Steven Zelich: Where is the Killer Now?

In June 2014, Steven Zelich was working as a private security officer in West Allis, Wisconsin, when he became a suspect in the murders of two women, Jenny Gamez and Laura Simonson. The women’s remains had been discovered inside suitcases left along a roadside in Geneva, Wisconsin. Investigators eventually connected Zelich to the case after examining the circumstances surrounding the women’s deaths. The investigation led authorities to look into Zelich’s possible involvement in the killings. ABC’s ’20/20′ references the case in the episode ‘The Suitcase Murders.’ It follows the timeline of the killing and the fight for justice that ensued for the two victims.

Steven Zelich Worked for Law Enforcement Before Working as a Security Guard

Steven Zelich was born on October 29, 1961. He began his law enforcement career at a relatively young age. He joined the Mequon Police Department in 1984 and remained there until 1989, before moving to the West Allis Police Department in February of that year. According to reports, Zelich was regarded as one of the department’s top-performing officers. However, his service record also included three suspensions and four reprimands. News reports further revealed that he had been the subject of internal investigations following complaints from several women. They reportedly accused him of turning up at their workplaces and repeatedly pestering them for dates, and allegedly using his position to get personal information about them.

According to findings from an internal investigation, Zelich allegedly visited strip clubs while on duty. His time with the West Allis Police Department came to an end in May 2001, following another troubling incident. Reports stated that a woman ran out of his apartment, allegedly half-naked, after which the city’s Police and Fire Commission was said to be preparing to bring charges against him. However, Zelich resigned less than two weeks after an internal investigation began. He subsequently moved away from policing and into private security work, eventually taking a position as a security guard at Johnson Controls in Glendale, Wisconsin. Outside his professional life, Zelich was also reportedly active on sadomasochism websites, where he used the online handle “mrhandcuffs.”

Steven Zelich Was Seen Checking Into a Hotel With One of His Victims

During police questioning, Steven Zelich reportedly admitted that he had met 19-year-old Jenny Gamez in August 2012 after picking her up from the airport. He said they spent two or three days together at a Comfort Inn and Suites hotel in Kenosha, Wisconsin. According to his account, their encounters involved breath play, handcuffs, and gag play. Zelich told investigators that he lost control during one encounter and Gamez died. He subsequently placed her remains in a suitcase and transported them to his apartment, where he kept them in a refrigerator. In November 2013, Zelich met 37-year-old Laura Simonson through the same website. The two spent time together at a hotel in Rochester, Minnesota, where Simonson also died.

Zelich reportedly described handling her remains in a similar manner. In June 2014, he dumped two suitcases containing the remains along North Como Road in the Town of Geneva, Wisconsin. Passersby discovered the suitcases and alerted the police. Simonson was identified relatively quickly through her dental records, as a missing-person report had been filed in her name in November 2013. Detectives retraced her final movements and established that she had checked in to a hotel with Zelich.

Zelich had come onto their radar in January 2014. They had been suspicious as Simonson had not been seen leaving the hotel with him in CCTV footage. Detectives eventually obtained a tracking device as they worked to establish his movements. When they interviewed him, Zelich confessed to killing both Simonson and Gamez. He said that they had been accidental. Before his statements, he had not been connected to Gamez’s death through any evidence. Investigators also discovered that he had continued using the same dating website even after both women had died, adding another disturbing detail to the case.

Steven Zelich is Behind Bars in Wisconsin Today

In June 2014, Steven Zelich was arrested in connection with the discovery of the suitcases containing human remains. He subsequently faced additional charges, including first-degree intentional homicide in connection with Gamez’s death and, later, Simonson’s killing. Rather than proceed to trial, Zelich ultimately entered guilty pleas in the cases against him. On March 30, 2016, Zelich pleaded guilty to first-degree reckless homicide with a dangerous weapon and hiding a corpse in connection with Gamez’s death. He was sentenced to 35 years in prison, followed by 10 years of extended supervision.

On February 3, 2017, Zelich pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in Simonson’s death in Minnesota and received a 25-year prison sentence, to be served consecutively to his Wisconsin sentence. Later that year, on October 13, 2017, he received an additional 10-year sentence for two counts of hiding a corpse in Walworth County. Taken together, the sentences amount to 70 years, with a minimum non-parole period of approximately 58 years and four months. Zelich is incarcerated at Dodge Correctional Institution in Waupun, Wisconsin. His projected discharge date is 2079, while no parole date is currently listed.

Read More: Ian Mitcham: Where is the Killer Now?