The NYC Hotel Axe Murders - Ruth Potdevin and Janet Scott
Episode 140
***Sponsored by: StoryWorth! Visit Storyworth.com/Trace for $10 off your first purchase!
Headspace! Visit Headspace.com/Trace for a FREE One Month Trial!***
Over the course of one week in New York City in 1985, a violent and brutal killer wielding an axe took the lives of two women: 85 year old Janet Scott and 58 year old Ruth Potdevin. Both women were killed in hotels within days of each other, less than a half mile apart.
While the crimes themselves were grisly enough, the killer went further by leaving a gruesome puzzle behind at each scene. While the NYPD believed they would capture the assailant, his wrath disappeared just as mysteriously as it had originally materialized.
Did he finish what he aimed to do or did he simply move on to kill again, evading police once more?
Sources:
People Who Live in Hotels: An Exploratory Overview
Photos of Janet B. Scott - Find A Grave Memorial
Janet Baker Scott - Ancestry.com
U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014 - Ancestry.com
U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current - Ancestry.com
Ruth Potdevin (Unknown-1985) - Find A Grave Memorial
Janet Scott (Unknown-1985) - Find A Grave Memorial
17 Feb 1992, Page 9 - Arizona Republic at Newspapers.com
Woman, 85, Is Beaten To Death in Apartment - The New York Times
NY - NY - RUTH POTDEVIN, 58, New York City, 30 May 1985
15 Apr 2005, B2 - The Ridgewood News at Newspapers.com
08 Sep 2013, L6 - The Record at Newspapers.com
09 Jun 1985, 3 - The Record at Newspapers.com
09 Jun 1985, Page 6 - The Journal News at Newspapers.com
02 Jun 1985, 20 - The Sunday News at Newspapers.com
02 Jun 1985, 21 - The Record at Newspapers.com
02 Jun 1985, 54 - The Record at Newspapers.com
Madison Wisconsin State Journal, Jun 14, 1985, p. 29
28 May 1958, 2 - The Herald Statesman at Newspapers.com
George Hauser Obituary (2019) - San Luis Obispo County Tribune
George Henry Hauser Jr. (1925-2019) - Find A Grave Memorial
U.S., Newspapers.com Obituary Index, 1800s-current - Ancestry.com
31 May 1985, 10 - The Herald Statesman at Newspapers.com
31 May 1985, 1 - The News at Newspapers.com
31 May 1985, 7 - Daily News at Newspapers.com
31 May 1985, 3 - The Record at Newspapers.com
01 Jun 1985, 47 - Daily News at Newspapers.com
02 Jun 1985, 1 - The Sunday News at Newspapers.com
02 Jun 1985, 2 - The Sunday News at Newspapers.com
An ax murderer who hacked two women to death... - UPI Archives
JERSEY WOMAN AT CONVENTION IS SLAIN IN WEST 54TH ST. HOTEL - The New York Times
Kokomo Tribune, Jun 9, 1985, p. 38 | NewspaperArchive®
Fort Walton Beach Playground Daily News, Jun 9, 1985, p. 10
Unsolved Crimes Encyclopedia - ID:5c10e7c8704b2
08 Jun 1985, 43 - Daily News at Newspapers.com
09 Jun 1985, 3 - Daily News at Newspapers.com
Key West Citizen, Jun 10, 1985, p. 1 | NewspaperArchive®
08 Jun 1985, 3 - Daily News at Newspapers.com
Hotel Murder Is Investigated - The New York Times
10 Jun 1985, 3 - The Record at Newspapers.com
08 Jun 1985, 117 - Daily News at Newspapers.com
Burlington Hawk Eye, Jun 10, 1985, p. 12
The Encyclopedia of Unsolved Crimes - Michael Newton - Google Books
The Encyclopedia of Unsolved Crimes
09 Jun 1985, 209 - Daily News at Newspapers.com
10 Jun 1985, 5 - Daily News at Newspapers.com
Weekly World News - Google Books