A shapeless figure looming over one as they sleep. A giant man watching every move one makes, lurking in the shadows. Darkness comforting one as they slumber, yet hiding the very thing they fear most in the world. This is the unsolved mystery of the Axeman.  

The Axeman — also known as a real-life “Boogeyman” — would break into homes while the occupants were asleep and strike. His preferred method of killing was using the occupants own axe, usually leaving it behind once the deed was done. He is believed to be responsible for six deaths and half-a-dozen attacks. It all started on May 22, 1918, in New Orleans when the first known attack by the Axeman occurred. Catherine and Joseph Maggio were both found by Joseph’s brother with their heads bashed in by an axe and deep cuts on their throats. Joseph was clinging to life when he was found but died soon after. Catherine was nearly decapitated. An axe was found, and the bottom panel of the kitchen door was carved out. On June 28th, 1918, the Axeman struck again. Louis Besumer and Anna Lowe were both attacked. Besumer survived the attack, but Lowe, unfortunately, died 7 weeks after.  Both Joseph Maggio and Louis Besumer were grocers, which led many people to believe this was organized crime.  

On August 5th, 1918, Mrs. Schneider was attacked. She was found by her husband, unconscious. According to Brent Swancer, “when she finally awoke from her stupor later at the hospital, Mrs. Schneider claimed that she had been attacked with an axe by a dark figure that resembled some sort of ‘phantom.’” Mrs. Schneider was pregnant at the time and later gave birth to a healthy and unharmed baby.   

On August 10th, 1918, the Bruno sisters found a shocking scene. They awoke to loud noises coming from their uncle’s room. When the girls went to investigate, they “spied the sinister sight of a tall, dark, heavyset figure in a dark suit and hat looming in the hallway.” They found their uncle, Joseph Romano, in his room in a puddle of his own blood. He died two days later. The door, just like in the previously mentioned murders, was carved out. On March 10th, 1919, the Cortmiglia family was attacked. The family of three, a father, a mother, and a three-year-old child had only one survivor. The mother, Rosie, was found by authorities cradling her deceased daughter. As peculiar as it seems, the bottom panel of the kitchen door was, once again, carved out.  

Three days later, a letter was sent to the local newspaper, claiming to be the Axeman. The author also claimed to be not of this world, writing, “I am not a human being, but a spirit and a demon from the hottest hell.” The unknown author threatened to kill more people, striking up fear in many. He ends the letter with a strange proposal, “I am very fond of jazz music, and I swear by all the devils in the nether regions that every person shall be spared in whose home a jazz band is in full swing at the time I have just mentioned.” The time and date mentioned was March 19th at 12:15 a.m. On the aforementioned date, Jazz music filled the air of New Orleans as requested by the Axeman. As a result, no one was murdered that night.  

After that night, there was only one more murder committed by the Axeman. This final victim was Mike Pepitone. He died at the scene, but his wife lived. Ester Albano, Pepitone’s wife, claimed that she saw two men escaping the scene. Albano supposedly saw two men whom she described as, “being very big, yet extremely quick and nimble.” Once again, the door was chiseled out and a bloody axe was found.  

There are many theories about this murder mystery. The first theory is that there is not only one Axeman, but multiple people behind these heinous crimes. It is believed that many of the attacks were the work of copycat killers. It is also said that some of the murders weren’t even related to the Axeman but work of the mafia. Another theory is that the Axeman is, in fact, a supernatural being. There are people who believe that he could shrink down to fit through small spaces, like the chiseled doorways, and then grow into the big man that the witnesses saw. The third theory is the belief that Joseph Mumfre is the Axeman. This theory is closely related to the last killing of the Axeman. After her husband died, Ester Albano remarried a man named Angelo Albano. As peculiar as it is, on the second anniversary of Ester’s former husband’s death, Angelo disappeared. Ester revealed that Mike Pepitone, prior to their marriage, ended a business deal with a suspicious man. This man had many aliases, one of which was Joseph Mumfre. In late December in the year 1921, Joseph Mumfre confronted Ester, saying if she didn’t get him $500 he would, “kill [her] the same way he killed [her] husband.” Ester then pulled out a revolver and shot Joseph, killing him. When Ester was questioned about killing Joseph, she claimed that he was the Axeman, and that she saw him running from the scene at her first husband’s death. Although before, she had said that she had seen two men fleeing the scene. All of the evidence linking Joseph Mumfre to the Axeman was circumstantial, but Ester was still acquitted for the killing of Mumfre.  

These murders may always remain a mystery. Nobody truly knows who the Axeman was.