We all leave notes to ourselves; little reminders to job our memories, or memos for tasks to accomplish later. However, some of us leave notes that look more like confessions than reminders.
Daniel Gonzalez was born on June 21st, 1980, in Surrey, England. He lived with his mother, and it seems as though his father was very prominent in his life.
By all accounts, he was a bright boy. He left school with high marks, and was known as a good actor, and a chess champion. He got along well with his friends and family, and he enjoyed sports and other recreational activities. However, he was also described as a ‘dark and troubled boy’ by many of those who knew him.
When he left school, he was expelled for drawing offensive cartoons, and tormenting his classmates by constantly placing pins on their seats to watch them sit on them. Gonzalez was spiralling. He began using drugs, and was well known to law enforcement for ‘minor assaults, shoplifting, and vandalism’.
A once bright boy was on a bender.
From the age of 17 on, Gonzalez sought psychological treatment at the encouragement of his mother. For six months, between 1998 and 1999, Gonzalez was admitted to Oak Tree Clinic, where he was treated with antipsychotics and seemed to stabilize. He stopped taking drugs, and his behaviour took a drastic turn.
However, once he was discharged, he ceased taking his antipsychotics. Almost immediately, his behaviour reverted back to when he was spiralling. He went back to buying and taking illicit narcotics, and engaging in assault and property damage. As he was no longer a minor, when he was apprehended, Gonzalez spent a short time in prison for one of his petty offences.
Over the years, Gonzalez received sporadic mental health care. His mother became increasingly worried for his wellbeing.
In 2004, he was 24 years old, unemployed, addicted to narcotics, and a recluse. He also had developed a fascination with horror movies, especially the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise. Gonzalez was known to idolize the murderer from the movie, Freddie Krueger, as well as Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, the Colombine Killers.
He also began referring to himself as Zippy.
Gonzalez’s mother was worried. She tried everything she could, but was simply unable to seem to find anyone willing to give her son any form of proper mental health care.
Anytime he sought treatment, or his mother sought treatment for him, doctors would conclude that he ‘posed very little risk’. One doctor even went so far as to state that Gonzalez was ‘doing very well’ while off his prescribed antipsychotics.
The doctors were aware of Gonzalez’s behaviour. And yet, still claimed he was just peachy keen when, clearly, he was not.
As each attempt at treatment failed, Gonzalez began writing himself letters and notes, signing them as ‘Zippy’, his nickname. He could give himself tips, and make plans. He would write about his hopes and dreams. And he wrote about how his actions were ‘one of the best things I’ve done in my life’.
On September 15th, 2004, Daniel Gonzalez left the home he shared with his mother in Woking, and headed to Hilsea, Potsmouth. Once there, he encountered Peter King, a 61-year-old man who was out walking his dog with his wife. Gonzalez looked manic. And he informed Peter than he was going to kill him.
Gonzalez was fought off successfully, and he fled. He fled to Hove, doning a hockey mask, where he stabbed 76-year-old Marie Harding to death before fleeing again.
Gonzalez went back home, and left himself another note. This one stated that his attack on Peter had failed because of his knife. The knife had been too small.
The following day, September 16th, Gonzalez shoplifted a pair of long knives from a department store. From there, he made his way to West End where he drank himself into oblivion in a pub.
In the early morning hours of September 17th, Gonzalez made his way to Tottenham. It appears as though he walked from the West End to Tottenham.
At 5:30 AM, Gonzalez stabbed 46-year-old Kevin Molloy in te face, neck, and torso, leaving him for dead. Gonzalez used the knives he’d shoplifted the day prior.
Around 7:00AM, Gonzalez broke into the home of Koumis Constantino in Hornsey. Koumis fought him off, but was stabbed in the arm. Gonzalez knew he’d lost, and he fled.
At 8:00AM, Gonzalez had made his way to Highgate. He went door to door, trying to enter house after house. He found a house he liked, and murdered the elderly couple inside, Derek and Jean Robinson.
He fled the house, naked, covered in blood. Neighbours and witnesses immediately called the police.
At noon, on September 17th, 2004, Daniel Gonzalez was arrested at Tottenham Court Road Underground station.
As he awaited trial, Gonzalez was brought to Broadmoor Hospital in Berkshire for evaluation and supervision. Prior to trial, Gonzalez attempted to bite himself to death. After that incident, he was viewed as a danger to himself, and others, and was escorted to and from his cell by officers in riot gear.
At trial, the defence attempted to claim that Gonzalez was guilty of manslaughter, not first degree murder. The prosecution disagreed. They claimed that Gonzalez had orchestrated the event in order to ‘appear’ unstable, and that he was manipulating psychologists into believing that he was in mental distress.
The jury agreed with the prosecution, finding him guilty of murder. Daniel Gonzalez was sentenced to six life sentences, and the trial judge recommended that he never be released.
On August 9th, 2007, Daniel Gonzalez was found dead in his cell at Broadmoor Hospital. He’d committed suicide.
Following Gonzalez’s death, an independent investigation was launched into the history of his care and treatment.
The investigation concluded in 2009, and found that Daniel Gonzalez had not been treated successfully. The investigation also found fault in how health care professionals treated Gonzalez. They found that he was not taken seriously, and was dismissed out of turn.
It was found that Gonzalez had over 60 appointments with doctors and psychiatrists, and his mother had sent desperate letter after desperate letter asking for help. They were both ignored time and again.
The investigation also found that Gonzalez had sought help hours before he’d embarked on his murder spree. Again, he was ignored.
Daniel Gonzalez, calling himself Zippy, left himself note after note after note with plans, theories, and cries for help. And time and again, he was let down.
Could adequate treatment have prevented him from committing the murders? Possibly. But we will never know. We will never know what could have become of Daniel Gonzalez had he received proper care and treatment from mental health care professionals when he and his mother asked for it.
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Sources:
Is Daniel Gonzalez Surrey’s most dangerous serial killer of all time? – Matt Strudwick – Surrey Live
Daniel Gonzalez – The Cry For Help That Nobody Heard – Dr. Clarissa Cole – The Criminal Code
Mother fought to get help for disturbed son before he went on killing spree – Jeremy Laurance – The Independent
Daniel Gonzalez Wikipedia page