Arsonists

[mack]

    David Berkowitz, aka Son of Sam, is the infamous serial killer who terrorized NYC in 1977.  He is serving a life sentence for 8 shootings.  It usually goes unmentioned and unknown that this guy was also an arsonist who had a log of starting over 1400 fires.

    In his arson log book found by police, he listed:  date, box number, boro, location, extent of fire and other details.  He even noted the type of box (ERS) and FDNY signal codes.  This looks like a battalion run log from 1977.  Who does this?

    Think of all the jobs due to one asshole - at least 1400 fires.  Working fires.  That was just in a relatively short period of time (mid 1974-mid 1977) and are only the fires he logged.  How did he not get caught - 1400 plus fires?  Same car.  Probably used same MO.  This guy was a pyromaniac.  Had to be sitting there watching the jobs to record fire details.  Goes to show you that arson was common and attracted little attention back then, except for FDNY members who had to respond as neighborhoods were wiped out.

Berkowitz arrest.

    Background information:  Birth name Richard David Falco Also known as The Son of Sam and The 44 Caliber Killer
Born June 1, 1953 (1953-06-01) Brooklyn, New York
Conviction 6 life sentences (365 years in prison) Killings Number of victims: 6 killed, 7 wounded Span of killings 29 July 1976?31 July 1977 Country U.S. State(s) New York Date apprehended 10 August 1977

Read more: http://www.answers.com/topic/david-berkowitz-1#ixzz1TaxCfpoZ

http://images.search.yahoo.com/images/view?back=http%3A%2F%2Fimages.search.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%2Fimages%3Fp%3Ddavid%2Bberkowitz%2Bcar%26ei%3Dutf-8%26y%3DSearch&w=415&h=550&imgurl=thealistchannel.com%2Fraw%2Fimages%2FLETTER_TO_DAILY_NEWS.jpg&rurl=http%3A%2F%2Fthealistchannel.com%2Fraw%2Fdavidberkowitz.html&size=37KB&name=the+car+where+on...&p=david+berkowitz+car&oid=80b61c66fd955a4fda25f6049e2e9dc6&fr2=&no=15&tt=158&sigr=11ihgllkj&sigi=11nqf5l2h&sigb=12k8gc7te&.crumb=6feyl2m.gqX
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[fdce54]

Wow, I lived in the Bronx during his shooting spree and never knew he was an arsonist, well kept secret. From looking at his log, most of the locations shown in the Bronx were fairly quiet neighborhoods at that time.

 

[vbcapt]

Thanks mack ! I too, never knew about his arson activities

 

[nfd2004]

I think G-man told me he had worked with him at the post office in Yonkers.
  I remember the stories well. The entire city was terrified. And I do remember them saying that he had a log book listed with fires in it.

 

[68jk09]

I believe the way it went was.....he filled out the log book while listening to a scanner in his apartment....i do not think  he was ever proven to be at any of the scenes ...after his arrest for the heinious crimes the log book came to light....& was somewhat sensational but i do not think anything came out of it.....he defintily was a Fire Buff as in prison he had several Fire related books..one being Warren Fuchs "Wheres The Fire".....the reason i know this is that he wrote Warren a congratulatory letter when he got  hold of the book......kind of scary since he had pictures of us in his cell........when he was on the loose it was certainly a tense time as he killed a couple in the Elephas disco near my house  then even after he was in custody the copy cat murders started & someone killed a couple parked in a car a few blocks from my house at the time .

 

[guitarman314]

Yes, I worked in the Bronx General Post Office and I knew him well enough to talk to him daily. Funny thing is that I would discuss NYC newspaper manhunt reward stories right in front of him and his reaction was a smirk sort of saying what an idiot I was not knowing HE WAS the "Son Of Sam". You'll notice one of the arson boxes is 2245 @River Ave. & 151st which is 2 blocks from the post office we both worked at and where the Bronx USPS garage was located then. On a side note: the day he was caught I received an early afternoon phone call from a former bandmate who was a detective at 1 Police Plaza. He asked me the names of USPS employees I had submitted to him as suspicious but David Berkowitz was not one of them. My friend told me to watch the local news because the killer worked where I worked. I hopped into my car and made it to the employees entrance of the P.O. and found it surrounded by TV news reporters. I believe he had "friends" because one of his postal friends disappeared right after he was caught. Being around him for more tha a year, I can tell you that he was a real Jekyll & Hyde as he was a good employee while on the clock and got along with everyone. Another thing that stood out was that I used to play guitar for an employees glee club. Around 3PM we finished practicing in the employee cafeteria/lounge I would hang around and play some blues & rock tunes. Berkowitz would come in around that time to have coffee because he worked the 4PM shift. He would ask me to play some Jimi Hendrix and one of the tunes he asked for was "Purple Haze", which when played backwards supposedly said the words "Son Of Sam". I didn't know that and I've been kicking my own butt ever since lamenting how close I was to getting this guy.

 

[mack]

1977 Time magazine article about arson:
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,945795-1,00.html

1980 Arson for Hire article:
http://www.villagevoice.com/content/printVersion/196198/

 

[Florian Knight]

......kind of scary since he had pictures of us in his cell........

OK - I admit that first time I read this I said to myself ....
"There where no cell phones in the 70s and mobile phones had no photos back then "

 

[*******]

The reason for the arson was that "they just didn't give a shit." It was urban renewal. I've written a number of times of Bronx neighborhoods being burned out, buildings that would have stood another 100 years they were so structurally sound. In 50 engine we had box 2323, Cauldwell and 160. Dispatchers called it Gasoline Alley. They would just say to us on the air "50 start out for gasoline alley." July 1972 we had 17 all-hands or higher at this one box. Then in 82 we had Charlotte Street, box 2743. Block after block of buildings burned out over a few short years. Canyons of burned out vacants and partially vacant buildings. Yet Gasoline Gomez could carry his gas cans through the street at 3AM and nobody noticed. Only by blowing himself out a window was he stopped. Thats all it was plain and simple, they didn't give a shit. How many buildings do you think Gomez would have been allowed to burn out in the heighborhood of East End Avenue and 70th Street in Manhattan? May they all rot in Hell and may Gomez be in charge of stoking their fire.

 

[mack]

The 1978 Waldbaum's fire and the 6 firefighters who were killed  August 2, 1978 were just remembered on this web site.  This was an infamous fire which saw the conviction and 10 years of jail time for a confessed arsonist.  Then it was overturned due to propsecuter misconduct in 1988.  A retrial failed to convict.  Odd that the arsonist admitted to setting 3 other fires, and he was not even charged.

http://www.nytimes.com/1994/08/10/nyregion/testimony-given-at-retrial-in-1978-arson-in-brooklyn.html

http://www.nytimes.com/1994/09/26/nyregion/man-acquitted-of-waldbaum-s-arson-is-arrested-again.html

 

[Zing the grumpygrizzly jr]

That is a crazy thing...you never know the people around you could be a crazy murder....everyone loves firefighting even the serial killers it is the best job out there......