The Smiley face murder theory (variations include Smiley face murders, Smiley face killings, Smiley face gang, and others) is a theory believed by retired New York City detectives Kevin Gannon and Anthony Duarte.[1] They say that a number of young men found dead in bodies of water across several Midwestern American states from the late 1990s to the 2010s[2] did not accidentally drown. They believe that they were victims of a serial killer or killers.
The term "smiley face" became connected to the alleged murders when it was made public that the police had discovered graffiti showing a smiley face near locations where they think the killer dumped the bodies in at least a dozen of the cases.
Gannon wrote a textbook case study on the subject titled "Case Studies in Drowning Forensics".[3][4] The response of law enforcement investigators and the Federal Bureau of Investigation to not believe in this theory and had investigated it saying that it is a hoax.
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