Between August 1974 and November 1975, residents of northern New Jersey were alarmed by a series of random, brutal homicides that claimed the lives of eight young women, perpetrated by a man who liked to pick his victims off in pairs. He would resort to solitary targets in a pinch, however, and he kept authorities off-balance by continually altering his methods - suffocation, strangulation, gunshots - on a whim.
Convicted of conspiracy in June 1978, Reldan drew a term of 20 to 50 years in prison, but the worst was yet to come. Reldan's first murder trial ended with a hung jury, in June 1979, and a retrial was scheduled for October. Reldan used a smuggled key to unlock his handcuffs, sprayed his guards with chemical Mace, and escaped from the courthouse in Hackensack. He was recaptured hours later, at a hospital in Tuxedo, New York, after crashing his stolen getaway car into a ditch.
The trial resumed next day, despite the anonymous mailing of $100 bribes to several jurors, and Reldan was convicted of two murders on October 17. He remains a suspect in six other homicides, although no further charges have been filed.
One page typed letter. Letter is general content and is signed in pen. Original matching envelope is included.
Product Code | RRELDAN20211E |
Condition | New |