5 Chilling details about the crimes of Gary M. Heidnik

Gary M. Heidnik, one of the most gruesome criminals in American history, held six African-American women hostage in his basement from 1986 to 1987, before he was caught and arrested for his crimes.

Disclaimer: This article has mentions of gore and physical assault. Reader discretion is advised

Heidnik subjected the women to various degrees of torture, r*pe, and even murdered two of his victims.

The ID show People Magazine Presents: Surviving a Serial Killer delved into the devious crimes of Gary M. Heidnik in their fourth episode, titled Surviving the Bishop’s Basement. The synopsis reads:

"Gary Heidnick, who calls runs a church out of his house and calls himself “The Bishop,” abducts a woman and holds her captive. Soon, he imprisons six women in his basement and tortures them. As captives begin to die, Josefina Rivera knows her only chance of survival is to escape."

The episode premiered on Investigation Discovery on May 26, 2024, at 9 pm ET/PT.

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Torturing his victims, and 4 other chilling details of Gary M. Heidnik's crimes

1) Gary M. Heidnik established a Church called the United Church of the Ministers of God

Heidnik was the self appointed Bishop of the Church and manipulated his followers (image via Getty)

Heidnik served in the army after enrolling as a 17-year-old. However, he was dishonorably discharged after being diagnosed with schizoid personality disorder. He worked as a nurse in the veteran hospital, and in 1971, he established a Church called the United Church of the Ministers of God.

He was the self-appointed bishop of the Church, as per Oxygen. He managed to raise more than half a million dollars and amass 50 followers over time. He forged himself into an influential figure to manipulate people, leading to his kidnapping tendencies.

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2) He subjected his ex-girlfriend and ex-wife to acts of s*xual deviancy

Ranker states that Heidnik was married to a Filipino immigrant named Betty Ditso from 1985 to 1987. He met her through a matrimonial service. However, she caught him in bed with three other women soon after their marriage.

The Encyclopedia of Serial Killers states that Heidnik subjected his wife to immense physical abuse, s*xual abuse, and forced her to watch him perform deviant s*xual activities on other women.

Betty Ditso left Heidnik in 1986, but unknown to him, she was pregnant with his child. She gave birth to a son named Jesse John Disto.

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3) He kidnapped and held six women hostage

Gary M. Heidnik dug up holes in his basement and kept the women captive (image via Pexels)

Gary M. Heidnik's most heinous crime was when he kidnapped six African-American women in 1986. A pr*stitute named Josefina Rivera was Heidnik's first victim, and she subsequently assisted him in obtaining numerous more. Sandra Lindsay, a lady with mental disabilities, was his second victim. His third victim was a 19-year-old single mother named Lisa Thomas.

Heidnik imprisoned three more women in 1987: Agnes Adams, Deborah Dudley, and Jacqueline Askins. Heidnik allegedly planned to raise a lot of children with them in an attempt to start a "baby farm".

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4) Heidnik fed one of his victims to his other captives

Heidnik kept his victims under inhumane conditions and tortured them mercilessly (image via Pexels)

Heidnik subjected his victims to inhumane torture and r*pe. One of his victims, Sandra Lindsay died after he suspended her from his basement ceiling, tied to a chain.

He dismembered her body and ground it with dog food before forcing his other captives to eat it. This was explicitly witnessed by one of his surviving victims, Josefina Rivera, who later recalled it to Philadelphia Magazine.

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5) Silence of the Lambs is loosely based on Gary M. Heidnik's crimes

Author Thomas Harris wrote the psychological thriller The Silence of the Lambs based on Gary M. Heidnik, following his arrest in 1987. The book was adapted into a film of the same name in 1991, starring Anthony Hopkins and Jodie Foster.

Hopkins' character Buffalo Bill was inspired by Heidnik, taking cues from the horrific incidents of how he tortured the women in his basement.

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Gary Heidnik was sentenced to death in 1988 and executed by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 1999.