Eighteen-year-old John Butkovich, a Croatian American, was killed on July 31, 1975, in Norwood Park Township, Cook County, Illinois. Gacy later admitted to luring him inside, restraining and strangling him. Butkovich’s body was not found until December 22, 1978, when remains were uncovered in the crawl space of Gacy’s house.

Butkovich’s death was one of the killings attributed to John Wayne Gacy during a larger investigation that identified numerous victims, many found in the same crawl space or disposed of nearby. Gacy was charged in multiple murders, including Butkovich’s, and the case against him led to his conviction and death sentence.