Gacy committed all of his known crimes inside his house in Norwood Park Township, near Chicago.
On December 11, 1978, Gacy visited the pharmacy and introduced himself as a building contractor.
Piest left the store at 9:00 p.m, promising to return shortly.
He wasmurderedan hour later.
Midway through her shift, Kim decided she wanted to develop a roll of film.
She slipped the film roll into a red and white envelope.
Hey, mind if I take my jacket back?
Kim slid out of the blue parka and handed it to Rob.
He zipped it up to his chin to keep out the cold.
He grabbed his forgotten appointment book.
He lingered, noticing Rob.
He often hired high schoolers with good work habits to help him on various projects.
It wouldnt elicit suspicion if he offered this kid a job.
The contractor meandered; irregularly walked the pharmacy aisles, pretended to eye the shelving again.
At 8:55 p.m. [Roberts mom] Elizabeth Piest entered the store.
She greeted Kim, she greeted Rob.
The night was supposed to be special.
Elizabeth was turning 46 and anxious to get back and blow out candles.
She had a birthday cake waiting at home.
The whole family was waiting for her and Rob at the house.
That contractor wants to talk to me about a summer job that will pay me $5 an hour.
Mind watching the front for a minute?
Kim looked at Rob, and his image imprinted in her mind.
Loyal, handsome, strong.
Okay, she said.
He looked from Kim to his mother and said, Ill be right back.
Okay, honey, Mrs. Piest said.
Ill be right here.
The door shut behind him, and she thought nothing of it.
They only found footprints in the snow and the tire tracks of the contractors car.
Arriving back home, Elizabeth glanced at her birthday cake, suspended in time on the dining room table.
Anyone from Nissons call?
she asked her husband.
(…)
On Dec. 12, authorities contacted John Gacy.
Ronald Adams was the youth officer assigned to the case.
Adams got Gacy on the phone and asked if he had been in the pharmacy the previous night.
Gacy confirmed that he had.
Did you speak to Robert Piest last night?
No, I never spoke to him.
The pharmacy owner namedGacyas the contractor Piest had most likely left with.
On February 6, 1980, the serial killer was brought to trial and charged with 33 murders.
The victims, aged between 14 and 21 years old, were raped and tortured before being murdered.
Gacy was executed on May 10, 1994, by lethal injection.
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