Richard Alden Samuel McCroskey III was born on December 26, 1988, in Hayward, California. He grew up in Castro Valley with his father and older sister. McCroskey had a quiet and reserved personality, and classmates often bullied him for his weight and red hair. He spent most of his time alone in his bedroom, creating websites, playing video games, and listening to music.

He became involved in horrorcore, a subgenre of hip-hop that features dark and violent themes. Using the stage name "Syko Sam," he wrote and recorded rap songs with disturbing lyrics about murder and death. McCroskey dropped out of high school and had no steady job, spending most of his time online.

In 2008, he met 16-year-old Emma Niederbrock from Farmville, Virginia, through the horrorcore music scene. The two started an online relationship, bonding over their love of music. They frequently talked on MySpace and over the phone. In September 2009, McCroskey flew to Virginia to meet Emma in person and attend a horrorcore music festival with her.

On September 6, 2009, McCroskey arrived in Virginia and stayed at the home of Emma's mother, Debra Kelley, a college professor. Emma’s father, Pastor Mark Niederbrock, was divorced from Debra but still involved in his daughter’s life. McCroskey, Emma, Debra, and Emma’s friend, 18-year-old Melanie Wells from West Virginia, traveled to Michigan for a horrorcore concert called "Strictly for the Wicked."

After the concert, they returned to Virginia, but McCroskey felt that Emma was pulling away from him. He became angry and jealous, believing she had lost interest. In the early morning hours of September 18, 2009, McCroskey attacked the sleeping girls and Emma’s mother in their home, using a wood-splitting maul to bludgeon them to death. Later that day, when Mark Niederbrock came to check on his daughter, McCroskey killed him as well.

For the next two days, McCroskey stayed in the house with the bodies. He used Emma's online accounts to send messages, pretending that everything was fine. On September 19, he attempted to flee back to California but was arrested at Richmond International Airport after police identified him as a suspect.

McCroskey was charged with four counts of murder. On September 20, 2010, he pleaded guilty to two counts of capital murder and two counts of first-degree murder. He was sentenced to four life terms in prison without the possibility of parole.