Paul Durousseau – Biography, Life And Crimes Of The American Serial Killer

Quick Facts

Everyone hopes to be renowned for something, to have their names etched in history for a notable accomplishment. What no one really fancies is being remembered as one of the most vicious killers in modern times. Paul Durousseau is a name that will forever be remembered for all the wrong reasons.

Paul, a father of 2 daughters, is an Army veteran and notorious rapist and killer. He has killed at least 7 young African-American ladies, all within the space of 6 years. He is one of America’s most notorious criminals. Paul is also known as “The Jacksonville strangler” based on his reputation of raping and strangling his victims in the Jacksonville area.

Paul Durousseau Biography

Paul was born in Beaumont Texas, on August 11, 1970. Very little information is available about his childhood and formative years. He joined his mother’s relatives in Los Angeles when his father abandoned them – though they were never married.

Paul Durousseau joined the US Army in 1992 and was thereafter posted to Germany, where he met a beautiful young lady, Natoca. 3 years later, the duo got married in 1995 in Las Vegas and he was redeployed a year later to Fort Benning in Georgia. Paul was arrested on the count of kidnapping and thereafter raping a young lady on March 13, 1997, but for want of sufficient evidence, the charges against him were dropped 5 months later.

Sometime between 1997 and late 1998, Paul was caught in possession of some stolen items and the US Army court-martialed him in 1999 and later discharged him dishonorably from the US Army. After his discharge from the US Army, Paul and Natoca moved to Florida, where they settled down and had two daughters. There, he found it extremely difficult to stay in a job, and it greatly affected his family’s income, so much that he would often get into fierce fights with Natoca.

In September 2001, after a series of domestic abuse issues with his wife, when she discussed filing for divorce against him, Durousseau was finally arrested by the police and spent almost a month and a half in custody for domestic battery.

After his release from jail, Paul took up several jobs to make ends meet as a school bus driver and a taxi driver; it is generally believed that he met some of his victims via this last job.

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The Life And Crimes Of The American Serial Killer

Durousseau is believed to have killed about 7 young women in America alone; though German authorities believe he was also responsible for a few murders while he was stationed by the US Army in their country, no charges were pressed.

Here is a list of the victims of Paul Durousseau:

1. Tracy Habersham (26 years old)

Tracy had gone to a party in Fort Benning but unfortunately, she did not return home. Her family reported her missing to the police and a few days later, her naked corpse was found. Autopsy reports proved she was strangled and raped. DNA samples taken from her corpse, linked Durousseau to the death, even though no one saw him with Tracy. Paul would later confess to committing this crime when eventually arrested.

2. Tyresa Mack (24 years)

In 1999, Tyresa’s corpse was discovered in her home after being raped and strangled to death. Neighbours confirmed that they sighted a man who fits Dorousseau’s description stepping out of her building with some gadgets. Paul was arrested and put in jail for 30 days, then later released on a 2-year probation.

3. Nicole L. Wiliams (18 years)

Nicole was reported missing on December 17, 2002; two days later, her dead body was discovered wrapped in a blanket and dumped in a ditch in Jacksonville.

4. Nikia Kilpatrick (19 years)

Pregnant Nikia had not been seen or heard from by her family for a few days, so they paid her a visit on January 1, 2003. She was found dead in her bedroom – raped and strangled; her two sons were also found in the apartment alive, but severely dehydrated and malnourished.

5. Shewanda McCalister (20 years)

A pregnant Shewanda was found dead in her apartment on January 9, 2003. She had been raped and strangled to death; police report suggested the scene of Shewanda’s murder was very identical to Nikia Kilpatrick’s murder scene, suggesting the same killer was responsible for the deaths.

6. Jovana Jefferson (17 years) and Surita Cohen (19 years)

The corpse of both Jovana and Surita were discovered very close to each other on February 5, 2003, in a ditch in Jacksonville. Witnesses around the area suggested that they saw the two ladies with a taxi driver fitting Durousseau’s descriptions before they went missing.

The police arrested Paul Durousseau on June 17, 2003, and charged him with 5 counts of murder. Paul was sentenced to death on December 13, 2007, for killing Tyresa Mack. As of 2017, Paul was still on death row at Florida’s Union Correctional Institution as his death sentence was overruled by Florida Supreme Court.

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