www.twitter.com/mysteriesohio By the time authorities had enough evidence to arrest Swango, he'd accumulated a 16-year career that may have made him one of the most prolific serial killers in American history. In October of that year, Swango was arrested by the Quincy Police Department after arsenic and other poisons were found in his possession. That Thanksgiving Day, the Discovery Channel aired an episode of Justice Files that included a segment on Swango. Smerick said Swango is a different form of alleged serial killer because he is in the medical profession. However, his work had been so slovenly that OSU pulled its residency offer after his internship ended in June. While he worked in Rhodes Hall at OSU, nurses noticed that apparently healthy patients began dying mysteriously with alarming frequency.
[1], CS1 maint: BOT: original-url status unknown (, Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, List of serial killers in the United States, 2011 Stepping Hill Hospital poisoning incident, Former Doctor Charged in Death of 3 Patients, Man to Admit to Murdering 3 L.I. NOTE: These settings will only apply to the browser and device you are currently using. He was charged in absentia with poisonings. Under intense questioning from the head of Stony Brook's psychiatry department, Alan Miller, Swango admitted he had lied about his poisoning conviction in Illinois.
[6] In both cases, Swango forged several legal documents that he used to reestablish himself as a physician and respected member of society. A former SIU medical student is at large and appeared on Unsolved Mysteries Friday for allegedly killing a patient and poisoning several co-workers. When you look at a serial killer’s life, there are three components bed wetting after the normal childhood age, fire setting and torturing animals. [1] Upon his return from Vietnam, the elder Swango became depressed and was divorced by Muriel. Barron was a sixty-year-old Long Island cabinet maker who had a fever of 104 degrees and slight case of pneumonia. If the patient dies, then the killer will say so what?’ The second type the mercy killer says oh my God, I’m so concerned about the suffering of this patient,’ so they decide to put the patients out of their misery. The fact that he is serving time for four deaths, A nurse reported that he had a "funny grin" on his face as he left the room. Smerick said the investigators should be looking at Swango’s life to see what pre-crime stress factors would contribute to his desire to allegedly poison people.
Michael Swango was a sick, demented person who poisoned his patients and would receive a slap on the wrist for it.
personal justice. They also knew that they had a limited amount of time to amass that proof. When Elsie questioned him, he said that "he hoped it wasn't anything we did" with a smirk on his face. As of now, Swango has not been charged for any deaths but is wanted for falsifying information on a federal job application.
When police later searched his apartment, they found more bottles of poison along with books on it, recipes for making it, and several syringes; one was filled with ant poison. Lawyer Ties Man's Coma to Intern Stony Brook Dismissed, Case of Shadowy Doctor Includes Poisonings, Lies, Deaths, Hubris, The Shadowy Doctor - Michael Swango weaves odyssey of poison, death, Swango sentenced for lying about past (Page 1), Former Doctor Charged in Death Of 3 Patients, Prosecutors Say Doctor Killed To Feel a Thrill, Former doctor pleads guilty in 3 deaths, sentenced to life, How a murderous doctor was allowed to keep killing patients, https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Michael_Swango?oldid=47637. Thomesen's conversation focused on Swango lying on his government application to work at the VA, where he prescribed narcotic medications. [1], Despite a very poor evaluation in his dean's letter from SIU, Swango got a surgical internship at Ohio State University Medical Center in 1983, to be followed by a residency in neurosurgery. This isn't some tin foil hat zine about little green men... this article came out in the NEW YORK TIMES. He received an honorable discharge in 1976. This site uses functional cookies and external scripts to improve your experience. When we look at serial killers like Ted Bundy, Edmund Kemper and Kenneth Bianchi, there is always a sexual motive behind the killing, Smerick said. however, means there are dozens of victims who will never receive Most states will not grant a medical license to a violent felon, considering such a conviction to be evidence of unprofessional conduct. Extra Notes: This case first aired on the November 3, 1995 episode. A podcast uncovering various Unsolved Mysteries segments with Mike and Josh. However, Rena and her roommate claimed otherwise.