Anthony Sowell, Ohio man convicted of killing 11 women, dies in prison

Anthony Sowell, a serial killer sentenced to death for murdering 11 Black women and hiding their remains on his property in Cleveland, died in prison on Monday afternoon at the age of 61.

Sowell was admitted to the end-of-life care unit at a medical treatment prison in Columbus late last month, according to a statement from Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction spokeswoman JoEllen Smith obtained by Cleveland.com

Officials said he died of an undisclosed terminal illness, but noted that his death was not attributed to COVID-19. 

Sowell, a former Marine, had been on death row since 2011 after terrorizing the city of Cleveland in a case that became international news, the outlet noted.

He was convicted of 11 counts of murder, as well as attempted murder, kidnapping, rape, assault and corpse abuse.

In October 2009, Sowell had been out of prison for a few years after serving a 15-year sentence for rape when officers went to his home on the city’s East Side as part of a new rape investigation.

Investigators made the grisly discovery of two decomposing bodies and a freshly dug grave in the basement. Law enforcement eventually uncovered the decomposed bodies of 10 women and a skull in a bucket in Sowell’s home.

He reportedly targeted vulnerable women who struggled with drug addiction and lured them to his home before raping and strangling them. Officials said he discarded their decomposing bodies in shallow graves, crawl spaces and even out in the open.

The stench coming from Sowell’s home was so bad, a nearby meat shop was initially blamed, WKYC reported. 

Assistant County Prosecutor Brian Murphy said at the time that the state deemed Sowell “an incredibly dangerous threat to the public, not only in Cleveland, but beyond the city’s limits.” 

Sowell continued to appeal his case as recently as last spring, arguing in court that he did not receive a fair trial and that his attorneys at the time ineffectively represented him. In May, a three-judge panel unanimously rejected his appeal.

The case called into question the city’s criminal justice system, which allowed him to remain free while detectives were investigating the rape allegations against him before his arrest. In 2018, the city of Cleveland reached a $1 million settlement with the families of six of Sowell’s victims.