By Vrinda Gupta
Every day brings with itself fresh crime and incidents of violence. Often, we wonder what got into the people who took it upon themselves to cause mayhem- turns out, movies might be the answer. Art is often said to mimic life, but some people seem to take it the other way around. Here we bring a list of crimes that were inspired by movies.
- The Aurora shooting
During the midnight screening of The Dark Knight Rises, James Eagen Holmes shot up an entire theatre, killing 12 people and injuring 70 others. It was touted to be the worst shooting in Colorado since 1999. Later, as he confessed to the police, he was quoted as saying “I am the Joker,” a reference to the villain of The Dark Knight.
- The Scream Copycat
The movie not only inspired several spoofs, but also 24-year-old Thierry Jaradin, who chose 15-year-old Alisson Cambier as his victim. She was visiting his place, when he made sexual advances towards her which she rejected. This was when he whipped out his “Scream” costume, and two kitchen knives which he used to stab her multiple times.
- Interview With The Vampire
Daniel Sterling went to bed with his girlfriend Lisa, and in the middle of the night told her he was going to kill her and drink her blood. Shrugging off the bizarre statement, she rolled over and went back to sleep. The next day Sterling made good on his promise, and stabbed her seven times. Talking to the police he told them he’d been influenced by the movie, and believed in vampires.
- Fight Club
The Brad Pitt starrer is considered to be a cult classic. It spurred a group in New York City to set off homemade bombs all across the city. A member of the local “fight club” Kyle Shaw was found to be behind the orchestration.
- Nightmare on Elm Street
25-year-old Daniel Gonzalez modeling after Freddy Krueger, probably one of the most iconic serial killers in movie culture, stabbed four people to death in a span of three days. Describing the rush of killing, he confessed that he’d planned to kill at least 10. He’d always fantasized what it would be like to be like Kreuger.
- The Purge
The free for all 12-hour period where crime is legal probably got to Jonathan Cruz’ head- he shot 3 men to death while on his killing spree. Along with leaving a trail of bodies behind, he also attempted armed robbery, and criminal gang enhancement. He’d texted his girlfriend talking about the movie, where he drew his inspiration.
- American Psycho
Michael Hernandez spent his time reading reviews of the American Psycho, and looking at gruesome drawings. He was reading about baby killers in Australia, the night before he went out and killed his best friend Jamie Gough by stabbing him 40 times. There were documents found on his computer, titled “How To Kill Someone” in the month before he killed Gough.