Who is Pazuzu Algarad?
A self-proclaimed Satanist with serious mental problems, including agoraphobia, schizophrenia and alcoholism, Pazuzu Algarad was a murderer whose life and death remain a horror mystery to this day. Patricia Gillespie, the producer, and director attempted to discover the truth about him through the documentary series “The Devil You Know,” and also tried to bring viewers closer to who this man truly was, but some things simply cannot be expressed in words.
Let us tell you the naked truth about this man.
Early life, family, and education
John Alexander Lawson was born on 12 August 1978, in Danville, Illinois USA; when his parents divorced in 1990, he moved to Clemmons, North Carolina with his mother Cynthia Lawson – there is no information about his father, except that his name is Timothy J. Lawson.
Their neighbors from Clemmons said that from an early age, Pazuzu acted ‘strange’; many of them saw him torturing animals when he was a boy. His mother took him to a psychiatrist who diagnosed him with the aforementioned mental disorders, and for a while, Pazuzu had the best treatment his mother could afford, but eventually, she ran out of money. Pazuzu’s mental condition rapidly deteriorated after he stopped seeing doctors.
He began using alcohol and drugs at age of 13, which according to a psychiatrist had a long-lasting impact on Pazuzu’s mental health. Growing up, he became addicted, and soon drugs and alcohol were part of his daily routine. At that time he become violent, and besides the animals he harmed, his mother was also one of his victims.
Once, Pazuzu approached her from behind and tried to encircle her neck tightly with his arm. Pazuzu was convicted of this wrongdoing, however, he was only sentenced to probation for a year, since he was a minor at that time.
In 2002, he decided to change his birth name, and stating that the reason for this was religious, he legally changed his name to Pazuzu Illah Algarad. Pazuzu is the name of the demon which was mentioned in the horror movie “The Exorcist”, while his last name means ‘lord of the locusts’ in Arabic.
Speaking of his educational background, he dropped out of high school at age 16.
Satanist and suspected cannibal murderer Pazuzu Algarad thrived on power, especially over his female followers.
THE DEVIL YOU KNOW starts August 8th on VICE on TV // Sky 183 // Virgin 219 // BT 338 // TalkTalk 338 // Now TV. pic.twitter.com/accNLJPCYr
— VICE TV (UK) (@vicelanduk) August 5, 2019
Arresting
Every teenager has a dream of what he would become when he grows up, and Pazuzu wanted to be a demon. He worshiped Satana and some of his activities included drinking the blood of birds, sacrificing rabbits, doing drugs, and staging orgies. He also drank his own blood, and that of his girlfriend.
He tattooed his body and face, and claimed that he bathed just once a year, and for years he hadn’t brushed his teeth – he also sharpened them with a tool. His neighbors described his look as ‘scary’ and many of them called him a ‘boogeyman’. Pazuzu claimed that he had magical powers, and that he could control the weather.
In October 2010, Pazuzu was arrested and charged with complicity in the murder of a man identified as Joseph Emrick Chandler, whose body was found in Yadkin County, North Carolina. In 2012, according to records, Pazuzu was on probation for that conviction.
A girl, who allegedly lived with Pazuzu for a month in 2005, stated that he told her that he killed two prostitutes, ate them and buried their remaining body parts in his backyard. She added that no one believed him, since he would say all kinds of ‘scary’ stories.
However, in part, this story came true. In 2014, the authorities executed a search warrant, and the crew found the skeletal remains of two people buried in Pazuzu’s backyard. Both Pazuzu and his girlfriend, Amber Burch, were arrested, and were each charged with ‘one count of murder and one count of accessory after the fact to murder.’ There was a third person involved in this case, a girl known as Krystal Nicole Matlock, who allegedly helped the two bury one of the killed men.
The victims were later identified as Tommy Dean Welch and Joshua Fredrick Wetzler, who disappeared in 2009. According to reports, Wetzler was killed by Pazuzu in July 2009, and Amber helped him bury the body; Krystal also helped in this heinous act. Amber killed Welch in October 2009, and Pazuzu helped her bury the body.
Death Cause
When Pazuzu was arrested, his mother stated that she was afraid that he could commit suicide, since in prison he was prevented from performing his rituals during the full moon, and her fears came true.
On 28 October 2015, during a regular check, Pazuzu was found dead in his cell in Central Prison, Raleigh, North Carolina. Although prison workers tried to resuscitate him, at 4:20 AM, he was pronounced deceased.
Pazuzu had a wound on his arm, a deep cut made with an unknown instrument. His death was ruled a suicide, and many assumed that he bit himself, and as a result he bled to death. Pazuzu was 37 years old at that time.
House
After Pazuzu and his girlfriend were arrested in 2014, the house where the two lived with his mother came into the spotlight. The photos and videos of this house were all over the newspapers, television, and the internet.
Besides the awful smell and the garbage everywhere, the house was full of animal carcasses and blood smeared on the walls. All over the house, there were pentagrams, Satanic messages, and pictures of a skull and cross bones. Some of the words written on the walls were ‘Evil will triumph’, and there was a phrase written in Arabic which an Arabic language professor called a clumsy attempt to write something like ‘the house of devil worship’.
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The county housing officials declared that the house was unfit for human habitation, and it was demolished in April 2015 – neighbors said that they were happy that ‘the house of horrors’ was finally gone.
Relationship with Amber Burch and Krystal Matlock
According to Pazuzu, both Amber Burch and Krystal Matlock were his fiancees. It isn’t clear whether Krystal lived in the house or just occasionally resided there, but it’s known that Amber lived with him and his mother, who she also once attacked. Amber and Krystal were also Satanists, and some people referred to them as Pazuzu’s followers. Amber also sharpened her teeth similar to the way Pazuzu did. Her body was also covered with tattoos, and she used to shave her eyebrows.
In 2017, Amber pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and she was sentenced to a minimum of 30 years and eight months in prison.
Krystal pleaded guilty to conspiracy to accessory after the fact to first-degree murder, and was sentenced to a minimum of three years and two months in prison. After serving her sentence, Krystal soon returned to court on drug and firearms larceny charges.
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