Bio

Robert R. Reldan was born on June 2, 1940. He grew up in a suburban area of New Jersey. As a child, Reldan had typical experiences, going to school and spending time with friends.

In his teenage years, Reldan started to have behavioral problems. Reports suggest he struggled with his relationships and often found himself in trouble. After high school, he had various jobs but did not maintain a steady career. His life took a darker turn when he began engaging in criminal behavior.

Reldan had encounters with the law early in his adult life. He was convicted of raping a woman in 1967, which led to him serving three years in prison. After his release, he was paroled but was again arrested in 1971 for assaulting a woman in a hospital parking lot.

While in prison, Reldan showed some progress. He completed rehabilitation programs aimed at sex offenders and was even featured in a television interview. Despite this, his criminal history continued to follow him. By the mid-1970s, Reldan returned to troubling behavior, which ultimately led to his arrest in relation to several serious crimes in New Jersey. 

Murder Story

Between August 1974 and November 1975, a series of murders of young women occurred in northern New Jersey. Robert R. Reldan was found to be responsible for the deaths of multiple victims, totaling between two to eight. The first victims were 17-year-old Mary Pryor and 16-year-old Lorraine Kelly, who went missing on August 9, 1974. Their bodies were discovered four days later in a wooded area, with evidence of sexual assault and suffocation.

Following this, 14-year-old Doreen Carlucci and 15-year-old Joanne Delardo disappeared on December 13, 1974. Their bodies were found two weeks later, beaten and strangled. Reldan's pattern included both pairs of victims and solitary targets, with methods that varied, including strangulation and suffocation.

On October 6, 1975, 26-year-old Susan Reynes vanished from her home, and a week later, 22-year-old Susan Reeve also went missing. Both women's bodies were discovered on October 27 and 28, sharing similarities in their deaths as both were found strangled.

Reldan was arrested on October 31, 1975, for attempted burglary. Initially, he was not suspected in the murders, but further investigations shifted focus to him. By January 1977, he was indicted for two counts of murder.

A notable event occurred during his first trial in June 1979 when it resulted in a hung jury. The retrial started later that year. On October 15, 1979, Reldan attempted to escape from a courthouse. He was recaptured later in the day. After several unexpected events in the trial, Reldan was convicted on October 17, 1979.

In addition to his convictions for murder, Reldan was also implicated in other homicides. Despite ongoing legal battles and attempts to change his name while in prison, he remained a notorious figure, known as the "Susan Strangler." He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.