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Karla Homolka is a Canadian criminal who served 12 years in prison for a series of s*xual assaults and murders between 1990 and 1992. Following her release from prison in 2005, Karla moved to Quebec, Canada, where she got married once again. She reportedly lives in the same province with her husband and three children, under the name Leanne Teale.
Karla gained infamy in the media during the 1990s when she entered a very controversial plea bargain to reduce her sentence. Karla Homolka and her ex-husband, Paul Bernardo were called the Ken and Barbie Killers by Canadian authorities and media outlets. The former couple lured and r*ped several young girls including murdering at least three of them, one of whom was Karla's sister Tammy.
The chilling case of Karla Homolka and Paul Bernardo is delved into in the ID series Ken and Barbie Killers: The Lost Murder Tapes. The official synopsis reads:
"The filmmaker traces how Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka, a glamourous couple, became notorious serial killers while also investigating the pursuit of the tapes recording their crimes."
The ID series consists of four episodes which will all re-air on the channel on Friday, May 10, 2024. The first episode will air at 8 pm ET followed by the other episodes.
What crimes did Karla Homolka commit?
Karla Homolka was born on May 4, 1970, in Ontario, Canada, and reportedly developed her sadistic and masochistic tendencies in her late teens. This was also around the time that she met Paul Barnardo.
Karla was 17 when she met 23-year-old Paul at a conference in Ontario in 1987. The two were instantly attracted to each other and Bernardo began driving to see Karla Homolka twice a week after that. Gradually, he began controlling her and every aspect of her life, including her beliefs, clothes, and even her food. He would often insult her and tell her she was ugly and overweight.
Meanwhile, Paul had been r*ping and attacking young women across Scarborough, leading him to be dubbed the Scarborough R*pist. While Homolka was initially unaware of this side of her fiancé, when she found out, she would help him lure his victims, even killing three of them.
However, her first gruesome crime was the r*pe and murder of her younger sister 15-year-old Tammy in 1990. Bernardo was attracted to Tammy and had even tried to drug and r*pe her on a previous occasion but the teen woke up when he was in the middle of the attack.
A few months later, Paul got what he wanted when Karla drugged Tammy at Christmas dinner at the Homolka's home. The Ken and Barbie Killers then r*ped the teen, who ended up choking on her vomit and dying. They cleaned up the crime scene and phoned the police, who ruled the death as an accident.
Karla and Bernardo went on to engage in the r*pe and abduction of several other young women, two of whom were eventually found dead.
When she was on trial for her crimes, Karla claimed that she only committed them to cede to Bernardo's fantasies. However, during her plea bargain, Karla confessed to three confirmed murders she committed along with Bernardo.
Paul Bernardo was arrested in 1993 after Karla filed a police complaint against him for battery when he severely beat her up.
Where is Karla Homolka now?
Karla's criminal spree with her Paul Bernardo ended in 1993 when Paul was linked to the Scarborough r*pes. He was arrested after Karla filed a complaint against him.
Two years later, Bernardo was found guilty by the court and given a life sentence without the chance of parole. Meanwhile, Karla testified against him after accepting a controversial plea agreement. She was given a reduced 12-year sentence and during the trial, she revealed the details of the murders they had committed before admitting that Bernardo was the Scarborough R*pist.
Karla served the majority of her sentence at Kingston's Prison For Women in Ontario. She was later moved to Joliette Institution and then Ste-Anne-des-Plaines Institution in Quebec.
She was released from prison in 2005 and eventually settled in Quebec, Canada. She got married to Thierry Bordelais, and now reportedly leads a normal life with her husband and three kids.
Catch more details about Karla and Paul when Ken and Barbie Killers: The Lost Murder Tapes re-airs on ID on Friday, May 10, 2024 at 8 pm ET.
