ABC News show to spotlight case of the ‘Taco Bell Strangler,’ Charlotte’s serial killer
ABC’s “20/20” investigative show on Friday will examine the case of Charlotte serial killer Henry Louis Wallace, including interviews with family of some of his victims and footage never previously broadcast, according to the show.
Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden, who investigated the murders as a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police detective, discusses on the show why police initially failed to connect the murders, the show’s producers said in a news release this week.
When does ‘20/20’ air?
“20/20” will air 9-11 p.m. Friday, May 13, on ABC (WSOC, Channel 9 in Charlotte). The show will stream the next day on Hulu.
Who is Henry Louis Wallace?
Wallace, commonly referred to as the “Taco Bell Strangler,” is on death row for murdering 10 Black women by strangulation between May 1992 and March 1994, The Charlotte Observer previously reported. He also confessed to the rape and robbery of some of his victims.
He was arrested on March 13, 1994.
Two years after Wallace’s killing spree began, CMPD finally told the community they were searching for a serial killer.
He lured his victims with a pleasant smile that masked a drug-fueled rage.
Why the Taco Bell reference?
At least half of Wallace’s victims were linked to a Taco Bell restaurant on North Sharon Amity Road in east Charlotte, the Observer reported. He knew most of his victims “as neighbors, friends or co-workers,” according to “20/20.”
What will viewers see on ‘20/20’?
According to the show’s producers, expect to see:
▪ Never-before-seen footage of criminal profiler and psychiatric nurse Ann Burgess’ interview with Wallace before his trial.
▪ An interview with Tyrece Woods, who as a baby survived an attack by Wallace.
▪ Interviews with family of many of the victims, including Dee Sumpter, mother of victim Shawna Hawk. Sumpter tells the show she co-founded Mothers of Murdered Offspring in part to pressure police to find the killer.
▪ Interviews with Marsha Goodenow, who prosecuted Wallace; Wallace’s high school classmates; and reporters who covered the case.
▪ Audio of Wallace’s police interrogations, along with police reports, trial records and crime scene photographs.
This story was originally published May 12, 2022 at 12:49 PM.