John Martini: A Multistate Killer Driven by Money and Deception
Background and Criminal History
John Martini Sr. was an American murderer, kidnapper, robber and swindler whose violent crimes extended across Pennsylvania, Arizona and New Jersey. Born on June 30, 1930, Martini accumulated a lengthy criminal record before becoming connected to a series of calculated killings committed between 1977 and 1989. Authorities believed he was responsible for as many as six deaths, although he was convicted or entered guilty pleas in four murder cases. Two additional deaths attributed to him were never prosecuted.
Martini's crimes were commonly motivated by financial gain, the elimination of witnesses or an effort to escape the consequences of previous offenses. He often gained access to victims through personal relationships, business dealings or carefully planned acts of deception. Rather than killing during sudden confrontations, Martini repeatedly placed his victims in vulnerable positions before shooting them at close range.
The Murder of Anna Mary "Polly" Duval
One of Martini's earliest known victims was Anna Mary "Polly" Duval, a 62-year-old widow from Arizona. Duval knew Martini through one of his sisters and came to trust him sufficiently to invest money in what he represented as a real-estate transaction. Martini persuaded her to withdraw approximately $25,000 from her bank accounts for the supposed investment.
After Duval realized that the arrangement was fraudulent, she traveled to Philadelphia to confront Martini and attempt to recover her savings. Martini met her at the airport on October 16, 1977. Instead of returning her money, he drove her a short distance from the airport, shot her three times in the head and abandoned her body in a field near Philadelphia International Airport.
The murder remained unresolved for years. After Martini was arrested for later killings, investigators connected him to Duval's death. He was eventually transferred to Pennsylvania, tried and convicted of murdering her. The prosecution showed that the killing had enabled Martini to keep the money he had taken while permanently silencing the person who could expose the fraud.
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