Torso Killer Confesses to 1965 Fair Lawn Murder

Richard Cottingham, a 79-year-old serial killer known as the Torso Killer, confessed last month to the 1965 murder of 18-year-old Alys Eberhardt in her family's home in Fair Lawn, New Jersey, authorities announced Tuesday.

Eberhardt, a nursing student, was found dead on September 24, 1965, in the residence on Saddle River Road. She had suffered a skull fracture and been stabbed more than 50 times, according to police reports from the time. Her father discovered the body upon returning home. The case, long unsolved and the only open homicide in Fair Lawn at the time, was reopened in 2021 by local detectives who began interviewing Cottingham in prison.

Over more than four years, Fair Lawn police detectives Eric Eleshewich and Brian Rypkema conducted multiple in-person interviews with Cottingham, building a rapport through his confidants, including a forensic historian. In November 2024, one confidant informed investigators that Cottingham, citing poor health, wished to discuss his crimes. Two final interviews followed, culminating in a full verbal and written confession in December 2024. Cottingham provided details about the lead-up to the attack, the house layout and the murder...