The Tragic Story Of John Wayne Gacy’s Last Victim

In 1993, while writing his honors thesis at UNLV, 18-year-old Jason Moss became pen pals with five of the most infamous murderers: Jeffrey Dahmer, Richard Ramirez, Henry Lee Lucas, Charles Manson, and most notably, John Wayne Gacy.

Looking ahead to a career in law enforcement, Moss researched what would most appeal to each of his subjects and established relationships through correspondence by posing as an admirer or even a potential victim.

Prior to contacting Ramirez, Moss studied satanic worship. To capture Gacy’s attention, Moss posed as a young, naive, insecure gay man who could be easily manipulated—the perfect target for Gacy’s sexual and murderous desires.

Infatuated by Moss’s fictional stories about having an incestuous relationship with his younger brother, Gacy sent over 100 letters to the 18-year-old, most containing explicit descriptions of the killer’s sexual fantasies.

At this point, they started talking on the phone every Sunday morning, during which Gacy reiterated his innocence.

Eventually, the killer asked Moss to visit him in prison, where he awaited execution. After assuring his mother that he would be fine, Moss left for Illinois.

Instead of being supervised by prison guards, their meeting took place in a locked room with the security camera turned to face the wall.

During the two-day visit, Gacy psychologically tortured and belittled Moss. While Moss understood that he had deliberately lured Gacy by posing as his perfect victim, he still felt overpowered and manipulated by the killer.

With each passing hour, Gacy became increasingly violent and unstable, especially after Moss rejected the killer’s sexual advances.

Fortunately, a guard knocked on the door, allowing Moss to escape Gacy’s grasp.

After the terrifying encounter with Gacy, Moss cut off contact with all of his pen pals.

In 1999, Jason Moss published a best-selling book, “The Last Victim.”

While he had not been physically harmed, in many ways, Moss felt he was Gacy’s last victim.

Following a struggle with depression, Moss took his own life on June 6, 2006. The significance of his chosen suicide date, “6/6/06”, has been the subject of speculation.

According to his co-author Dr. Jeffrey Kottler, Moss had delved “heavily into Satanic stuff,” but sounded upbeat in their last conversation prior to his death.

This story originally appeared in this year’s biggest true-crime hit 365 Days of Crime.

From the death row inmate who sued the state for botching his execution, to a bank robber who gave the cashier his full name and address, 365 Days of Crime is the ULTIMATE true crime treat.