Crime Must Not Pay - Paul Bernardo

The name Paul Bernardo may ring a bell for many of you and especially our Canadian followers but for those who don’t recognise him, he’s a murderer; a serial rapist and killer of young women and a man who is not someone who should ever be released into society again.

His crimes do not need to be discussed here for us to know he is not the sort of person you would want to give your hard earned cash over to but if you do want to read about him, you can check out his crimes here.

Bernardo has been incarcerated for the last 20 years and it appears he has been a busy boy whilst serving his time.

It has appeared in the news recently that Amazon have removed a self published E-Book titled A MAD World Order. The fictional spy thriller “revolves around a geopolitical plot that, between armed drones, dirty bombs, and thermonuclear devices, ultimately appears to level much of the developed world, all in service of a prophecy involving the Illuminati and Knights Templar.” according to VICE.

The author? One convicted murderer by the name of Paul Bernardo.

Although it is difficult to ascertain the veracity of his authorship, Bernardo’s Lawyer Tony Bryant has stated ‘I am advised Mr Bernardo has written a book‘ so it would appear that this tome is indeed the work of the notorious killer.

Concern appears to lie mainly with the thought that Bernardo may be attempting to profit from his crimes but although there is violence aplenty in the novel and two rape scenes it appears that the novel is purely fantasy and has no link to Bernardo’s crimes.

Yet it has been removed.

Where does the law stand on this? Toronto Criminal Lawyer Ari Goldkind explained when speaking to to Global News:

Ontario passed the Prohibiting Profiting from Recounting Crimes Act in 2002, which prohibits prisoners from receiving money for writing about the details of his crimes.

…“There is no reason, as it distasteful as it may seem, why any profit made from this book or the publishing of this book would be payable to anyone other than Paul Bernardo,” Goldkind said.

Goldkind added that material written by Bernardo would be screened by the Correctional Service of Canada before it goes out, but there would be nothing in their purview to censor the content, particularly since he is not recounting his crimes specifically.

And of course Bernard is not the first, nor will he be the last who uses their infamy as a source of income.

Sakakibara Seito’s (an alias) autobiography Zekka caused controversy in Japan when he released it without informing his victim’s families; instead he sent them a copy complete with a hand written note of apology.
How thoughtful.

The Trinity of Superkidds US
The Trinity of Superkidds UK

Charles Kembo is currently in prison serving time for the murders of his wife, his girlfriend, his step-daughter and his business partner.

The Trinity of Superkidds: Book One: Quest for Water by J.D. Bauer is a children’s fiction book that was published during Kembo’s trial and it has since been admitted that Bauer is Kembo’s pen name.

The novel is still available to purchase on Amazon.com

Perhaps one of the most famous murderous authors is Son of Sam David Berkowitz. The killer of 6 people found God during his imprisonment and penned a book titled, Son of Hope, which contains his prison journals, describing life behind bars and sharing his rebirth into Christianity.

Berkowitz does not profit from the sales of this book and a portion of the profits made from any sales go to his victims and their families.

Son of Hope US
Son of Hope UK

The Gates Of Janus US
The Gates Of Janus UK

One of the most hated criminals of modern Britain is Ian Brady, one half of that heinous duo The Moors Murderers, who kidnapped, tortured and murdered five children in the early 60s.

In his book The Gates of Janus, Brady aims to take the reader into the mind of a serial killer and explain its clockwork. He tries to convince the readers that serial killers have greater insight into the way they function. Brady presents his theory about the genesis of the modern-day serial killer and also serves several profiles of famous serial killers like Ted Bundy and John Wayne Gacy.

The book is still available to buy from Amazon.

These aren’t rarities; there are plenty of books out there written by Serial Killers, both fictional and autobiographical so why has Amazon removed this one? Who knows.

Of course crime must never pay and anyone who takes a life should never profit from what they have done but I am curious, why is Bernardo any more dangerous than Berkowitz? Any more foul than Brady? Any more dangerous than Kembo?

Amazon have declined to comment on the removal of the book, or denied the veracity of the claims that Bernardo did indeed manage to publish an E Book and present it for sale via their sites. The book itself is no longer available, all traces of its existence have disappeared.

And good riddance in my opinion!