The Killing Of A Serial Killer

Friday 22nd December 2017

Neal Falls was an American suspected serial killer shot and killed by Heather Saul in West Virginia. Falls had been stopped by police in over 20 states during his life but did not incur any serious criminal charges.

Death and Discovery

Shortly after moving to West Virginia, Falls met a sex worker named Heather Saul online and tracked down her address. After entering Saul’s residence, he held her at gunpoint. Saul describes the struggle that ensued as follows: “When he strangled me, I grabbed my rake, and when he laid the gun down to get the rake out of my hands, I shot him…I grabbed the gun and shot behind me.” Falls died at the scene.

Four sets of handcuffs were retrieved from his body. When police officers searched the inside of his car, they allegedly found a machete, axes, knives, a shovel, a sledgehammer, bleach, plastic trash bags, bulletproof vests, clean white socks and underwear.

Police are now investigating whether Falls could possibly be connected to the murder or disappearance of ten women across eight states including Ohio, Illinois, and Nevada. All the alleged female victims were documented escorts, most of whom had advertised online.

Evidence linking Falls to multiple homicides includes an item found with dismembered bodies outside of Las Vegas, where Falls is rumoured to have resided while working on the Hoover Dam. This is similar to an item found in his car. A pair of legs were found in the woods near Divernon, IL by a young man that is believed to belong to one of Falls’ victims.

In a statement of speculative belief, “It’s likely that Mr Falls is a serial killer,” said Steve Cooper, Chief Detective at Charleston Police Department.

Police suspect a post-it found in Falls’ pocket, detailing the names of six females along with ages and phone numbers, may have contained the names of potential or future victims