00:00:04
SAM DOUGLAS: In the USA,
some of the world's
00:00:07
most dangerous individuals
are locked behind bars.
00:00:13
A prison in Minnesota
housed one
00:00:15
of the most depraved
murderers known by inmates
00:00:19
as the family killer.
00:00:22
- Craig Bjork is probably
one of the most dangerous
00:00:25
prisoners in the country.
00:00:27
He seems to have a trail
of dead bodies behind him.
00:00:33
REPORTER: The murder case
has been in newspapers,
00:00:35
on radio, and television.
00:00:36
There are few people who
haven't heard of the case.
00:00:39
Four strangled
bodies were found.
00:00:41
SAM DOUGLAS: Bjork,
the serial killer,
00:00:44
didn't hesitate in strangling
his own flesh and blood.
00:00:48
DAVE KAMPA: I mean, how anybody
can kill your own kids--
00:00:51
he should have been put
to death a long time ago.
00:00:53
- Murdering anybody,
of course, is inexcusable.
00:00:56
Murdering your children--
well, you get a special spot
00:00:59
in hell for that.
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ANDY MANNIX: Newspaper
articles at the time
00:01:05
really painted a picture
of sort of, like,
00:01:08
a Hannibal Lecter figure.
00:01:09
You looked into his
eyes, and there
00:01:11
was just, like, no
recognition of a person there.
00:01:14
SAM DOUGLAS: Even within
the prison system,
00:01:17
Bjork's lust for killing
showed no sign of abating.
00:01:21
DAVE KAMPA: Craig Bjork
grabbed a 3-foot pipe,
00:01:23
proceeded to hit Edwin
Curry in the head,
00:01:26
maybe up to eight times.
00:01:29
He was basically
a sick individual,
00:01:31
and he was proud
of it, I think.
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ANDY MANNIX: The guard
testified later
00:01:35
that he started
telling him, hey,
00:01:37
it's a good thing
you caught me when
00:01:39
you did because I was going
to kill a bunch more people.
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LINA HAJI: This is not
just your typical inmate.
00:01:45
This is an absolutely depraved,
psychopathic, evil, remorseless
00:01:52
human being.
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[theme music]
00:02:22
SAM DOUGLAS: Oak
Park Heights is
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Minnesota's only
maximum security prison
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and can house up
to 473 criminals.
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ANDY MANNIX: This is
where they put the worst
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of the worst prisoners.
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I've toured it several times.
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There's solitary
confinement units
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where you can't hear anything
except for your own breath.
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DAVE KAMPA: At Oak Park
Heights, I was bit.
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I've had feces thrown on me.
00:02:47
I've had urine thrown on me.
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I was almost stabbed
by a federal inmate.
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My name is Dave Kampa.
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I spent 35 years
as a correctional officer
00:02:58
and a special investigator.
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Oak Park Heights prison,
when it was built in 1982,
00:03:04
it was the supermax
of Minnesota.
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It's basically four stories
underground built into a hill
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to make sure that nobody
can escape from it.
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JAMIE MORGAN KANE: On most any
given day that I was in prison,
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there were some
kinds of assaults.
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It could be
everything from just
00:03:21
a good knock across the head to
being a full-fledged killing.
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If we went a couple of days
and nobody had done anything,
00:03:28
then you'd start
worrying, because you
00:03:29
start thinking somebody
is planning something.
00:03:32
SAM DOUGLAS: One of its
most notorious inmates
00:03:35
was convicted serial
killer Craig Bjork.
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ANDY MANNIX: There
was this question of,
00:03:53
what do we do
with this prisoner
00:03:55
who keeps killing people
after he's been incarcerated?
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I don't think that most
prisons have the tools to deal
00:04:01
with someone like Craig Bjork.
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LINA HAJI: Bjork
displayed quite
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a few psychopathic traits.
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He displayed lack of empathy.
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He displayed impulsivity.
00:04:10
He displayed
criminal versatility,
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pathological lying.
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- Yes, he would probably be
the most dangerous person
00:04:19
that I have ever dealt with.
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SAM DOUGLAS: His
cold-blooded murders
00:04:25
stretch over four decades.
00:04:30
- To call him evil
is an understatement.
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He is the rawest form of evil.
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DAVE KAMPA: He almost
looks like a demon.
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He's a very evil man.
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And how somebody could
kill somebody like that,
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majority of people
can't fathom that.
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LINA HAJI: I believe,
without a doubt,
00:04:49
that if Bjork was released from
prison, he would murder again.
00:04:52
He may murder again in prison.
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SAM DOUGLAS: Craig
Bjork was born in 1959.
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His name at birth
was Craig Jackson.
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ANDY MANNIX: Craig Jackson
had a really rough childhood.
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He had an abusive,
racist father.
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There are references
of his dad molesting him
00:05:21
when he was seven years old.
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His dad would beat
him pretty brutally.
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He talks about his dad wanted
him to learn to tell time,
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so he would ask him
what time it was.
00:05:32
And if he got it wrong,
he would punch him.
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LINA HAJI: Abuse can affect
the development of the brain.
00:05:38
By the age of four,
you are starting
00:05:41
to remember
and learn and retain
00:05:44
everything that your parents
or your caregivers
00:05:47
are demonstrating.
00:05:50
So when your own
protector is the one who
00:05:53
is engaging
in the abuse, that can
00:05:56
really scar a child for life.
00:05:57
Because if you can't
trust your own parent,
00:06:00
who now can you
trust in the world?
00:06:02
PAUL LOPEZ: Jackson's
father was described
00:06:05
as an extreme racist
and brought his son
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up in the same belief system.
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ANDY MANNIX: His dad
would scream the N-word
00:06:14
on a regular basis,
would talk about how
00:06:16
he thought Black people
were destroying America.
00:06:20
A big part of, I think,
Craig Jackson's childhood
00:06:23
was being around that kind
of just vitriol racism
00:06:26
and absorbing a lot
of it himself.
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LINA HAJI: Modeled
behavior is probably
00:06:31
the best indicator of how
a child is going to learn.
00:06:35
So if he's watching his
father engage in racist and
00:06:40
misogynistic
behaviors, he's going
00:06:42
to normalize that
kind of rhetoric,
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and he's going
to internalize it.
00:06:48
SAM DOUGLAS: Jackson's
mom eventually left
00:06:50
her abusive husband
and took her young son
00:06:53
to live in cities
across the state,
00:06:56
but ultimately, they ended up
circling back to their hometown
00:07:00
of Des Moines.
00:07:04
ANDY MANNIX: Craig Jackson
was mostly raised by his mom.
00:07:08
He talked a lot about his
mom being promiscuous.
00:07:13
He talked about
hearing her having sex
00:07:15
with every Tom,
Dick, and Harry,
00:07:17
as he put it, with only
a towel in between them.
00:07:22
LINA HAJI: Jackson has already
been set up for failure
00:07:26
in terms of how
to properly understand
00:07:29
sexual relationships,
interpersonal relationships,
00:07:33
friendships, parental
relationships.
00:07:35
Before the time he's even
6, 7, 8, 9, 10 years old,
00:07:39
this child has a very, very
skewed perception of what
00:07:44
relationships actually entail.
00:07:48
SAM DOUGLAS: As a child,
Craig Jackson
00:07:50
began to echo his father's
violent tendencies.
00:07:57
ANDY MANNIX: One
time, he tied two
00:07:59
cats' tails together and let
them just rip each other apart.
00:08:04
He would stamp out flowers.
00:08:06
He would fight other kids.
00:08:08
I think in eighth grade
he got into a fight that
00:08:09
got him kicked out of school.
00:08:11
He pushed a teacher and was
just rather violent.
00:08:15
LINA HAJI: It's understandable
that he had a lot of anger.
00:08:18
The problem is that
anger was not addressed.
00:08:21
There doesn't seem to have
been any treatment or
00:08:24
adaptive outlets,
and so the anger is only
00:08:27
going to build upon itself.
00:08:30
Jackson is really a ticking
time bomb before the time
00:08:33
he's even an adult.
00:08:35
SAM DOUGLAS: Still
a child, Jackson began
00:08:38
experimenting with drugs.
00:08:43
PAUL LOPEZ: He
wouldn't even get
00:08:45
out of bed,
reportedly, at age 14
00:08:47
until he had smoked marijuana.
00:08:50
This was on a daily basis.
00:08:52
Of course, marijuana, as some
say, is a gateway drug.
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He graduated to amphetamines
and a very strong
00:08:59
narcotic, PCP.
00:09:01
ANDY MANNIX: At one
point, he was
00:09:03
popping about 50
amphetamine pills a day,
00:09:05
drinking up to a quart
of whiskey a day,
00:09:07
so he became someone who
was just a massive drug
00:09:11
addict by his late teens.
00:09:13
LINA HAJI:
So the substance abuse
00:09:15
was really a maladaptive coping
skill that was setting him up
00:09:18
for disaster in the long run.
00:09:25
SAM DOUGLAS: In 1977,
at the age of 18,
00:09:29
Craig Jackson started a
relationship with a young woman
00:09:32
called Terry Rice.
00:09:36
Almost immediately, Jackson
became physically violent
00:09:39
towards her.
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PAUL LOPEZ: He'd
beat her to the point
00:09:42
where she would suffer
significant injuries
00:09:44
and would have to seek
help from local hospitals
00:09:47
and even at one point
went to a woman's shelter.
00:09:50
LINA HAJI: It's
a very cowardly act
00:09:52
to engage in domestic abuse.
00:09:55
So it makes you wonder, if you
can do this to the people
00:09:58
that you supposedly
love and are closest to,
00:10:01
what can you do
to full strangers?
00:10:03
What are you capable
of doing to anyone?
00:10:08
SAM DOUGLAS: Terry
became pregnant
00:10:10
and in 1978 gave birth
to their son, Joey.
00:10:15
The violence subsides.
00:10:18
ANDY MANNIX: It
does seem like there
00:10:20
was a moment there where things
were fairly good between them.
00:10:24
After the first child was
born, Craig was apparently
00:10:27
a very happy father.
00:10:28
He would go around showing
everybody his young son
00:10:31
and say, I should
charge you money
00:10:34
to see this beautiful child.
00:10:37
SAM DOUGLAS: Craig
and Terry married in 1979
00:10:40
and moved to Minneapolis.
00:10:43
ANDY MANNIX: So Minneapolis, in
the early '80s in particular,
00:10:47
was considered this
really safe, mid-sized
00:10:51
to major American city.
00:10:54
The murder rate was very low.
00:10:56
We were still five
or so years away
00:10:59
from having the emergence
of the kind of gang activity
00:11:03
that we were seeing in places
like Chicago and New York City,
00:11:06
and people just
generally thought
00:11:07
that Minneapolis was
a city that didn't
00:11:09
have those kinds of problems.
00:11:12
SAM DOUGLAS: A year
later, the couple
00:11:15
had a second child, Jason.
00:11:17
ANDY MANNIX: After
the second child was born,
00:11:19
the abuse became more intense.
00:11:21
You know, he had a one
and three-year-old,
00:11:23
and being around them, he said,
just made him really angry.
00:11:27
LINA HAJI: While
he may have been
00:11:29
in this pseudo-honeymoon
phase, that quickly dissipates
00:11:32
when he realizes that
two children and a wife
00:11:35
requires a lot of work and
a lot of selflessness, which
00:11:39
he's incapable of providing.
00:11:42
Abuse was really all he knew.
00:11:44
It was all he had
learned as a child.
00:11:46
That being said,
he's now an adult,
00:11:48
and he is responsible
for his actions.
00:11:52
SAM DOUGLAS: Jackson's
wife, Terry, was always
00:11:55
the main victim of his abuse.
00:11:59
ANDY MANNIX: This made things
a lot harder because she
00:12:01
felt like she couldn't leave
Craig Jackson because he had,
00:12:05
you know, access
to their kids, so by leaving,
00:12:08
she would be putting
their lives in danger as well.
00:12:10
She did leave him
several times,
00:12:12
but she always came back.
00:12:16
SAM DOUGLAS: In 1981,
Terry suddenly disappeared.
00:12:21
ANDY MANNIX: Craig Jackson
takes the family to Las Vegas
00:12:25
to see his father,
and when he returns,
00:12:28
he's got Joey and Jason, but
Terry isn't with him anymore.
00:12:33
PAUL LOPEZ: When people
would ask Jackson
00:12:35
about the whereabouts
of Terry, he would usually
00:12:38
provide the same
response, saying
00:12:40
that they were having
relationship difficulties,
00:12:43
that she had gone
back to Des Moines
00:12:45
to be with family to give
them some time apart.
00:12:51
SAM DOUGLAS: Jackson
did not appear
00:12:54
to miss his wife
and mother of his children,
00:12:56
as he quickly found
himself a new girlfriend.
00:13:00
LINA HAJI: Jackson is
now in his early 20s, and
00:13:02
he's developed a pattern now.
00:13:04
It's almost akin to hunting.
00:13:07
He's so predatory
in nature that what
00:13:09
he does is he goes out
to the world, goes to bars,
00:13:13
and he essentially
finds his next victim.
00:13:15
And that's where he met his
next girlfriend, Ramona.
00:13:24
PAUL LOPEZ: Ramona Yurkew
was a 19-year-old girl who
00:13:28
graduated high school in 1980.
00:13:32
She was very well
liked in high school.
00:13:34
She was a member
of the school cheer squad.
00:13:37
She participated
in several plays.
00:13:40
She was even
on the student government.
00:13:42
And at that time, she was
working at a local pizzeria.
00:13:49
SAM DOUGLAS: Ramona's
affection towards Craig
00:13:52
was repaid with violence.
00:13:55
ANDY MANNIX: The relationship
was very violent, very abusive.
00:13:59
I think he was ramping
up actually from Terry.
00:14:03
He beat her several times,
sending her to the hospital.
00:14:07
He was really angry.
00:14:08
He was angry at the kids.
00:14:10
He was angry at Ramona, and he
was really ramping up his drug
00:14:13
use around this time too.
00:14:16
LINA HAJI: It's only making
the psychopathic traits worse.
00:14:22
It's going to make
him more impulsive.
00:14:24
It's going to further his
ability to manipulate,
00:14:27
because there's really
nothing holding him back.
00:14:33
ANDY MANNIX: Ramona did
not leave Craig Jackson
00:14:37
despite people telling her to.
00:14:39
I think in large
part because she
00:14:41
fell in love with
these kids who
00:14:43
were very young at the time.
00:14:46
LINA HAJI: Ramona seems to be
an empathic, caring, loving,
00:14:52
well-rounded person,
and he's aware that Ramona
00:14:55
is attached to his two sons.
00:14:57
And so he's using
his sons as bait
00:14:59
in order to keep Ramona stuck
in this abusive relationship.
00:15:08
SAM DOUGLAS: On the afternoon
of March 6, 1982,
00:15:13
Jackson dropped off his
kids at a babysitter
00:15:15
and headed to downtown
Minneapolis.
00:15:18
He visited several bars,
getting both drunk and high.
00:15:23
ANDY MANNIX: Hennepin
Avenue is sort
00:15:25
of the heart of downtown
Minneapolis's bar
00:15:28
and restaurant district.
00:15:31
In the '80s it was sort of
known as kind of a seedy place.
00:15:36
There was some nightclubs.
00:15:37
There were places
where you would have,
00:15:39
you know, people
who were, like,
00:15:41
considered day drinkers who'd
spend full days at these bars.
00:15:46
He meets a woman named
Gwendolyn Johnson.
00:15:48
Gwendolyn is a young woman.
00:15:50
She's about 20 years old.
00:15:52
She's got two kids.
00:15:54
One thing that's
significant about Gwendolyn
00:15:56
is that she's a Black woman.
00:15:57
Craig was sort
of a pretty unapologetic
00:16:00
racist at this time.
00:16:01
He talked about his hatred
for Black people frequently.
00:16:06
He brought Gwendolyn
Johnson back to this house.
00:16:10
They had sex consensually,
and during the act,
00:16:14
he choked her to death.
00:16:19
PAUL LOPEZ: Strangulation
is a very personal
00:16:23
way to murder somebody.
00:16:24
It requires close,
upfront contact.
00:16:28
There's no distance involved.
00:16:29
And typically speaking,
it takes time for people
00:16:31
to die through strangulation.
00:16:34
ANDY MANNIX: He hid
Gwendolyn's body
00:16:36
underneath his child's bed.
00:16:40
He takes some of her
belongings and
00:16:43
puts them in the basement
of his apartment.
00:16:45
He burns her ID.
00:16:47
So there's some
acknowledgment there, I think,
00:16:50
that he knew what he
was doing and that he
00:16:52
was trying to cover it up.
00:16:54
LINA HAJI: He doesn't
view her as a human.
00:16:56
He views her
as a prop, as a tool.
00:16:59
He picked her up.
00:17:00
He got what he wanted from her,
which was sexual gratification,
00:17:04
and then he had no
need for her anymore.
00:17:11
SAM DOUGLAS: The next day,
March 7th, he picked up
00:17:14
his sons from the babysitter.
00:17:16
ANDY MANNIX:
The babysitter notices
00:17:17
he's got some scratches,
some kind of defensive wounds
00:17:20
on his face.
00:17:22
She's a little bit concerned,
but all the same, he
00:17:25
takes the kids back
and is just hanging out
00:17:27
with them in the apartment
where there
00:17:29
was a body hidden under a bed.
00:17:31
SAM DOUGLAS: Later that day,
Jackson put his sons to bed.
00:17:37
After finishing her
shift at the pizzeria,
00:17:40
Ramona went over to his house.
00:17:43
ANDY MANNIX: They're
smoking weed together,
00:17:45
and she's getting
ready to leave.
00:17:47
And he decides that he's
going to choke her to death.
00:17:51
He wraps his hands
around Ramona's throat
00:17:54
and chokes her until she dies.
00:17:59
LINA HAJI: Once he's killed the
first victim, it's easy for him
00:18:03
to continue going on.
00:18:04
Why stop?
00:18:05
He's probably filled
with adrenaline.
00:18:07
He's probably realized
I can do this.
00:18:10
He's probably getting some
kind of gratification from it.
00:18:14
And so it's just like
any other addiction--
00:18:16
he just continues to do
it because it feels good
00:18:19
and it serves him.
00:18:21
SAM DOUGLAS: Jackson
then walked into the room
00:18:24
where his two sons, age one
and three, were sleeping.
00:18:30
- He decides that God wants
him to choke them to death
00:18:35
and send them to heaven.
00:18:37
Joey is sleeping on the bed
with Gwendolyn Johnson's body
00:18:41
underneath it.
00:18:45
He chokes them both to death.
00:18:47
He describes it later as saying
there was no big incident.
00:18:49
It was very peaceful,
and he was just
00:18:51
sending everyone to heaven.
00:18:53
LINA HAJI: Murdering
his children
00:18:55
and his girlfriend is
the ultimate control.
00:18:57
I mean, when you dictate
when and how somebody dies,
00:19:00
there is no other
level of control.
00:19:02
Those were the easiest,
most vulnerable targets.
00:19:05
They were closest
to him, and they
00:19:07
were just a means to an end.
00:19:12
SAM DOUGLAS: Jackson spent
the rest of the night
00:19:15
at home getting high
with four dead bodies
00:19:18
lying just meters away.
00:19:20
- Ramona Yurkew was
missing for several days,
00:19:23
and her family,
knowing that she
00:19:26
was in a very abusive
relationship with Jackson,
00:19:30
became concerned about her.
00:19:33
They contacted the local
police department.
00:19:36
The police department went
to Jackson's residence.
00:19:39
However, they found that
Jackson was not home.
00:19:46
ANDY MANNIX: Minneapolis
Police showed up
00:19:48
here looking
for Ramona Yurkew, and
00:19:50
they found four dead bodies.
00:19:52
It was a really
grisly murder scene
00:19:55
that I don't think
anyone expected
00:19:57
when they walked in the door.
00:20:00
SAM DOUGLAS: Ramona's father
was interviewed at the time,
00:20:04
telling reporters how he
learned what had happened.
00:20:07
- It was a doorbell, and a man
in the suit, plainclothes suit,
00:20:12
identified himself
as a chaplain.
00:20:13
INTERVIEWER: Mm-hmm.
00:20:14
- Police chaplain
from Minneapolis.
00:20:19
I said, she's dead, isn't she?
00:20:23
He said yes.
00:20:24
And I said, the kids too?
00:20:26
And he said yes.
00:20:28
PAUL LOPEZ: Nothing's
more impactful
00:20:29
than the death of children.
00:20:31
The first thing is
complete shock and sadness.
00:20:35
It's very painful, and those
are visions in your brain
00:20:37
that will be imprinted
indefinitely.
00:20:42
I would immediately
suspect the father.
00:20:45
On a homicide scene where
there's two dead children,
00:20:48
a dead girlfriend, and a fourth
body, and the missing component
00:20:53
is the father?
00:20:54
Absolutely, he would
be the primary suspect.
00:20:59
MAN: Well, what
it boils down to
00:21:01
is she gave her life
for those babies.
00:21:03
It's as simple as that.
00:21:04
She stayed there knowing
she was in danger,
00:21:06
but she wanted
to protect those babies.
00:21:09
ANDY MANNIX: This was really
described in the newspapers
00:21:11
as like the murder
of the century.
00:21:14
It was sort
of a house of horrors,
00:21:16
you know, walking into there.
00:21:18
The newspapers described this
as a vile and extremely
00:21:22
grim scene.
00:21:24
SAM DOUGLAS: A murder
investigation
00:21:26
was immediately launched.
00:21:29
It was quickly determined
that all four victims had
00:21:33
been manually strangled and the
main suspect was Craig Jackson.
00:21:40
He had fled the state
and was on the run.
00:21:45
For a month, he
went undetected.
00:21:48
Then on the morning
of April 8th,
00:21:50
he called the police from a
restaurant in Wichita, Kansas.
00:21:53
[telephone rings]
00:21:57
PAUL LOPEZ: Jackson
contacted the lead detective
00:22:00
and stated that he
wanted to surrender.
00:22:02
When law enforcement
arrived, Jackson
00:22:04
was just in the back of the
restaurant using a phone booth.
00:22:10
Jackson provided
no resistance and
00:22:12
even made a comment
similar to, I'm not going
00:22:15
to give you guys any trouble.
00:22:22
SAM DOUGLAS: Jackson was
brought back to Minnesota
00:22:25
and charged with the homicides
of Gwendolyn Johnson,
00:22:28
Ramona Yurkew, and his
sons, Joey and Jason.
00:22:33
Whilst Jackson was in custody,
another body was found.
00:22:41
ANDY MANNIX: About a month
after Craig Jackson turns
00:22:45
himself in in Wichita,
Kansas, there
00:22:47
is a father and son in rural
Iowa foraging for mushrooms,
00:22:52
and they find what
is at this point
00:22:55
basically skeletal remains
of what turns out to be
00:22:58
Terry, Craig Jackson's wife.
00:23:02
PAUL LOPEZ: Terry
had been found dead,
00:23:05
and it was believed she
was dead up to 18 months.
00:23:09
Jackson denied killing her.
00:23:12
SAM DOUGLAS: Police thought
otherwise and charged Jackson
00:23:16
with his wife's murder.
00:23:20
After being deemed mentally
competent to stand trial,
00:23:24
on October 18, 1982,
the proceedings began
00:23:28
for the first four homicides.
00:23:31
- He pleads not guilty
by reason of insanity.
00:23:35
The murders of Craig Jackson
was a national news story.
00:23:39
I think people were horrified.
00:23:40
There was a lot of interest
in seeing him held accountable,
00:23:44
so the fact that his defense
was arguing this insanity plea,
00:23:47
I think a lot of people
didn't want him to be
00:23:49
able to get away with that.
00:23:51
LINA HAJI: Jackson
flippantly saying
00:23:54
that he was sending
everyone to heaven
00:23:56
as if it was a mercy killing,
to me, is just a load of bull.
00:24:00
I don't buy any of it.
00:24:01
It's a way for him
to control his image,
00:24:05
control the narrative,
manipulate other people,
00:24:08
have the world believe
that he isn't the person
00:24:11
that who he thinks he is.
00:24:14
SAM DOUGLAS: On November 4th,
the jury reached a guilty
00:24:17
verdict on all counts.
00:24:20
- Jackson received
three life sentences
00:24:24
plus 20 years
for second degree murder
00:24:27
for the murder
of Gwendolyn Johnson.
00:24:31
ANDY MANNIX: And the judge
renders his opinion
00:24:33
by saying, this is one of the
most heinous and evil acts
00:24:36
that I've ever encountered
in the criminal justice system,
00:24:40
and this sentence is
to make sure that you
00:24:43
never walk free again.
00:24:45
PAUL LOPEZ: Even though
Jackson was behind bars,
00:24:49
the path of death and
destruction would not be over.
00:24:56
SAM DOUGLAS: Despite
being charged
00:24:58
with the murder of his
wife, Terry Rice,
00:25:00
it never went to court.
00:25:07
Quadruple murderer
Craig Jackson
00:25:10
was sent to Oak Park
Heights penitentiary,
00:25:12
Minnesota's newest
prison at the time.
00:25:16
But this was only
half the story.
00:25:20
As violent as he was
outside prison, once inside,
00:25:25
he became one of the world's
most dangerous prisoners.
00:25:28
DAVE KAMPA: Back when
I started in '82,
00:25:31
Oak Park Heights was
built as the supermax.
00:25:33
It was built pretty elaborate.
00:25:36
Most of the units were
52-man housing units.
00:25:39
Each inmate got to have
their own private room.
00:25:42
They brought
in the worst of the worst
00:25:45
around the United States.
00:25:46
We also were housing
federal inmates,
00:25:48
and they brought them to us
because they couldn't handle
00:25:50
them in their facilities.
00:25:53
It was a Wild, Wild West.
00:26:02
JAMIE MORGAN KANE: My name
is Jamie Morgan Kane,
00:26:04
and I served 34 and 1/2
years in California prisons.
00:26:09
In the '80s it was a lot
harder than it has become.
00:26:13
You were restricted
on things you could have.
00:26:16
Movements were a lot tougher.
00:26:18
It was more punishment
than rehabilitation.
00:26:22
You could be assaulted,
could be stabbed,
00:26:25
and brutality was
something that
00:26:27
came in droves from both staff
and inmates at any given time.
00:26:35
DAVE KAMPA: Every
day you go to work,
00:26:37
you didn't know
if you were going
00:26:38
to have your shirt
tore off or not,
00:26:41
or come home with a black eye.
00:26:43
JAMIE MORGAN KANE:
Death was cheap.
00:26:45
I mean, I watched
a person be killed
00:26:47
over a single pack of tobacco.
00:26:52
ANDY MANNIX: Craig
Jackson is first
00:26:55
incarcerated at Oak
Park Heights prison,
00:26:58
and he is a problem
from the beginning.
00:27:01
There's a lot
of drugs in prison,
00:27:03
so he's continuing to do drugs.
00:27:05
He's fighting a lot.
00:27:06
He's making a lot of problems.
00:27:08
And when he gets caught,
he basically says,
00:27:11
what are you going to do?
00:27:12
I'm already facing
multiple life sentences.
00:27:16
DAVE KAMPA: His room
was always clean.
00:27:17
His appearance
was always clean.
00:27:19
Once in a great while,
he had an issue,
00:27:21
and whether it was
threatening staff
00:27:22
or whether it was
threatening another inmate,
00:27:25
he would go
to segregation for that.
00:27:27
75 days later,
he'd come back out,
00:27:29
and you wouldn't hear
a peep out of them
00:27:30
again for quite some time.
00:27:33
PAUL LOPEZ: If you
were a child killer,
00:27:34
you would have to be
separated from the main lines,
00:27:37
because the guys
would try to get you.
00:27:38
And they would try
to slash you up.
00:27:39
They would try to stab you.
00:27:40
They'd try to cripple you.
00:27:42
They didn't necessarily
want to kill them.
00:27:43
They wanted them to suffer.
00:27:46
It was basically
an open contract.
00:27:48
And everybody in the prison
knew if you had a chance
00:27:50
and you didn't take it on doing
something to one of them,
00:27:53
then you could become a target,
because they'd assume you had
00:27:56
some kind of like to the guy.
00:27:58
You didn't want to be
a friend of a child killer.
00:28:01
ANDY MANNIX: Because he
had killed two young kids,
00:28:05
his reputation
in prison was notorious.
00:28:09
Some of them called
him the family killer.
00:28:16
SAM DOUGLAS: In 1991,
after nine years in prison,
00:28:20
Craig Jackson, now 32,
decided that it was
00:28:24
time to change his identity.
00:28:27
DAVE KAMPA: The state start
paying for name changes,
00:28:30
and once the inmates
got hold of,
00:28:32
hey, we can get
our name changed,
00:28:34
and this DLC is
going to pay for it,
00:28:36
everybody started
changing their names.
00:28:39
Craig Jackson
became Craig Bjork.
00:28:42
ANDY MANNIX: He said that
the reason he changed his name
00:28:45
is because he just
didn't even want
00:28:47
to be associated with that
version of himself anymore.
00:28:50
He didn't want to be the person
who was known by some inmates
00:28:53
as the family killer.
00:28:54
So he changed his name
to Craig Bjork for, I guess,
00:28:57
sort of a fresh start.
00:29:00
LINA HAJI: I don't
particularly buy that.
00:29:02
I think that it was another
attention-seeking ploy.
00:29:05
He's displayed
narcissistic traits and
00:29:07
a huge ego his entire life,
so it was all, you know,
00:29:11
what we call
impression management,
00:29:13
trying to control
the narrative,
00:29:15
trying to control
the way he's viewed.
00:29:17
People who actually
change don't have
00:29:19
to announce it to the world.
00:29:20
They just do it.
00:29:25
DAVE KAMPA: We're
currently at the Minnesota
00:29:27
Correctional Facility
in Stillwater
00:29:29
in Bayport, Minnesota.
00:29:31
The prison was built,
I think, in 1914.
00:29:35
Stillwater prison,
I think, currently
00:29:37
housed 1,700 offenders.
00:29:40
SAM DOUGLAS: Stillwater
prison lies a couple of miles
00:29:43
away from Oak Park Heights.
00:29:45
- Kind of an overflow
of Oak Park Heights.
00:29:48
They got, like, seven
housing facilities inside.
00:29:51
The average bed space is,
like, 250 per cell block.
00:29:58
At Stillwater, prisoners
vary from child molesters
00:30:01
to killers to arsonists
to burglars.
00:30:05
We had cop killers in there.
00:30:07
We had people who
killed their wives
00:30:09
and put them
in a garbage disposal.
00:30:13
SAM DOUGLAS: In the 1990s,
after being promoted
00:30:16
to investigator for the
department of corrections, Dave
00:30:20
was assigned to Stillwater.
00:30:22
DAVE KAMPA: When I
first came in there,
00:30:25
the first thing I
noticed, how loud it was.
00:30:28
It doesn't have
air conditioning.
00:30:30
It stunk.
00:30:31
You know, that many inmates
and some of them don't bathe--
00:30:34
the people who didn't
like their hygiene
00:30:36
usually got their asses kicked.
00:30:38
ANDY MANNIX: So in the
mid-'90s, Craig Bjork is
00:30:41
moved to Stillwater
prison, and he really
00:30:42
doesn't want to be there.
00:30:44
He doesn't like
his cell location.
00:30:46
He doesn't like the facility.
00:30:48
And he says, you know, I
really want to be moved
00:30:50
back to Oak Park Heights.
00:30:54
SAM DOUGLAS: After over
a decade behind bars,
00:30:58
Craig Bjork, now
aged 37, was placed
00:31:01
within general population
at Stillwater prison.
00:31:06
DAVE KAMPA:
In 1996, Craig Bjork
00:31:09
sent a letter to the warden
here at MCF Stillwater,
00:31:12
claiming that if he
didn't get moved over back
00:31:14
to Oak Park Heights,
he was going to start
00:31:16
killing staff and inmates.
00:31:19
ANDY MANNIX: He's
basically saying,
00:31:20
I'm going to go
on a murder spree
00:31:22
if I don't get what I want.
00:31:24
He's evaluated
by a prison psychiatrist,
00:31:28
and the psychiatrist comes
back and says, he's serious.
00:31:32
And they keep him
in general population,
00:31:34
and I think it's a fair
question of whether or not
00:31:37
they really took
those threats as
00:31:39
seriously as they should have.
00:31:41
LINA HAJI: You're
in prison now for having
00:31:44
killed multiple people.
00:31:46
You don't get to pick
and choose what happens now.
00:31:49
He's not understanding that,
or he refuses to understand it.
00:31:57
SAM DOUGLAS: During
the time that Craig Bjork
00:31:59
was in MCF Stillwater,
he was assigned
00:32:02
to work in the kitchen.
00:32:03
He was in charge of cleaning
the recycling containers
00:32:06
and also taking out the garbage
and stuff like that.
00:32:10
JAMIE MORGAN KANE:
Generally, the rule of thumb
00:32:12
is if you are able-bodied,
you have to work.
00:32:15
In the butcher shops
we used to have,
00:32:17
most of the free staff
butchers would not
00:32:21
hire you unless you are either
a killer or somebody who
00:32:24
was an extremely violent
person assaulting with knives
00:32:28
and sharp implements.
00:32:29
And there were guys who were
burglars that went for jobs,
00:32:32
and the guy goes, you
ever killed anybody?
00:32:33
No.
00:32:34
Well, I only hire killers.
00:32:36
Because the idea
was that you didn't
00:32:38
have a problem with blood
and all the other stuff.
00:32:42
SAM DOUGLAS: Despite
his threats of violence,
00:32:45
Bjork was still allowed to keep
his job in the kitchen, where
00:32:49
in 1997 he worked
alongside convicted
00:32:53
sex offender Edwin Curry.
00:32:56
- Edwin Curry had at least six
months left on his sentence
00:33:00
before he was going
to be released.
00:33:02
ANDY MANNIX: It was
Thanksgiving Day.
00:33:05
Edwin Curry and Craig
Bjork were both working
00:33:08
in the kitchen that day.
00:33:10
Craig Bjork has this 3 foot
of pipe that he's been hiding,
00:33:13
and he goes up
behind Edwin Curry.
00:33:18
DAVE KAMPA: He hit Edwin
Curry about eight times
00:33:21
on the top of the head,
back of the neck,
00:33:24
and then he finally
broke his windpipe.
00:33:26
And that's what caused
Mr. Curry's death.
00:33:29
ANDY MANNIX: This wasn't,
like, a shank where he slit
00:33:31
his throat and it was quick.
00:33:33
This was a slow
beating of a man,
00:33:36
you know, pummeling his
head, crushing his windpipe.
00:33:39
This was a very
violent killing.
00:33:49
SAM DOUGLAS: After the murder,
an officer walked in to find
00:33:53
Craig Bjork in the kitchen.
00:33:57
- He immediately
saw Bjork attempting
00:34:00
to clean up a red liquid
by washing it away with a hose,
00:34:04
and the correctional officer
questioned what was happening.
00:34:07
Bjork stated that
he was cleaning up
00:34:09
the mess from some beet cans.
00:34:12
At that point, Bjork said he
had to go and left the area.
00:34:17
SAM DOUGLAS:
The officer suddenly
00:34:19
realized that the huge pool
of red liquid was blood.
00:34:23
- The corrections
officer realizes
00:34:26
that these are drag
marks in the blood
00:34:28
and follows them
to the garbage closet
00:34:31
and finds Edwin Curry's
body wrapped in plastic wrap
00:34:35
in the garbage cart.
00:34:37
Immediately, you
know, calls this in.
00:34:39
The guards go looking
for Craig Bjork,
00:34:41
and they find him in the
cafeteria eating a candy bar
00:34:44
and drinking a glass of milk.
00:34:47
LINA HAJI: It was premeditated.
00:34:49
It was calculated.
00:34:50
He planned it.
00:34:51
He did it.
00:34:53
And then he went back to eating
a candy bar and drinking milk.
00:34:56
That is how Bjork views murder.
00:35:00
It's just another
event in his life.
00:35:04
SAM DOUGLAS:
Special investigator
00:35:06
Dave Kampa was immediately
called in to the prison.
00:35:10
DAVE KAMPA: I received
a call from home
00:35:12
and said that there was
a homicide at the prison.
00:35:16
About 30 minutes
later, I arrived, and
00:35:18
I found a whole bunch
of police, people here,
00:35:21
ambulances here,
other investigators
00:35:23
that came to assist.
00:35:26
I've never seen that
much blood in my life.
00:35:28
It was covered every
square inch of that room.
00:35:31
Curry's body was
in a fetal position
00:35:34
when the staff, Sergeant
Schwartz, found him.
00:35:36
ANDY MANNIX: Edwin Curry
was in the wrong place
00:35:38
at the wrong time.
00:35:39
He wasn't mad at Edwin Curry.
00:35:41
He was mad at the prison
officials for ignoring him.
00:35:44
He just wanted to make good
on the threat that he had sent,
00:35:48
saying that if they
didn't move him,
00:35:50
he was going to kill somebody.
00:35:52
DAVE KAMPA: He was saying
he was going to do this,
00:35:54
and I think that by doing
it on Thanksgiving, when
00:35:58
the administration and all
these people are at home,
00:36:00
they would all have to come in.
00:36:01
And that way, he could say
to them, I told you so.
00:36:05
ANDY MANNIX: The guard
testified later
00:36:07
that he started
telling him, hey,
00:36:09
it's a good thing
you caught me when
00:36:11
you did because I was going
to kill a bunch more people.
00:36:13
PAUL LOPEZ: This
murder was pointless.
00:36:16
There was no self-defense.
00:36:18
There wasn't even an argument
that had occurred.
00:36:21
There was no lead-up.
00:36:22
It was a senseless
taking of a life
00:36:25
for a sociopathic narcissist
who just wanted to make
00:36:28
a point to the prison system.
00:36:31
ANDY MANNIX: When the guards
searched his cell,
00:36:34
they found a journal with
an entry for that day,
00:36:38
and he had written them
a little note that said, "You
00:36:41
should have moved me, punks."
00:36:45
SAM DOUGLAS: After
the murder of Edwin Curry,
00:36:47
Bjork was immediately
transferred
00:36:49
back to Oak Park Heights.
00:36:53
DAVE KAMPA: He got
what he wanted.
00:36:55
He wanted to go
to Oak Park Heights.
00:36:57
And what he had
to do, he did it just
00:37:00
to show the administration
that you didn't listen to me,
00:37:03
and you need to start listening
to people from now on.
00:37:06
SAM DOUGLAS: On March
8, 1999, Bjork
00:37:09
was convicted of first
and second degree murder
00:37:12
in the killing of Edwin Curry.
00:37:15
ANDY MANNIX: The judge
renders another life sentence
00:37:18
for Craig Bjork to run
consecutively with the three
00:37:21
he's already serving.
00:37:23
So by this stage, Craig
Bjork is convicted
00:37:25
of killing five
people, four of those,
00:37:28
he's now serving life
sentences for, plus another 20
00:37:32
years for the fifth one.
00:37:41
SAM DOUGLAS: In January
2013, over a decade
00:37:45
since the murder
of Edwin Curry,
00:37:47
Bjork was transferred
to Oregon State Penitentiary.
00:37:56
ANDY MANNIX: Notably,
this is against his will.
00:37:59
He described it
as he was kidnapped.
00:38:01
He was kidnapped and brought
to this prison in Oregon.
00:38:04
PAUL LOPEZ: This was done
through a interstate exchange
00:38:08
agreement between prisons,
which allows prisons
00:38:11
to essentially transfer
or swap inmates that
00:38:13
maybe have insecurity issues or
they have high-profile crimes.
00:38:17
SAM DOUGLAS: Bjork, aged 53,
was placed into a shared cell
00:38:22
with 45-year-old Joe Akins.
00:38:25
ANDY MANNIX: Joe Akins is
also a convicted murderer.
00:38:29
He was convicted
in 2008 of a crime
00:38:31
he committed in 1994,
which entailed
00:38:33
raping and murdering a woman.
00:38:36
He was serving
a 22-year sentence.
00:38:39
- Craig Bjork had
stated that he was sober
00:38:42
and he was no
longer doing drugs
00:38:44
while in prison,
and additionally,
00:38:46
had almost no
disciplinary history,
00:38:49
essentially described
himself as a model inmate.
00:38:52
That's the speculation
as to why he received
00:38:55
and was allowed a cellmate.
00:38:57
DAVE KAMPA: The prison
system there
00:38:58
was pretty stupid to put
another inmate in the same cell
00:39:01
with him, and I
said, well, that was
00:39:03
probably one of the dumbest
mistakes they've ever made.
00:39:08
SAM DOUGLAS:
On August 17, 2013,
00:39:11
Bjork confronted Akins,
accusing him of hiding weapons
00:39:15
and drugs in their cell.
00:39:18
- Bjork took issue
with that because he
00:39:20
felt that if it was found,
they would both be blamed.
00:39:23
Now, later that
same night, Bjork
00:39:26
stated he was attacked
by Akins in his sleep.
00:39:31
At that point, he
defended himself.
00:39:35
ANDY MANNIX: He holds
Akins down on the bed.
00:39:38
He grabs this apparatus that
was made of shoelaces and belts
00:39:42
to keep the pillow on the bed,
and he grabs this apparatus
00:39:46
and wraps it around
Akins's neck.
00:39:48
And he chokes him
to death in what
00:39:53
he described as self-defense.
00:39:59
JAMIE MORGAN KANE: In prison,
there is no self-defense.
00:40:03
It's called mutual combat.
00:40:05
There is either
defense or non-defense.
00:40:08
In some cases, it's
sometimes better to make
00:40:11
your defense become offensive.
00:40:13
You're taking the person off
there, being the aggressor,
00:40:16
and making them have
to now defend themselves,
00:40:18
and it just changes
the parameters.
00:40:24
- When his cell
opened, he just left,
00:40:27
went out to the chow
hall for breakfast
00:40:30
like all the other inmates.
00:40:32
SAM DOUGLAS: After
breakfast, Bjork
00:40:34
went up to an officer
in the yard
00:40:37
and admitted what he had done.
00:40:43
PRISON GUARD: He was just
very calm and matter of fact,
00:40:46
and that's kind of why
he had to convince me,
00:40:48
because it was just
a normal conversation,
00:40:52
a normal tone of voice.
00:40:53
Hey, I can't get
back to my cell.
00:40:55
My cell is dead.
00:40:56
He didn't appear to be in any
kind of distress about it.
00:40:58
He was perfectly fine with it.
00:41:03
SAM DOUGLAS: Bjork was
charged with his sixth murder,
00:41:07
and because he was now
in an Oregon prison,
00:41:10
found himself facing
the death penalty.
00:41:18
ANDY MANNIX: I
reached out to him,
00:41:20
seeing if he wanted
to talk for the article,
00:41:22
and he said the death
penalty is vengeance.
00:41:25
And isn't that more evil than
anything that I've ever done?
00:41:28
For the government
to say, we're
00:41:30
going to kill you in revenge
for what you've done.
00:41:34
PAUL LOPEZ: However, by chance,
while he was awaiting trial,
00:41:38
the governor at the time
abolished the death penalty
00:41:42
in the state
of Oregon, and just
00:41:44
like that, Bjork's no longer
facing the death penalty.
00:41:51
SAM DOUGLAS: On December 23,
2019, Bjork, now aged 60,
00:41:56
pleaded no contest
to the charges against him.
00:42:01
ANDY MANNIX: In other
words, he's saying,
00:42:03
I don't really have
an adequate defense to this,
00:42:05
so he was sentenced to yet
another life sentence.
00:42:08
So Craig Bjork is now convicted
of killing six individuals,
00:42:12
and he's facing at least
five life sentences.
00:42:16
Is this more of a punishment?
00:42:19
Only on paper, I think.
00:42:20
It's not really-- practically,
it doesn't really change
00:42:22
the situation that much.
00:42:24
JAMIE MORGAN KANE:
In my experience, more than 70%
00:42:27
of inmates have no
desire to rehabilitate,
00:42:30
and this could be
for a number of reasons.
00:42:33
Some of them feel that
if they rehabilitate,
00:42:35
they'll lose their street cred.
00:42:36
But part of it is also they
don't see a reason to put
00:42:42
the effort in to rehabilitate.
00:42:43
A person has to want to do it.
00:42:46
ANDY MANNIX: The prosecutor
said that this
00:42:48
was a grave injustice.
00:42:49
He says that Craig
Bjork is someone
00:42:52
who is the worst
of the worst, and
00:42:54
that's what the death
penalty should be for.
00:42:56
This is somebody who's
been convicted of killing
00:42:58
men, women, and child--
00:43:00
plural.
00:43:01
He should be the poster
child for the death penalty.
00:43:09
SAM DOUGLAS: In 2021,
Bjork was transferred
00:43:12
to ADMAX USP Florence
in Colorado, the most secure
00:43:17
prison in the United States.
00:43:19
ANDY MANNIX: What do
you do with prisoners
00:43:21
like Craig Bjork?
00:43:22
I think it poses a real
problem for prisons and
00:43:26
for lawmakers and for society.
00:43:28
There's really not
a lot of reason
00:43:30
to think about rehabilitating
him because he's
00:43:32
never going to get out.
00:43:34
PAUL LOPEZ: At minimum, I would
say he needs to be completely
00:43:37
and absolutely segregated
from any human contact--
00:43:41
inmates completely
and only officers when
00:43:43
it is absolutely necessary.
00:43:49
DAVE KAMPA: I think that you
give him an opportunity again
00:43:52
to kill somebody, he will.
00:43:54
I think he enjoys it.
00:43:56
- I think it would be naive to
say there's no way this guy is
00:43:59
going to kill anybody again.
00:44:01
I think he's proven that he
is capable of it, though.
00:44:05
LINA HAJI: This is not a person
who will stop murdering.
00:44:10
I mean, as evidenced by the
fact that not only did he
00:44:13
murder multiple times
in the community,
00:44:15
he murdered in prison.
00:44:17
PAUL LOPEZ: Nobody is
safe from this monster.
00:44:20
If you can kill
your own children,
00:44:22
you are capable
of the rawest evil
00:44:25
and violence on the planet,
and you are irredeemable.
00:44:34
[theme music]
