Where are the serial killers today?

In the episode “Surviving the Cook Brothers” of “People Magazine Investigates: Surviving a Serial Killer,” viewers are treated to a detailed account of the 1980-81 Toledo massacre committed by Nathaniel and Anthony Cook. One of the survivors recounts the traumatic 1981 confrontation with the serial killers that changed her life forever. The intricate details of the brothers’ reign of terror leave viewers fearful and curious about their current whereabouts.

Nathaniel and Anthony Cook were involved in the rape and murder of about nine people

While Anthony Cook was born on March 9, 1949, his younger brother was born more than nine years later, on October 25, 1958. They grew up to become two of the most notorious serial killers in U.S. history as they wreaked havoc on the streets of Toledo and the surrounding area for more than 16 months from 1980 to 1981. The older brother was reportedly involved in the murders of at least ten people, with the younger brother accompanying him on four of them.

Their killing spree began with 24-year-old Thomas Gordon and his 18-year-old girlfriend. The Cook brothers ambushed the couple and took control of their car at gunpoint. After driving into the woods in western Lucas County, they shot Thomas before raping and stabbing his girlfriend to death. Fortunately, she survived the injuries. Their killing spree continued afterward, claiming several victims over the next few months, including 19-year-old Connie Sue Thompson, who was picked up by the brothers on Cherry Street, raped, and killed on January 3, 1981, and 12-year-old Dawn Rene Backes, who was raped and tortured by the Cook brothers in the abandoned State Theater on Collingwood Boulevard before being beaten to death in February 1981.

The following month, on March 27, Anthony Cook shot and killed 21-year-old Scott Moulton and 22-year-old Denise Siotkowski alone after raping the latter in an apartment in Oregon, Ohio. Next, on August 21, 1981, Anthony again acted without his brother when he beat 31-year-old Daryle Cole and his 21-year-old girlfriend Stacey Balonek to death with a baseball bat after they raped Stacey. A month later, Anthony resumed his criminal activities, this time in a more upscale area of ​​the city, near the Ottawa Hills police station. He attempted to attack 21-year-old Todd Sabo and 20-year-old Leslie Sawicki, but the latter escaped his clutches. When her father, Peter Sawicki, arrived at the scene, Anthony finally killed him, which eventually led to his arrest on October 14, 1981.

Aside from these crimes, the brothers were also reportedly involved in the rape and attempted murder of 18-year-old Cheryl Bartlett Fann and 22-year-old Bud Coates on January 27, 1981. Fortunately, Cheryl managed to come out of the attack alive and lived to tell the horrific story. After his arrest, Anthony Cook also admitted that he murdered a 22-year-old woman named Vickie Lynn Small in 1973, when he was 24 years old. After his brother’s arrest, Nathaniel did not continue his criminal activities for the next few years. However, he was eventually charged with minor offenses. One of these offenses eventually led to his arrest on February 13, 1998, due to DNA profiling, as he was charged with the murder of Thomas Gordon and the attempted murder of his girlfriend.

Nathaniel Cook is on probation while Anthony Cook is incarcerated

In 1982, Anthony was convicted of the murder of Peter Sawicki and received a life sentence, while no evidence has yet been found for his other crimes. After Nathaniel Cook was arrested, the two brothers admitted to the murders they committed and accepted a plea deal in 2000. While the younger brother pleaded guilty to the murder of Thomas Gordon and involvement in several other murders of Dawn Backes and Connie Thompson, Anthony admitted to nine murders. Therefore, according to the deal, Anthony was again sentenced to life in prison and his brother to 75 years in prison with the possibility of parole after two decades.

In 2015, Anthony Cook applied for parole after spending more than three decades behind bars. However, his application was denied and he was ordered not to apply again until 2025. Nathaniel, on the other hand, did the same in 2018 after serving 20 years of his 75-year sentence. When the court found no basis to deny his release, it granted his application and he was released from prison on August 10, 2018. However, he was registered as a sex offender and there were some regulations and orders he had to follow, including wearing a GPS bracelet and avoiding places where there were a lot of children. After his release, he moved to Central Avenue near Collingwood in Toledo. About a year later, it was reported that Nathaniel was living just 200 meters from a school in Toledo.

When locals reported a cause for concern, police found that he had not violated any rules and regulations. A “Jesus” sign was hanging right next to his door since 2020. Although he was reluctant to speak to the media, 11 Investigates managed to speak to him for a few minutes. When asked about his life after being released from prison, he said, “How do you think it’s been going? I’m doing the best I can. I’ve served my time. I’m moving on with my life, and that’s all you can do. People are entitled to their opinion. I don’t want people to know anything about me. I just want to move on with my life, like anybody else wants to do. People on the street want to move on with their lives. I’m the same way.” In Anthony Cook’s case, he is currently serving his sentence behind bars at the Chillicothe Correctional Institution at 15802 OH-104 in Chillicothe, Ohio.

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