: ma ...
confessed to his involvement in Hardy's killing and told police he was involved in other killings. His first court hearing was scheduled October 22, however he was held in
contempt of court Contempt of court, often referred to simply as "contempt", is the crime of being disobedient to or disrespectful toward a court of law and its officers in the form of behavior that opposes or defies the authority, justice, and dignity of the co ...
. His next hearing was held on October 28 at Lake County Jail in Crown Point where he pleaded not guilty to two charges of murder filed against him in the deaths of Afrikka Hardy and Anith Jones as well as robbery. His trial was originally supposed to begin on June 22, 2015, but this trial date was canceled on April 17, 2015, when the request for a death sentence was filed. The trial date of June 22, 2015 was subsequently restored. Vann's attorneys requested that the trial be delayed, and the trial was again delayed to January 25, 2016. In December 2015, Lake Superior Court Judge Diane Ross Boswell recused herself from hearing the case. Judge Samuel Cappas subsequently said he would take the case. In December 2015, Vann's trial was delayed to July 25, 2016. On March 7, 2016, Vann was charged with murder in the deaths of five additional victims. The death penalty was originally sought for each. The following day, Vann was charged with rape and attempted murder for an alleged February 2014 attack. Vann was also charged with battery by bodily waste for allegedly throwing a carton of urine and feces at a Lake County correctional officer at the jail on February 24, 2016. In April 2016, Judge Samuel Cappas denied a motion by Vann's attorneys to sever the murder cases of Anith Jones and Afrikka Hardy, and, as a result, the capital murder trial in said cases would have continued as one. In a motion filed August 5, 2016, Vann's attorneys argued that Indiana's death penalty law is unconstitutional. In November 2016, Judge Samuel Cappas denied Vann's motion to declare the state's death penalty statute unconstitutional. In January 2017, a Lake County judge decided that Vann could make an appeal with his claims that Indiana's death penalty statute is unconstitutional. In April 2017, the Indiana Supreme Court turned down Vann's request to look at the constitutionality of the state's death penalty statute before he went to trial. At a status hearing in April 2017, Judge Samuel Cappas set jury selection to begin the week of February 12, 2018, with the actual jury trial beginning around March 12, 2018. In October 2017, Lake Superior Court Judge Samuel Cappas delayed the trial date, with jury selection being scheduled to begin September 17, 2018, and the trial beginning October 22, 2018. On May 4, 2018, Vann pleaded guilty to seven murders. As part of the plea agreement, prosecutors dropped the death penalty. On May 25, 2018, Vann was sentenced to seven concurrent life sentences without parole. In August 2021, Ben Kuebrich, host of the "Algorithm" crime podcast, obtained tape recordings via FOIA requests in which Vann confesses at length to interviewing detectives about numerous unsolved murders he had committed across the country. In them, he claimed to have killed dozens of women, predominantly in
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
,
Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...
, but also in other locations such as
California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
;
North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
;
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
;
Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...
,
Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...
;
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and
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,
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.


Victims

Vann was convicted of murdering these seven women: Afrikka Hardy, 19, had recently moved to Chicago after graduating from high school. She met Vann at a Motel 6 in Hammond, Indiana after he hired her through an escort agency. She was found dead in a bathtub in one of its rooms on October 17, 2014. Anith Jones, 35, of
Gary, Indiana Gary ( ) is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 69,093 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it Indiana's List of municipalities in Indiana, eleventh-most populous city. The city has been historical ...
, was last seen alive on October 8, 2014, and reported missing two days later. After Vann was arrested, he led police to an abandoned house in Gary on October 18 where her body was found. Teaira Batey, 28, of Gary, Indiana, left to meet a friend on January 13, 2014, but she never returned. Her family waited to hear from her for a few days but reported her missing later that month. Her body was found in an abandoned house at 1800 East 19th Avenue in Gary on October 19. Kristine Williams, 36, of Gary, Indiana, was a mother of four and employed at the time of her death. Her mother-in-law stated that she had not heard from Williams since February 2014. Her body was found in an abandoned house at 4330 Massachusetts Street in Gary on October 19. Tracy Martin, 41, of Gary, Indiana, was reported missing on June 26, 2014. Her body was found in an abandoned house at 2200 Massachusetts Street in Gary on October 19. Sonya Billingsley, 53, of Gary, Indiana, was reported missing on February 7, 2014. Her body was found in an abandoned house with the body of Tanya Gatlin at 413 East 43rd Avenue in Gary on October 19. Tanya Gatlin, 27, of Gary, Indiana, had been missing since January 2014. Her body was found in an abandoned house with the body of Sonya Billingsley at 413 East 43rd Avenue in Gary on October 19.


See also

* Benjamin Atkins, another serial killer of women and girls who were left dead in abandoned buildings. *
List of serial killers in the United States A serial killer is typically a person who kills three or more people, with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) defines serial murder a ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vann, Darren Deon 1971 births 21st-century African-American people 21st-century American criminals American people convicted of murder American people convicted of sexual assault American prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment American rapists Crimes in Indiana Living people Murder trials in the United States Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by Indiana Serial killers from Indiana United States Marines Violence against women in the United States Trials in Indiana People convicted of murder by Indiana