Albert Henry Desalvo

Albert DeSalvo—also known as “The Measuring Man,” “The Green Man,” and “The Boston Strangler”—murdered 13 women between 1962 and 1964. Born in Chelsea, Massachusetts, in 1931, DeSalvo was forced to live in extremely impoverished conditions. Often neglected, he was subjected to cruel beatings at the hands of his alcoholic father. He was forced to watch while his father abused and beat his mother. On one occasion, he watched his father break each of his mother's fingers, one after the other. On another occasion, his father sold him and his sister into slavery to a farmer for several months. In 1944, Mrs. DeSalvo divorced her husband, taking her six children with her.

His love for his mother and his hatred for his father seemed to bring out the worst in Albert. He remembered later how much he enjoyed shooting cats [Page 129]with his bow and arrow. His father had trained him well in stealing from stores, and Albert became proficient at the task. He gradually developed a liking for breaking and entering homes, which he began to do frequently during the next 20 years.

By the time he was 12, Albert had been arrested twice, once for larceny and once for breaking and entering. He was incarcerated at Lyman School for delinquent boys, where he learned a great deal more about burglary. After his release, he began to apply himself full-time to breaking and entering homes. Albert tried to bridge the gap between himself and those who were affluent. He was no more able to attain middle-class respectability than he was able to satisfy his enormous sex drive. He became sexually active with both girls and homosexuals in the neighborhood and gained a reputation for his remarkable sexual capacity. At 17, he joined the military and served with the occupation forces in Germany. Before returning, he won the U.S. Army middleweight boxing championship and married his wife, Irmgard. In 1955, at age 23, DeSalvo was charged with his first sex offense, involving the molestation of a 9-year-old girl. The charges were dropped when the parents of the girl refused to proceed with the case. In 1956, he was honorably discharged from the military.

In 1958, DeSalvo's first child was born, and he briefly ceased his breaking-and-entering activities. However, his wife refused to submit to his excessive sexual demands, and his financial status seemed to be worsening. In a short time, Albert received two separate suspended sentences for breaking and entering.

Before long, DeSalvo earned the nickname “The Measuring Man,” conning his way into scores of apartments by explaining that he represented a modeling agency and was in search of talent. Producing a measuring tape, he would take occupants' personal measurements, touching them inappropriately whenever possible. He later would claim that most of his victims were quite willing to have their measurements taken, that few complained, and a few even removed their clothing. He never attacked or harmed any of them but promised they would soon be hearing from his agency.

Eventually, Albert was arrested once again for breaking and entering and was sentenced to 2 years' imprisonment. He earned his release in 11 months. According to police, at that time, DeSalvo was still known only as a breaking-and-entering criminal. He returned home, again rejected by his wife until such time that he could prove he had mended his ways.

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