Born
10 Jun 1960, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois

Death
5 Aug 1976, Norwood Park Township, Cook County, Illinois

Tragically, James Haakenson was one of the victims of Illinois serial killer and sex offender John Wayne Gacy who raped, tortured, and murdered at least 33 young men and boys between 1962 and 1977. His conviction for thirty-three murders (by one individual) then covered the most homicides in United States legal history. Gacy was sentenced to death and was executed by lethal injection at Statesville Correctional Center on May 10, 1994. He became known as “The Killer Clown” due to his public performances as a clown prior to the discovery of his crimes and is one of the most prolific serial murderers in Chicago history.

On August 5, 1976, 16-year-old James Haakenson, a native of St. Paul, MN, calls his mother to tell her he had arrived in Chicago, that was their last conversation. DNA supplied by a brother and sister, at the encouragement of a nephew, confirms a body found almost 40 years prior belongs to Haakenson. He was “Body #24” and was buried under the crawl space.