Born
16 Sep 1956, SPosavka, Croatia

Death
31 Jul 1975, Norwood Park Township, Cook County, Illinois

Tragically, John Butkovich 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 July 31, 1975, 18-year-old John Butkovich, a PDM employee, disappeared. Butkovich’s car was later found abandoned with his jacket and wallet inside and the keys in the ignition. The day before his disappearance, Butkovich had confronted Gacy over outstanding back pay. Butkovich’s father called Gacy, who claimed he was happy to help search for his son but was sorry Butkovich had “runaway”. When questioned by police, Gacy said Butkovich and two friends had arrived at his house demanding the overdue pay, but they had reached a compromise and all three had left. Over the following three years, Butkovich’s parents called police more than 100 times, urging them to investigate Gacy further. Gacy later admitted to encountering Butkovich exiting his car, waving to attract his attention.

According to Gacy, Butkovich approached him, stating, “I wanna talk to you.” Gacy invited Butkovich into his car, then invited him back to his home, ostensibly to settle the issue of his overdue wages. At his home, Gacy offered Butkovich a drink, then conned him into allowing his wrists to be cuffed behind his back. Gacy later confessed to having “sat on the kid’s chest for a while” before he strangled him. He stowed Butkovich’s body in his garage, intending to bury the body later in the crawl space. When his wife and stepdaughters returned home earlier than expected.

He was “Body #2” and was buried under the concrete floor of the tool room extension of his garage in an empty space where he had intended to dig a drain tile.