10 Things To Know About Female Serial Killer Roberta Elder

10 Things To Know About Female Serial Killer Roberta Elder

Nicknamed Mrs. Bluebeard, Roberta Elder was a heartless serial killer who targeted people close to her. Her killing spree is believed to have begun in 1938, but she was suspected of being a serial killer later in August 1952. It is believed that she had killed at least fourteen people but there was no evidence that linked her to these murders.

Her law husband, Mr John Woodward who died in 1938 at the age of 36 was her first victim. A few months later, her 13-year-old son died then he was followed by her grandson who passed on in 1941 at the age of 2. After these deaths including her mother’s, Roberta was remarried a couple of times and at least these men died in mysterious circumstances.

Suspicion in the murders committed by Roberta began in 1952 as she was married to Reverend William H. Elder who had five children from his previous marriage. In a span of three years, William Elder lost his two daughters to what was pronounced to be pneumonia. However, when the Reverend fell ill and died, the suspicion was raised by the coroner as his body was emaciated.

This led to the revelation that he had died from Arsenic poisoning with the other children of William revealing Roberta gave him milk with magnesia believed to be poisoned. She was arrested, and arraigned in court but was charged with the suspicious murder of William as there was no evidence of other murders. Roberta was handed a life sentence.

Here are the 10 Things To Know About Female Serial Killer Roberta Elder:

1. Roberta’s First Murder Victim was Her Common Law Husband

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The exact numbers of the victims of Roberta Elder are not clear but her first victim was believed to be her first husband. Roberta Elder was first married to common-law husband John Woodward. John died at the age of thirty-six in 1938.

However, his death was undetermined by the time that he passed away. There was no clear suspicion of Roberta after the death of John Woodward. The two were blessed with some children.

2. She was Suspected of Murdering Her Son and Grandson

After the death of her first husband John Woodward, more bad things happened to her family. Six months after John died, another tragedy rocked the family of Roberta Elder.

In June 1939, her 13-year-old son, James Thurmond also died. That was not the end of the deaths as, in 1941, her 2-year-old grandson, Jimmie Lee Crane also passed away. All these deaths were linked to Roberta Elder even though there was no tangible evidence to criminate her.

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3. Roberta was Married to Reverend Elder who Died after Eating her Bananas & Cheese

Years passed by without any suspicion of what Roberta Elder did. She was married to Reverend William H. Elder who worked as a construction worker by day. The Reverend had five children from his previous married who lived together with Roberta.

For the few years they were together, the Reverend lost her two daughters who were previously very healthy. However, in 1952, tragedy struck the family of Elder yet again this time he was the victim. He became ill while at work and told his colleagues that he had eaten Bananas and cheese given to him by Roberta.

The Reverend was given some medication but his health deteriorated and he died in August 1952. The coroner working on his body became suspicious of his cause of death being poisoning as his body was emaciated and more than expected.

4. The Children of William Revealed Roberta Gave Him Milk of Magnesia

When Reverend William H. Elder was ill and dying, the doctors advised Roberta to call when he was not improving. However, Roberta did the opposite and called when he was on his deathbed and could not be saved.

This led to some shocking revelations from the remaining children of William. They stated that Roberta Elder used to give their father milk of magnesia. It is believed that the milk of magnesia was poisoned and killed him slowly.

5. Roberta Elder used Arsenic to Poison Her Victims

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Investigations began on the body of Reverend William after the coroner made some discovery. The body of William was emaciated more than expected and had sores all over raising many questions.

That is when more tests were conducted and found that Roberta poisoned him. It was later confirmed that Roberta used arsenic poison to kill her victims.

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6. She Killed Two Daughters of Reverend William by Arsenic Poisoning

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The discovery made on the body of Reverend William led to the exhumation of the bodies of her daughters. 15-year-old Fannie Mae Elder died 2 years before her father, and 9-year-old Annie Pearl Elder died 1 year before her dad.

Thorough investigations were made on the bodies and a shocking revelation was made about their deaths which was previously thought to be pneumonia. Some traces of arsenic poison were found on the hair and skin tissues of the bodies of the two daughters.

7. Roberta Tried to Murder all Children of Reverend William Elder

At one point in their lives, the remaining children of William Elder had been ill with the same suspicious symptoms. Roberta had tried to murder them using the same substance that she had given to their father. Dorothy Elder revealed that she had become very ill after taking milk of magnesia that Roberta had given her.

Viola had also developed the same illness as her siblings before recovering. William Elder Jr had the same illness after eating breakfast made by Roberta. However, he stopped eating her meals after their father died.

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8. Her Target was Life Insurance Money from Her Victims

After her arrest, the puzzle remained as to why she used to kill her victims including innocent children. It was later confirmed that Roberta Elder had targeted life insurance money from her victims. William Elder Jr., Dorothy Elder, Viola Elder, their father, and two dead sisters had life insurance policies.

Roberta had earned various amounts of life insurance policy money from her previous victims. The previous insurance policy claims ranged from $50 to $225. Her largest insurance was reported $500 bought for Reverend William and $550 for any death event of Fannie Mae.

9. Roberta had Murdered at Least More than 10 People

As investigations went on, the numbers of the victims of Roberta Elder were established. Initially, they thought that she had murdered Reverend William and his two daughters only.

However, the victims of Roberta Elder were about ten. They included her first husband John Woodward, her three children, her friends, the wife and mother of Reverend William, and others.

10. She was Charged with Three Murders but Tried for the Murder of Reverend William Only

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Roberta Elder was arrested on 26th September 1952 after the discovery of the arsenic poison on the body of the daughters of Reverend William. The case proved to be tough because of the lack of evidence of committing the crimes.

She was initially charged with the deaths of William Elder and her daughters, but the murder charges. However, she was only tried for the murder of Reverend William as there was no tangible evidence of her involvement in the other murders.

Roberta Elder was handed life imprisonment which never shocked her that much. It was later revealed that she obtained a yellow substance from her visit to her brother’s farm which was later believed to have been the arsenic poison.