Aileen Wuornos was one of the more notorious serial killers in history, and she has had a lasting impact in pop culture. Her crimes have been featured in many true crime documentaries, while Charlize Theron portrayed her in the 2003 film Monster and Sarah Paulson played her in Netflix’s 2026 series Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story.
The latest project to take on Wuornos’ story is Investigation Discovery’s docuseries Unmasking a Monster: Aileen Wuornos, which promises to offer exclusive access to key players in the investigation.
Ahead of the docuseries’ premiere, Us breaks down when Wuornos was executed, what crimes she committed and more.
When Was Aileen Wuornos Executed?
Wuornos was sentenced to death on January 31, 1992, after she was convicted for the first-degree murder of Richard Mallory. The following year, she pleaded no contest and guilty to several other murders and ultimately received a total of six death sentences. She received her final death sentence in February 1993, according to People.
She was executed one decade after she received her first death sentence on October 9, 2002, at Florida State Prison.
What Crimes Did Aileen Wuornos Commit?
While working as a sex worker along the Florida state highways, Wuornos confessed to fatally shooting seven of her male clients between 1989 and 1990.
Wuornos’ first victim was Mallory, a 51-year-old electronics shop owner in Clearwater. The pair met when he picked her up on November 30, 1989, according to the Clark County Prosecuting Attorney. Wuornos claimed that Mallory raped, beat and sodomized her during their time together. Following his alleged attacks, Wuornos fatally shot him.
Mallory’s car was found abandoned two days later, while his body was later discovered in Volusia County, Florida.
She went on to kill six other men, including David Spears, Charles Carskaddon, Peter Siems, Troy Burress, Charles Richard “Dick” Humphreys and Walter Jeno Antonio.
During her 1992 trial, she claimed that she killed the men in self-defense after they raped or attempted to rape her, according to the Los Angeles Times.
How Was Aileen Wuornos Caught?
Authorities first began to suspect Wuornos of murder after her palm print was found in Siems’ car, and her fingerprints were matched in a database. She was then quickly linked to the other murders.
She was arrested on an outstanding warrant at a biker bar in Harbor Oaks, Florida, on January 9, 1991, according to the Clark County Prosecuting Attorney.
One day after her arrest, police located Wuornos’ then-partner, Tyria Moore, and granted her immunity if she could get a full confession from Wuornos.
Wuornos confessed to all seven murders on January 16, 1991, but she insisted that she killed all of the men in self-defense.
Wuornos was ultimately charged with first-degree murder in the deaths of six men. While she admitted to killing Siems, she was not charged because his body was never found.
When Does ‘Unmasking a Monster: Aileen Wuornos’ Premiere?
Unmasking a Monster: Aileen Wuornos premieres on ID on Wednesday, September 30, 2026, from 8-11 p.m. ET. The discoveries will also be available to stream on HBO Max.
