I SURVIVED A SERIAL KILLER: The Cleveland Strangler

I SURVIVED A SERIAL KILLER: The Cleveland Strangler

From I Survived by A&E / PodcastOne

April 6, 2026 · 25 min

About this episode

Vanessa Gay recounts her escape from Anthony Sowell, the Cleveland Strangler, as detectives discuss his capture and sentencing.

In September of 2008, Vanessa Gay met Anthony Sowell on a sidewalk in Cleveland Ohio. He invited her to share drinks and drugs at his home. She was unaware that she was walking into a house where 11 of his victims had been hidden and buried. Vanessa recounts her escape from death, as Detective Lemmy Griffin and Prosecutor Rick Bombik walk us through this murderer's capture and sentencing. This Episode is sponsored by BetterHelp Angi - Download the free Angi too today or visit Angi.com Apartments.com - To find whatever you’re searching for and more visit apartments.com the place to find a place. BetterHelp - Visit BetterHelp.com/SURVIVED to get 10% off your first month! Mint - To get the new customer offer and your new 3-month premium wireless plan for just $15 a month, go to Mintmobile.com/survived TesterUp: Download TesterUp for free now using our link https://bit.ly/411Wdaw   See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

People in this episode

Guest: Vanessa Gay

Topics covered

  • serial killer
  • survival
  • true crime
  • murder
  • Cleveland

Keywords

  • Cleveland Strangler
  • Anthony Sowell
  • Vanessa Gay
  • true crime
  • murder
  • survival
  • detective

Sponsors

BetterHelp, Angi, Apartments.com, Mint, TesterUp

Mentioned in this episode

Places: Cleveland Ohio

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