On this day, March 8, in 1951, the “Lonely Hearts Killers” were electrocuted at Sing Sing prison in New York.
Martha Beck was overweight and unattractive. Raymond Fernandez was a petty criminal who believed he could charm women into being his sex slaves. They met through a “Lonely Hearts Club” advertisement.
Fernandez told Beck of his scheme to seduce, rob and murder women who placed personal ads in newspapers. Beck agreed to pose as his sister. Between 1947 and ’49, they killed as many as 20 women.
At their execution, they professed their love. “I love Martha! What do the public know about love?” Fernandez shouted.
Said Beck: “My story is a love story. But only those tortured by love can know what I mean.”
– Scott McCabe
