The Jersey Shore Thrill Killer: Richard Biegenwald

by John E. O'Rourke

Explore the true story of the Jersey Shore's "Thrill Killer."

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, Crime

128 pages, Paperback

First published September 29, 2014

About the author

John E. O'Rourke was born in Pequannock, New Jersey, and raised in the Passaic County town of Wanaque. O'Rourke's education includes a bachelor of science degree from Thomas Edison State College and a master of arts degree from Seton Hall University. He has an extensive background in police and security leadership and is board certified in security management from ASIS International.

O'Rourke is retired from the New Jersey State Police, and besides writing his books serves as a security consultant to high-end cliental.

Reviews

[Fishface · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a pretty good read about serial killer Richard Biegenwald. There was enough here to make me wonder how much else he was up to that nobody will ever know; like his Chicago counterpart Clarence Walker, he largely keeps his business to himself. The writing was often pretty clumsy and there were many Spellchecky errors; "women" is routinely used in place of "woman" and "causality" in place of "casualty." That kind of thing. But that didn't really interfere with what was overall a snappy, to-the-point treatment of an interesting case.

[Bettye McKee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Come and meet the wild beast

This is the true story of a man . . . A man? No, a wild beast who was free to kill for far too long. A rabid beast who should have been kept in chains to protect the innocent men, women and children who crossed his path. There was no prospect of rehabilitation, only more corpses.

Richard Biegenwald was a walking disaster with only evil in his soul. We will never know the number of his victims. He killed at random, upon opportunity, as if it meant no more to him than combing his hair.

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[Bill reilly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Richard Biegenwald started drinking at the age of eight and was committed to a mental hospital at five for attempting to set the family home on fire; not exactly a promising start on the road of life. At Bellevue, the youngster received electroshock therapy
At nineteen, Richie shotgunned a man to death during a robbery in New Jersey. It was 1959 at a time where prisoners were fed a diet of bread and water three times a day. Later on, he was transferred to Rahway and although he had received a life sentence, he was released after serving sixteen years in prison.
It only gets stranger as the thirty-five-year old hooked up with a beautiful girl of sixteen. They married three years later and when Biegenwald was jailed for assault, his wife Diane sent long, sexually explicit letters to her spouse. A crafty mob lawyer was able obtain his client's release.
The first decomposed body was found three years later in Asbury Park with four bullet holes. The woman had been dead for several months. Anna Marie Olesiewicz was missing and was identified as the murder victim. A night of partying would be the last for the girl of nineteen. She was lured away by the killer by a promise of marijuana.
Meanwhile, Diane befriended a woman, Theresa Smith and they engaged in three-ways with Richard. He favored anal sex with Smith. On what planet am I living?
Biegenwald was sentenced to death but through a series of legal maneuvers, was resentenced to life in prison. His lawyer, Lou Diamond was told by his client that he had killed one hundred people and favored Sandy Hook for the disposal of the bodies.
The book is too short and lacking in details and the author feels the need to repeatedly give the height and weight of almost every person he describes. I will seek out other material on Richard.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting and detailed account of a true psychopath.

I received this book as part of a Goodreads “First Reads” contest giveaway and I have agreed to provide an honest review. I very much enjoy reading true crime novels, so this book was right up my alley. The author, John O’Rourke, is a 26-year veteran of the New Jersey State Troopers, so he was able to provide a comprehensive and gripping account of the lengthy career of this serial killer.

This is a fairly quick read at only 127 pages, and there are several captioned black & white photographs scattered throughout. The author was very good about providing detailed accounts of the people and places involved, so I was really able to get an image in my mind of what things looked like. However, for those who may be a bit more squeamish, there were no overly-graphic details of the crime scenes themselves (at least in my opinion).

The books provides a thorough background into the life of “Jersey Shore Thrill Killer” Richard Biegenwald, which gives the reader an idea of what may have led him to carry out these brutal murders. The author also provides a succinct history of the court proceedings once Biegenwald was finally captured, but the details of the court proceedings do not go overboard. I tend to be more interested in the history and details of the perpetrator and crimes themselves when reading this type of novel, and less interested in the actual court proceedings. I felt this book contained just the right balance of both.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading good true crime novels.

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I spoke too soon. I loved this book and I'll tell you why. This book represented in a tragic way my teen years. In the seventies and early eighties I and my friends would often hitchhike not only around town or through various states but down the shore! So this story is the truth and there most likely, as the author stated many more victims. To read of this sociopath and his merry followers could be likened to Charles Manson!


Mr. O'Rourke can I ask you to write more on the police departments and their histories. I found that information quite interesting! I received this book through a Goodreads Giveaway!

[Dominique · Rating 3 out of 5]

It wasn't really written super well, and for some reason the author liked saying how tall everyone was and giving tiny biographies of random people involved. Also, he described all the girls and women in the book as attractive. I don't really know what that has to do with anything, but ok. As far as pure information goes, it was very interesting. I will probably be reading up more on this killer at some point.

[Tommy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Goodreads giveaway winner! Thank you Goodreads and John O'Rourke for the autographed copy. Dry, factual account of Biegenwald's unbelievably violent history. I hadn't heard of this monster until I saw the book here, so at least I learned something about the good people who brought him and his lackies to justice.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a rather short and dry account of a local serial killer. I was surprised to find out that I lived right down the street from the first dump site for almost fifteen years, yet never heard of it before this book.

[Ronnie Cramer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Don't look for much in the way of detail or motivation here, because as the author admits, "The real story can never be known because Biegenwald operated alone in the dark recesses of the night and never spoke of his killings." The last chapter is even titled "Questions But No Answers."

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[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't recall ever hearing about this but the book makes it sound like it was a nationwide story. It was written with a compassion towards the families, leaving out the gory details, but still it told the story. This killer was chilling. It's too bad that the authorities were unable to get him to tell them where his other victims are and who they were. It could be in the 100's according to his own attorney, that's frightening. His death was not mourned by anyone from what I understood. That's sad.

[Patrick Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title (and cost) caught my eye as I was living in the same area that this story takes place. It was a very short book but was well written and flowed very well. The thing I found odd was the need of the author to mention everyone's, and I mean everyone's height. I actually passed the caravan of police cars that were taking Richard Biegenwald to Trenton State Prison from Freehold. It took me a second to recognize him but we saw each other. This would make a great rainy day read and I recommend it!

[Armand Rosamilia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm originally from New Jersey, so anything true crime from my home state is an easy purchase for me. The book was well-written, although based on other reviews (which I glanced at after I read the book), a lot of the information is from news articles and other sources. Not sure how much of the research was actually done by the author besides online searches. Still, overall a good and dark story.

[Paula Corregan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating book!

This book detailed the life and crimes of serial killer, Richard Biegenwald , whose victims were mainly young attractive women and girls with dark hair and brown eyes. The author has done a lot of research on his subject , and I highly recommend this book to other true crime readers.

[Julian · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Jersey Shore Thrill Killer offers a chilling glimpse into the life and crimes of Richard Biegenwald, a notorious figure in true crime history. O’Rourke presents the events with clarity and suspense, making it a gripping read for fans of criminal psychology and dark history.

[Christi · Rating 1 out of 5]

Terribly written

[Andrea Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well written. It’s a shame that his victims won’t be accounted for. There could have been hundreds they said and no one will ever know.

[Colleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Coming from the area just irked me about several—hopefully typos—. Also definitely can tell was written by a law enforcement writer. So much background on the investigators and lawyers.

[Julie Howard · Rating 1 out of 5]

I only made it to chapter 5. This book reads like a newspaper and was too boring and slow for my liking.

[MORTICA B · Rating 4 out of 5]

That fact it's in my home town is interesting and you realize it could happen anywhere

[Tina · Rating 4 out of 5]

😱

Horrific serial killer on the loose. Took years to catch the monster abducting women for his own sick, twisted nature.

[Hope Vollm · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, literally never heard of this guy before.

[Terry · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fast read. I found it weird how O'Rourke always mentioned people's height, approximate weight, and often what they were wearing.

[Teri Stich · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well documented story and background on a serial killer focused mostly on the Jersey Shore area during the seventies and early eighties. This should appeal to True Crime readers, history buffs, particularly New Jersey History, and any who just like to read interesting books. Even fiction readers can appreciate this one. The author is a former NJ State Trooper and I have to add a fun person to have do an Author Talk. He came to our Book Group and was entertaining and informative. Looking forward to his next.

[Sharon McAloon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, a very informative read about a topic that has yet to be fully covered. My only problem is that I did recognize a few factual mistakes that should have been caught by the editing process.