Paul Bernardo terrorized a nation by committing a series of heinous crimes in the late 1980s and early 1990s. His crime spree began in 1987 and in just 13 months, he went on to sexually assault several women across Scarborough, Canada. The culprit would reportedly nab them from behind and rape them. For almost three years, he operated alone and committed a lot of nefarious crimes. However, in 1990, Bernardo included his fiance, Karla Homolka, in the crimes he executed after his engagement.
Citing people who knew the couple, the Daily Mail reported that the couple were intensely in love with each other. Homolka supported him in everything, even when Bernardo kidnapped girls and abused them. In 1990, just a couple of days before Christmas, Homolka assisted him in drugging her own teenage sister so Bernardo could have sex with her. After allegedly raping her, the duo called 911 and claimed that she passed out because of heavy drinking. Unfortunately, the teenager didn’t survive and died by choking on her own vomit.
As the years passed, Paul Bernardo continued committing crimes and raped another young woman just days before his marriage to Karla Homolka. Paul’s fiance didn’t stop him from committing crimes and became his accomplice. Meanwhile, between 1991 and 1993, the duo killed two more young women. The couple’s crime spree ended in 1993, when Bernardo allegedly hit Homolka with a flashlight. But did Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka get caught for their crimes? Let’s take a look.
How were Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka caught?
As mentioned above, Paul Bernardo started raping young women in 1987 and continued till 1990. He assaulted women from behind so that the victims were not able to see his face. However, one of his victims saw his face and helped the authorities make a sketch. According to the Daily Mail, Bernardo’s friends believed that the sketch resembled Bernardo and contacted the police. The authorities came and took his DNA samples. In the meantime, Bernardo and Karla Homolka got engaged to each other.
Homolka got to know about her fiance’s sadistic behavior, but still continued to support him. According to a report in The Independent, the couple raped and killed two more girls between 1991 and 1992. Bernardo continued his crime spree because the authorities failed to test his DNA samples for 25 months. Eventually, when they tested his DNA, they found that his sample matched the Scarborough Rapist, who raped several young women between 1987 and 1990. After the match, the police called Karla Homolka for questioning. She told the police about the crimes and claimed that Bernardo forced her to participate in the brutal killings. Karla Homolka agreed to testify against Paul Bernardo and took a plea deal.
In February 1993, the authorities finally arrested Paul Bernardo and charged him with nine different counts. Two years later, Bernardo was found guilty and sentenced to life.
In 2006, a feature film titled ‘Karla’ was released in theatres and saw Laura Prepon playing the titular role.
