After her Mike Pepitone’s death, Esther moved to LA and married Angelo Albano in 1921. California residents can opt out of "sales" of personal data. In newspaper accounts, the prime suspect is referred to by the name of "Momfre" more than once. Some believe Mumfre was a Mafia hitman, taking revenge on the Pepitone family. One thing is certain and that is that some of your people who do not jazz it out on that specific Tuesday night (if there be any) will get the axe.

When I see fit, I shall come and claim other victims.

Others say they were discovered by a visitor who became wary when they did not answer the door. However, there was not enough evidence to directly link him to the crimes, and eyewitnesses can be wrong. She was nearly dead with her head battered. Some suspected a baker who was making morning deliveries: John Zanca. Some believe that one casualty, Louis Besumer, murdered his wife and made it look like an Axeman attack.

While radically different than the Axeman's usual modus operandi, if Joseph Momfre was indeed the Axeman, the Schiambras may well have been early victims of the future serial killer.[4]. When di Christina’s lease was up, Mike Pepitone moved his business and home to that location.

Harriet was to die two months later as a result of her injuries. Esther proceeded to open a window and began screaming while their 11-year-old daughter ran out for help. [7], Newton was also not able to find any information that Mrs. Pepitone (identified in some sources as Esther Albano, and in others simply as a "woman who claimed to be Pepitone's widow") was arrested, tried or convicted for such a crime, or indeed had been in California. She supposedly recounted to the police that a large white man with a hatchet had attacked them. Jake and Andrew Maggio, who were Joseph’s brothers and living under the same roof, found.

He was a baker who discovered their bodies when he knocked on the door of Besumer’s grocery store and did not receive a response. I am going to make a little proposition to the people. I take no offense at the way they have conducted their investigations in the past.

She claimed that he was the Axeman and had seen him run from her bedroom.

Steve Boca: On August 10, 1919, Steve Boca was badly injured in his home.

The Cortimiglias: Attacked March 10, 1919. A week following the attack, she gave birth. Anna Lowe lived for another seven weeks after the attack. “Now, to be exact, at 12:15 o’clock (earthly time) on next Tuesday night, I am going to pass over New Orleans In my infinite mercy. She was pregnant. The murder used Joseph’s axe on the victims’ heads, and a razor on their throats. In my infinite mercy, I am going to make a little proposition to you people. So this was clearly not a robbery. Police found that Besumer had written letters back and forth in Yiddish and … Jake was released the following day but police held Andrew because they believed his razor was used to commit the crime. Reported Address: Corner of Dorgennis and LaHarpe The City Directory does not contain a record of a man by the name of Louis Besumer or an address of a grocery at the Corner of Dorgennis and LaHarpe. However, the 1917 directory does list a man by the name of Louis D. Beiger (grocer) located at 2601 LaHarpe, which is only a few blocks away.

Mumfre was in and out of prison for the past ten years and his time outside of prison coincided with attacks by the Axeman. ", "Book Review: Red, White, and Blood by Christopher Farnsworth", "Tocad, si queréis vivir: Jazz para el asesino del hacha - Cultural Resuena", "EISREGEN - Fegefeuer | Review bei Stormbringer", Vice interview of Miriam C. Davis about the Axeman murders, Prairie Ghosts: The Axeman of New Orleans, 1919: A serial killer had New Orleans on edge, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Axeman_of_New_Orleans&oldid=978266879, Wikipedia articles needing rewrite from October 2018, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. [1] The Axeman was never identified, and the murders remain unsolved. In fact, they have been so utterly stupid so as to amuse not only me, but His Satanic Majesty, Francis Joseph, etc.”, The Axeman claims that he “could be much worse if [he] wanted to.”. He was the last alleged victim of the Axeman and his murder was never solved. Some crime analysts have suggested that the killings were related to sex, and that the murderer was perhaps a sadist specifically seeking female victims.

A less plausible theory is that the killer committed the murders in an attempt to promote jazz music, suggested by a letter attributed to the killer in which he stated that he would spare the lives of those who played jazz in their homes. He was a baker who discovered their bodies when he knocked on the door of Besumer’s grocery store and did not receive a response. Upon investigation it was discovered that their axe was missing from their shed. Maggio is going to sit up tonight just like Mrs. Toney.”. Here it is: I am very fond of jazz music, and I swear by all the devils in the nether regions that every person shall be spared in whose home a jazz band is in full swing at the time I have just mentioned. John Zanca: He was the suspected attacker of Louis Besumer and Anna Lowe. Her head was bashed and she mas missing many teeth.

Wilson's theory has been widely repeated in other true crime books and websites. Jake and Andrew Maggio: Joseph Maggio’s brothers Jake and Andrew were initially suspected and put in jail.

He was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to serve five years at the Louisiana State Penitentiary. At will I could slay thousands of your best citizens (and the worst), for I am in close relationship with the Angel of Death. If you wish you may tell the police to be careful not to rile me. Louis Besumer and Anna Lowe: Attacked on June 28, 1918. He would usually find his way through the backdoor and use whatever was at hand inside the home. And though.

Something for everyone interested in hair, makeup, style, and body positivity. Obsessed with travel? But tell them to beware. Louis Besumer: Before dying, Anna Lowe allegedly blamed her partner Louis Besumer and said he was a Nazi spy.

Remember, Mrs. Pepitone initially said there were two men in her bedroom. The two men left, exiting through the room where their six children stayed, and out the back door. If I wished, I could pay a visit to your city every night.

Search, watch, and cook every single Tasty recipe and video ever - all in one place! The neighbor, Jordano, and his son were convicted for the crime, but this was eventually overturned. The male Schiambra survived while his wife died. It appears that there actually may have been an individual named Joseph Momfre or Mumfre in New Orleans who had a criminal history, and who may have been connected with organized crime; however, local records for the period are not extensive enough to allow confirmation of this, or to positively identify the individual. Andrew was released after a few days.

June 27, 1918, Louis Besumer and his mistress Harriet “Annie” Lowe were beaten nearly to death. The Jordanos: Rose Cortimiglia blamed her neighbors Iorlando and Frank Jordano for the attack. Nineteen-year-old Sarah Laumann was reportedly attacked either in August or September of 1919. [4], The Axeman was not caught or identified, and his crime spree stopped as mysteriously as it had started. Sheriff deputy Ben Corcoran was the first to arrive on the scene. [2] In most cases, a panel on a back door of a home was removed by a chisel, which along with the panel was left on the floor near the door. Crime writer Colin Wilson speculates the Axeman could have been Joseph Momfre, a man shot to death in Los Angeles in December 1920 by the widow of Mike Pepitone, the Axeman's last known victim. He would typically enter the victim’s bedroom and attack in the middle of the night. All Rights Reserved. May 23, 1918. We hold major institutions accountable and expose wrongdoing. John D’Antonio, a detective from the time of the Axeman attacks believed that this person’s alter ego could lie dormant for months or years, suggesting the 1911 attacks may have been the same Axeman. Esther Pepitone awoke around 1 a.m. to her husband’s screaming and reportedly ran to the bedroom. Alan G. Gauthreaux, author and historian, presented a comprehensive profile of the Axeman Murders in his book, This page was last edited on 13 September 2020, at 22:06.

Esther saw two figures in the bedroom but could not identify them. Undoubtedly, you Orleanians think of me as a most horrible murderer, which I am, but I could be much worse if I wanted to.

A local composer Joseph Davilla was inspired by the Axeman and wrote the song, Some think the first Axeman attacks occurred in 1911 with a handful of murders: the Rosettis, the Schiambras, the Davis, and the Cruttis.

I don't think there is any need of such a warning, for I feel sure the police will always dodge me, as they have in the past. Esther approached Mumfre and asked about her husband. A man delivering bread for Louis’ grocery store discovered the crime after Louis failed to … Anna Lowe has also said that she was attacked by “a mulatto” and people began to suspect the newly-hired help, but they were also quickly released. If everyone has a jazz band going, well, then, so much the better for the people. He was acquitted. They allegedly saw the attacker and described him as “dark, tall, heavy-set, wearing a dark suit and a black slouch hat.”. As the killer's epithet implies, the victims usually were attacked with an axe, which often belonged to the victims themselves. Esther is quoted saying every time her husband “turned his head, blood came from his head and face… It simply poured over the bed.”. For Marrero’s part, he was convinced that the entire thing was an Italian vendetta. It is said that they were found by a neighbor who was alerted by the screams. The Pepitones: October 27, 1919. Others believed the Axeman to be a woman, or a little person who could fit in small spaces they carved into doors, or a supernatural entity that could slip through tiny entranceways and become the “large man” that witnesses describe the killer to be.

The killer struck Besumer with a hatchet above his right temple, fracturing his skull. In August 1918, the New Orleans States newspaper allegedly recounted. Discover unique things to do, places to eat, and sights to see in the best destinations around the world with Bring Me! Hoping that thou wilt publish this, that it may go well with thee, I have been, am and will be the worst spirit that ever existed either in fact or realm of fancy. She was rushed to Charity Hospital. Mike Pepitone was rushed to the hospital and died within two hours. After her death, Louis Besumer was charged with the murder of Anna Lowe. Just after the 1911 attacks possibly linked to the Axeman, he was sent to prison-for a separate reason.

Of course, I am a reasonable spirit. Her screams during the attack woke the neighbors and they found her unconscious. Let them not try to discover what I am, for it were better that they were never born than to incur the wrath of the Axeman. For other uses, see, Illustrated map of scenes of the Axe murders, March 1999, List of serial killers in the United States, "Fresh light on the axeman of New Orleans", "Brother's Razor Involves Him in Double Killing", "Bloody Clothes Found on Scene of Maggio Crime", "Andrew Maggio Released; Says He is Innocent", "Another Hatchet Mystery; Man and Wife Near Death", "Mate of Besemer Refuses to Tell Police Anything", "Police Believe Ax-Man May be Active in the City", "Is the Axe-Man Type of Jekyl-Hyde Concept? The Axeman described himself as a “fell demon from hottest hell” and confesses his love for jazz music. They have never seen me, for I am invisible, even as the ether that surrounds your earth. The Axeman would also usually leave the axe behind near the scene of the crime. [5], Esteemed Mortal of New Orleans: The Axeman. They have never caught me and they never will. Iorlando was elderly, and Frank was seventeen.