Sean Vincent Gillis raped, mutilated and murdered eight woman in Louisiana between 1994 and 2004, Dead of Night investigates his crimes and talk to his girlfriend at the time when he started kiling, Terri Lemoine.
Gillison’s first victim was 81-year-old Ann Bryan, who lived at an upmarket retirement home in Baton Rouge. He sneaked into the home and attempted to rape Bryan, but when she made too much noise he slit her throat and stabbed her to death in a frenzied attack where he inflicted more than 50 knife wounds.
Across the road from the home was where 36-year-old single mom Terri Lemoine worked the graveyard shift at a convenience store. She had just started dating Gillison the same month he killed Bryan and would end up living with the serial killer as he went on to kill another seven women over the next 10 years.
On the show Lemoine explains that working at night has a certain element of risk attached to it, saying:”there are dangerous people and that is the time they come out.”
At the time she had no idea that one of those people was the man she loved and that whilst she was working nights, he was out prowling for his next victims.
The hallmarks of Gillison’s killings were the mutilations and ritualist way he often posed the bodies. May of the women had their breasts slashed and hands or arms were often removed in what were truly horrific murders.
During an interview with the press Lemione gave this warning: “Never think you know everything about anybody. Never.”
Watch the Latest on our YouTube ChannelIn February, 2004, 43-year-old Donna Bennett Johnston was raped and murdered. Her body was badly mutilated with her breasts slashed, with a tattoo on her thigh cut out. This murder proved to be Gillis’s last as the tire tracks left near the scene of the crime turned out to be fairly unique.
Only about 90 sets had been bought in the area and a DNA sample taken from Gillis matched that found at several of the other crime scenes.
When police arrested Gillis they found numerous photos of the women he had mutulated and murdered as well as body parts that he’d kept as reminders of the killings.
Gillis was found guilty of three murders, pleaded guilty to second degree murder of another women and later confessed to killing another four.
He was given a life sentence and is currently serving time at Louisiana State Penitentiary.
Dead of Night – The Graveyard Shift airs at 10:00 PM on Investigation discovery.