Joe Metheny: The Butcher of Baltimore

A Killer Who Fed His Crimes to the Public

Some serial killers stalk, some hide, some plot. But few cross the line into something so grotesque — so unimaginable — that even seasoned investigators shudder.

This is the story of Joseph Metheny, a man who blended childhood neglect, addiction, and violent rage into a formula for murder.

A man who not only killed…

…but served his victims as food.

A Troubled Childhood Becomes a Brewing Storm

Metheny never stood a chance.

Born into instability:

• A father who was an alcoholic

• A household filled with poverty

• Six children, one overwhelmed mother

• A father killed in an accident when Joe was six

His mother worked double shifts and was rarely home. Metheny later claimed he was abandoned for days at a time.

Though his mother insisted he had been polite, quiet, and studious as a child, the roots of neglect were deep.

At 19, he joined the U.S. Army.He claimed he served in Vietnam — even insisting he became addicted to heroin there.

But his service records proved:

• He never served in Vietnam

• He never even entered a war zone

The lies hinted at something darker brewing inside him.

1994: The Disappearance That Ignited His Rage

In 1994, Metheny returned from a trucking job to a nightmare:

His girlfriend and their young son had disappeared.

He searched:

• Halfway houses

• Drug dens

• Under a specific Baltimore bridge where she frequently used drugs

Instead of finding her…

He found two homeless men he believed knew where she was.

They didn’t.

And for that, Metheny butchered them with an axe.

A fisherman nearby witnessed the aftermath —or so Metheny feared.

So he killed the fisherman, too.

He tossed all three bodies into the river and fled.

Metheny was arrested for the homeless men’s murders…and shockingly acquitted due to lack of evidence.

He walked free.

And the killings escalated.

The Murder of Catherine Magaziner

Metheny later confessed to killing Catherine Ann Magaziner, a young sex worker, in 1994.

He:

• Buried her in a shallow grave

• Returned six months later

• Dug her up

• Took her head

• Placed it in a box

• Threw it in the trash

Her remains were discovered years later, but her skull was never recovered.

The Murder of Kimberly Spicer — The Crime That Finally Exposed Him

In 1996, Metheny stabbed 23-year-old Kimberly Lynn Spicer to death, then disposed of her body near the pallet factory where he worked.

But Metheny made a mistake:

He asked a coworker to help him bury the body.

The coworker immediately went to the police.

Metheny was arrested the same day.

But what investigators uncovered next was beyond anything they expected.

A Survivor Escapes and Reveals the Horror

Just weeks earlier, Metheny had attacked another woman — Rita Kemper — in his trailer.

He beat her, dragged her back inside, and attempted to kill her.

She escaped barefoot into the freezing night and ran for help.

Her testimony, combined with the discovery of Spicer’s body, became the beginning of Metheny’s unraveling.

The Cannibalistic Confession That Shocked the Nation

While in custody, Metheny calmly confessed to something so revolting investigators initially didn’t believe him.

He told police:

• He dismembered his victims

• Stored the body parts in Tupperware containers in his freezer

• Mixed their flesh with pork and beef

• Ground it all together

• Shaped the mixture into hamburger patties

• Sold them at a small roadside barbecue stand

His customers had no idea they were eating human flesh.

Metheny bragged:

“I never had a complaint.People told me how good the burgers were.”

He later added:

“Human meat tastes like pork.If you mix it, no one can tell.”

It meant:

• He ate his victims

• He fed them to strangers

• And he took pleasure in both

How Many Victims?

Metheny claimed he killed 10 people, mostly homeless individuals and sex workers.

Police, however, were never able to verify all the murders.

But given his mobility as a trucker, investigators fear the real number may be higher.

Arrest, Trial & Sentencing

Metheny was convicted and sentenced to death, but in 2000 the sentence was overturned and reduced to two consecutive life sentences.

At his sentencing, he made one of the most disturbing courtroom statements ever recorded:

“The words ‘I’m sorry’ will never come out of my mouth,because I’d be lying.I enjoyed it.”

He added:

“The only thing I’m sorry for is that I didn’t get to murder the two motherf***ers I was really after — my ex old lady and the bastard she got with.”

The Death of the Butcher of Baltimore

On August 5th, 2017, guards found Metheny unresponsive in his prison cell.

He was pronounced dead shortly after.

Some called it justice.Others called it a quiet ending for a man who caused unimaginable suffering.

A Chilling Final Warning

Before his death, Metheny gave journalists one last message:

“The next time you see an open pit beef stand you’ve never seen before,think about this story before you take a bite.”

A grotesque, poetic taunt —one final twist in a case filled with terror.