Nearly twenty years ago, Marcus Wesson, also known as the 'vampire ruler of Fresno,' committed what law enforcement officials described as one of the worst mass killings in history.
Wesson sexually abused his nieces and fathered several children with them. After the children grew to an age to his liking (usually about 7 or 8), they would be sexually abused and used to birth other children. This cycle continued regularly for many years.
The crisis escalated beyond control in 2004 when several of his nieces sought legal intervention to remove the children from his custody. During a standoff with police, Wesson manipulated one of his older "daughter wives," 25-year-old Sebhrenah, into killing 8 of the children and herself.
The victims ranged in age from one to twenty-five years old, with seven of them being under the age of nine.
A year following the massacre, Wesson received a death sentence from California for the nine murders, in addition to being found guilty of multiple instances of sexual abuse. As of 2023, his death sentence is still officially in place, although there's a current moratorium on capital punishment in the state.