Belle Gunness, a prolific serial killer, is reported to have murdered more than 40 people between 1884 and 1908 before vanishing without a trace. Her story, filled with deception, greed and gruesome murders, remains one of the most chilling tales in criminal history.

Born Brynhild Paulsdatter Storset in Norway on November 11, 1859, Belle Gunness immigrated to the United States in 1881 seeking fortune. Her quest for wealth, however, took a dark turn as a series of suspicious fires and deaths followed her arrival. Her life was marked by a pattern of insurance fraud and increasingly dangerous crimes.

Gunness’s life of crime began to escalate after marrying Mads Albert Sorenson in 1884. Following the mysterious fires that destroyed their store and home, Sorenson died of heart failure on the one day his life insurance policies overlapped, raising suspicions although no charges were filed. Belle’s subsequent marriage to Peter Gunness also ended in tragedy, with Peter and his infant daughter dying under mysterious circumstances. Authorities eventually found the remains of several of her suitors and foster children on her property, revealing the extent of her gruesome activities.

Gunness lured wealthy men to her farm through lovelorn columns, promising romance but delivering death. Each suitor arrived with money, only to disappear forever. The horrific discoveries on her property included over 40 bodies buried in shallow graves.

This pattern continued until 1908, when her farmhouse burnt down, and amidst the ruins, workmen discovered four skeletons, one presumed to be Gunness but missing its skull. This marked the beginning of her mysterious disappearance.

Ray Lamphere, her hired hand, was arrested and convicted for arson but not for murder. Before his death in prison, Lamphere revealed that Gunness had staged her own death by planting a body in the farmhouse and fleeing after withdrawing her savings.

Her exact fate remains unknown, adding an enduring mystery to her terrifying legacy. Despite extensive investigations, Belle Gunness was never found, leaving her story open-ended and her true number of victims uncertain.

Unless new evidence becomes known, her disappearance will remain an unsolved chapter in the dark history of crime.

• A Tell Media report