John Arthur Getreu: California serial killer gets second life sentence for 1973 Stanford murders
SANTA CLARA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA: John Arthur Getreu was found guilty of murdering a 21-year-old Stanford graduate and law librarian in 1973. The serial killer was sentenced on Thursday, April 27, to seven years to life for killing Leslie Perlov. It was confirmed by the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office. “Getreu escaped justice for over 40 years before Santa Clara County Sheriff’s detectives, using DNA and determination, tracked him down living with his wife in Hayward. He pleaded guilty to this crime on January 10, 2023,” read the press release.
Getreu is currently serving a life sentence for another murder, the 1974 murder of Janet Taylor, 21. It was part of serial murders called, ‘Stanford murders.’ “The long nightmare of John Getreu is over. I hope this brings some measure of peace to the loved ones of the people he preyed upon. And I hope that I never have to say his name again,” Santa Clara District Attorney Jeff Rosen said.
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'He pleaded guilty to the crime'
Perlov’s body was discovered by the authorities on February 16, 1973, in the hills close to the Stanford University campus. A floral scarf had been used to strangle her to death, as per the earlier statement. The convict was taken into custody in 2018 after San Mateo and Santa Clara counties worked together to solve the cases. “He pleaded guilty to the crime in January after DNA found under Perlov’s fingernails linked him to the killing,” the statement said. Before being arrested, Getreau used to live with his wife in Hayward, about 27 miles southeast of San Francisco, as per the prosecutor’s office, as per NBC News.
'DNA helped track Getreu'
The other victim, Taylor, died after being strangled, and his body was recovered on a road south of San Francisco on March 25, 1974. The San Mateo County District Attorney’s office revealed that Getreu was tracked through the DNA obtained from the victim’s pants. The serial offender, Getreu was previously convicted for the rape and murder of Margaret Williams, 15, in Germany, in 1963 and a rape case in 1975 in San Mateo County, California, the local prosecutor’s office said.