Richard Leonard Kuklinski, AKA ”The Iceman” is well known as one of the most dangerous contract killers in the history of America. Killing over 200 people between 1948 and 1986, Kuklinski managed to avoid Police and survive for nearly 30 years using his expert and keen skills in doing his job without leaving a trace.
Kuklinski’s criminal career began when he was just 14 when he took the life of a bully and a small gang member in his neighborhood who has occasionally picked on him in public. This incident laid the foundation to a notorious mafia hitman who has later on worked for several families in the American Mafia, including Newark’s DeCavalcante , Gambino Crime Family and New York City’s Five Families.
In a documentary, Kuklinski explained how he likes to get up close to his victims and look them in the eye before killing them. He says that many of his victims were actually harmless, sometimes he would just kill someone to prove a point.
“I liked most was the hunt, the challenge of what the thing was. The killing for me was secondary. I got no rise as such out of it…for the most part. But the figuring it out, the challenge—the stalking and doing it right, successfully—that excited me a lot. “ said Kuklinski in his biography.
You may also like: Greatest Criminal Minds of History: Barefoot Bandit
Cyanide was Kuklinski’s favorite weapon of choice, as it was capable of putting down his victims in just a few seconds. Although, he did use guns, knives and chainsaws as well. Kuklinski earned his mobname “The Iceman” after finding his brilliant way of masking the time of death of his victims by freezing the bodies. This was enough to leave the police clueless.
Despite his cold-blooded killings, Kuklinski has something that he loved more than anything – his family. His wife Deborah and two daughters were the only things that matter the most in his world. After he was arrested on December 17, 1986, Kuklinski confessed that only thing he regrets doing in his life is lying to his beloved family.
Richard Kuklinski’s story inspired many books and plays, including the 2012 Hollywood movie “The Iceman”, where Michael Shannon brilliantly gave life to Kuklinski’s character.
Learn more in this video where Richard Kuklinski talks about his past.
[Source: About.com / Wikipedia / YouTube]
(All the images, trademarks, logo’s shown on this post are the property of their respective owners)
Follow @nrjperera - Roshan Jerad Perera
