Joseph Kappen
Joseph Kappen | |
|---|---|
Kappen, c. 1973 | |
| Born | Joseph William Kappen 30 October 1941 Port Talbot, Wales, UK |
| Died | 17 June 1990 (aged 48) Port Talbot, Neath Port Talbot, Wales, UK |
| Other names | The Saturday Night Strangler |
| Spouse |
Christine Powell
(m. 1964; div. 1980) |
| Motive | Rape, possible rage |
| Conviction | Not convicted |
| Details | |
| Victims | 3–4+ |
Span of crimes | July 1973 –
|
| Country | United Kingdom |
Date apprehended | Not apprehended |
Joseph William Kappen (30 October 1941 – 17 June 1990), also known as the Saturday Night Strangler, was a Welsh serial killer who committed the rape and murder of three teenage girls in Llandarcy and Tonmawr, near his home town of Port Talbot, in 1973. Kappen is also suspected of committing a fourth murder in February 1976.
Kappen's confirmed victims were all 16-year-old girls whom he lured into his car on Saturday evenings in Briton Ferry and Swansea. All three were driven to rural locations where they were subsequently raped, then killed by strangulation. Kappen was never arrested for his crimes and died of lung cancer in 1990.
Kappen is notable for being the first person to be posthumously identified as a serial killer via familial DNA profiling. He was also the first documented serial killer in Welsh history.