Offender Record · OFF-2026-112
Randy Kraft (photo from the Radford University biography)
Randy Steven Kraft
Also known as The Scorecard Killer, The Freeway Killer, The Southern California Strangler
Sex
Male
Race
White
Born
1945
Custody
Incarcerated
States
CA
Distinguishing featuresDescribed as slight and mustachioed; soft-spoken in appearance
Custody
Incarcerated at California Institution for Men, San Bernardino County
Custody record at the facility
Sentenced to death November 29, 1989; California Supreme Court upheld sentence August 9, 2000
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Summary of the record
Randy Steven Kraft committed the rape, torture, and murder of a minimum of sixteen young men between 1972 and 1983, the majority of whom he killed in California. On May 12, 1989, Kraft was found guilty of sixteen counts of murder, one count of sodomy, and one count of emasculation. Kraft appealed his sentence, although his conviction and sentencing were upheld by the California Supreme Court on August 9, 2000. As of 2026, Kraft remains incarcerated at the California Institution for Men.
Documented Arrests, Charges and Convictions
Dispositions are shown exactly as the cited records report them. Pending charges are updated when a court acts; a record with no remaining conviction or pending charge is removed from the site.
Offense date Jan 01, 1972, California
Emasculation / Mayhem
Orange County Sheriff's Department · Superior Court, County of Orange · California Penal Code § 203 · Arrested May 14, 1983 · Convicted Convicted · Sentence: 1 count (included in murder conviction)
Kraft was found guilty of one count of emasculation. Some victims showed signs of being bound, beaten, and bitten, while others showed signs that they had been strangled. Some had been sodomized, castrated, or otherwise dismembered.
SourcesRandy Kraft; Randy Kraft, The Serial Killer Who Was Arrested With A Dead Body In His Car; Radford University serial killer biography: Kraft, Randy
Offense date Jan 01, 1972, California
Sodomy
Orange County Sheriff's Department · Superior Court, County of Orange · California Penal Code § 286 · Arrested May 14, 1983 · Convicted Convicted · Sentence: 1 count (included in murder conviction)
Kraft was found guilty of one count of sodomy. Victims were sexually assaulted as part of torture before death.
SourcesRandy Kraft; Radford University serial killer biography: Kraft, Randy
Offense date May 14, 1972, California
Murder
Orange County Sheriff's Department · Superior Court, County of Orange · California Penal Code § 187 · Arrested May 14, 1983 · Convicted Convicted · Sentence: Death (16 counts); 1 count sodomy; 1 count emasculation
On May 12, 1989, Kraft was found guilty of sixteen counts of murder, one count of sodomy, and one count of emasculation. Kraft committed the rape, torture, and murder of a minimum of sixteen young men between 1972 and 1983, the majority of whom he killed in California. Kraft targeted hitchhikers between 18 and 25 years old. Many were sexually tortured before being strangled with their own belts. One victim's eyes had been burned with a cigarette lighter.
SourcesRandy Kraft; Randy Kraft, the Freeway Killer; Randy Kraft; Randy Kraft, The Serial Killer Who Was Arrested With A Dead Body In His Car; Radford University serial killer biography: Kraft, Randy
Pattern and Background
Victim counts and the pattern of the offenses as stated by courts, agencies and the cited reporting. Suspected counts are what officials have said publicly, not a finding of this site.
16
Victims convicted
0
Victims confessed
51
Victims suspected
Active years
1971–1983
Stated motive
Sexual, Thrill
Range from home
regional
Accomplice
Yes
Education
bachelor
Marital history
Never married
Children
0
Military discharge
medical
Places Lived, Worked and Frequented
Each place and date range comes from a cited record. Dates marked approximate are as reported. Know a place that is missing? Use Edit record under the photo; a moderator reviews it before it appears.
CA
Long Beach, California
1945 – 1948 · Born in Long Beach
Westminster, California
1948 – 1963 · Moved to Midway City/Westminster area (family residence during childhood)
Westminster, California
1963 – 1963 · Westminster High School; graduated 10th out of 390
Claremont, California
1963 – 1968 · Claremont Men's College, Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Edwards Air Force Base, California
1968 – 1969 · U.S. Air Force; discharged after 13 months on medical grounds · air force
Garden Grove, California
approx. 1969 – 1971 · Bartender at gay bar
Huntington Beach, California
1971 – 1975 · Forklift driver for Arrowhead water company
Orange, California
approx. 1975 – 1982 · Aztec Aircraft (computer operator); laid off 1975
Long Beach, California
approx. 1975 – 1983 · Lived in Belmont Shore neighborhood; 800 block of Roswell Avenue area
Long Beach, California
approx. 1980 – 1983 · Computer programmer/consultant for Pacific Computing Systems; lived in Belmont Shore area
Mission Viejo, California
May 14, 1983 – May 14, 1983 · Arrested on San Diego Freeway (I-5) for DUI with victim Terry Gambrel dead in vehicle
San Bernardino, California
May 14, 1983 – present · California Institution for Men (death row)
Known Vehicles
Vehicles and approximate dates of ownership or use, as reported in the cited records. A photo next to a vehicle is the vehicle itself as published.
1979 brown Toyota Celica – Toyota Celica
1979 – 1983
Two CHP officers spotted a brown 1979 Toyota weaving from the right lane onto the shoulder near Mission Viejo on May 14, 1983. Vehicle used in final victim's transport and arrest; contained photographs, evidence, scorecard list with 61 entries
1975 black and white Ford Mustang – Black and white Mustang used in 1975 (Keith Crotwell victim)
approx. 1975 – 1975
Used to transport victim Keith Crotwell in March 1975; identified by license plate; severed head found near Long Beach Marina
Timeline
Mar 19, 1945
Randy Steven Kraft born in Long Beach, California
1948
Kraft family moved to Westminster, Orange County, California
1963
Kraft graduated 10th in class of 390 from Westminster High School; enrolled at Claremont Men's College
1963
Kraft realized he was homosexual while in high school
1966
Kraft arrested for lewd conduct in Huntington Beach; charges dismissed
1968
Kraft joined U.S. Air Force
Feb 1968
Kraft graduated from Claremont Men's College with Bachelor of Arts degree in economics
1969
Kraft disclosed homosexuality to family and was discharged from Air Force on medical grounds
Mar 1970
In March 1970, 13-year-old Joseph Alwyn Fancher ran away from home to Huntington Beach. He ran into Kraft, who drugged him and kidnapped him. Kraft showed him lewd pictures of men before raping him.
1971
Kraft began employment as forklift driver in Huntington Beach; began relationship with Jeff Graves
1975
Kraft laid off from Aztec Aircraft job
Jan 03, 1975
Kraft abducted and murdered 17-year-old John William Leras in Long Beach area
Mar 26, 1975
Keith Crotwell vanished; body parts found near Long Beach Marina (head found May 8, 1975)
May 19, 1975
Kraft questioned about Crotwell murder due to vehicle link; not charged due to absence of body or known cause of death
Jun 1975
Kraft arrested for misdemeanor lewd conduct in Cherry Park; spent 5 days in jail
Jun 11, 1978
Kraft committed murder hours after being released from jail (Roland Young victim); referred to as 'Jail Out' murder
May 12, 1983
On May 12, 1989, Kraft was found guilty of sixteen counts of murder, one count of sodomy, and one count of emasculation.
May 14, 1983
In the early hours of May 14, 1983, two California Highway Patrol officers pulled over a suspected drunk driver on the San Diego Freeway in Mission Viejo, California. Terry Gambrel, age 25, found strangled in passenger seat
Sep 1983
Kraft formally charged with sixteen murders, eleven counts of sodomy, nine counts of sexual mutilation, and three counts of robbery
Sep 26, 1988
Kraft trial began in Santa Ana Superior Court; lasted 13 months
May 12, 1989
Kraft was found guilty of sixteen counts of murder, one count of sodomy, and one count of emasculation.
Nov 29, 1989
Kraft sentenced to death on 16 murder counts
Aug 09, 2000
Kraft's conviction and sentencing were upheld by the California Supreme Court on August 9, 2000.
Sources
Solve the Case is never the original source. Each item below is the public record a statement on this page rests on, with an archived copy where one exists.
News report · Murderpedia ·
Randy Kraft“Randy Steven KRAFT was convicted of sixteen counts of murder in November 1989 and sentenced to death.”
News report · Crime Library ·
Randy Kraft, the Freeway Killer“Shortly after 1 a.m. on May 14, 1983, two California Highway Patrol officers stopped an apparent drunk driver on the San Diego Freeway, in Mission Viejo, California.”
News report · Wikipedia ·
Randy Kraft“Randy Steven Kraft is an American serial killer and rapist known as the Scorecard Killer, who committed the rape, torture, and murder of a minimum of sixteen young men between 1972 and 1983.”
News report · Factual America ·
Randy Kraft: 'Scorecard Killer' Still on Death Row (2024)“In 1989, Kraft was convicted of 16 murders and sentenced to death. He remains on death row at San Quentin State Prison.”
News report · All That's Interesting ·
Randy Kraft, The Serial Killer Who Was Arrested With A Dead Body In His Car“On May 12, 1989, Kraft was found guilty on 16 counts of murder — and later sentenced to death.”
News report · Orange Coast Magazine ·
Why Isn't Randy Kraft Dead?“About 1 a.m. on May 14, 1983, two CHP officers spotted a brown 1979 Toyota weaving from the right lane onto the shoulder near Mission Viejo and decided to pull it over.”
Other · Radford University, Department of Psychology ·
Radford University serial killer biography: Kraft, Randy“Charges against Kraft stood as: sixteen murders, eleven counts of sodomy, nine counts of sexual mutilation, and three counts of robbery. Convicted and sentenced to death row. 11/29/1989. Death sentence upheld by Supreme Court. 04/11/2000.”
Discussion
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