Richard Kuklinski was a psychopath, boastful, cruel, ruthless, cold and huge. He measured 1.96 meters. and weighed 140 kg. But beyond his imposing appearance, there was something that set him apart from all the other inmates who shared space with him behind the bars of the Trenton prison in New Jersey. Kuklinski was not an ordinary criminal. Nobody dared mess with him. Not even the guards. Even though he was 81 years, most preferred to get away from "The Iceman", because they knew he was a violent and unpredictable murderer. At the slightest provocation, Kuklinski could kill anyone with his own hands, and everyone knew that very well. With more than 200 murders, the nicknamed "Iceman" simply did not need a presentation. For more than 20 years, Richard had made a name for himself as the most fearsome assassin in the history of the New York mafia. Able to kill a man even for looking at him badly, Kuklinski was so intimidating, that his own companions of raids feared him. After all, he had killed several because he considered them a nuisance or because he had simply got bored with them. Not even the mobsters, who hired their services, felt safe in his presence. Even so, he began working as a bully to later become one of the most fearsome hit men in modern history.
Starting off with social disorganization theory, I believe Richard’s upbringing played a crucial role in the person he became, not only where he lived, but also who he lived with. For instance, Richard Leonard Kuklinski had a terrible childhood. He was the son of Stanley and Annah Kuklinski, he was the youngest of three male brothers. The life of the Kuklinski, was ruled by the religious fanaticism of his mother, and the alcoholism and extreme violence of his father. The fights between Stanley and Annah were very violent. Stanley stabbed his own wife in the back, although he did not kill her. Less fortunate was one of Richard's brothers, Florian, who, with a punch, was killed by his own father in 1940. They declared that the boy had died after falling down the stairs. Several years later, Richard's other brother, Joseph, was convicted of the rape and murder of a 14-year-old girl.
Another theory that can be used to describe Richard’s life could be the general strain theory, since he could not achieve the “American Dream” because of his situation, he decided to take an unconventional approach to provide for himself and his family. It is stated during the interview that he and the gang he was part of (Coming Up Roses) were hired by the mafia to murder someone. Kuklinski complied without problems shooting a subject in the head. His henchmen were impressed by the cold blood of their leader; but the band would not last long together. Kuklinski became a personal assassin for the Italian Mafia in New Jersey. With money in his pocket and his fame as a hitman, Kuklinski began betting large amounts of money in casinos. He won and lost thousands of dollars every week, and he was fighting every time he could, always leaving victorious. In his free time, Richard started (what we might call) a parallel serial killer career. He killed for money; but also, for pleasure.
The cultural/subcultural theory came to mind when he talked about his childhood for a bit, due to his solitary personality, he began to be bothered by some neighborhood boys, until at the age of 13 (in 1948), he committed his first murder. He followed one of his bullies (a boy named Charley Lane, aged 16) until he found him alone. He beat him to death with a wooden shovel, took out his teeth with a hammer and cut off the tips of his fingers with an ax so that his body would not be identified. Finally, he threw the corpse over a bridge to the south of the city and his fingers and teeth went down the sidewalk. A brutal crime and too well planned for a boy of only 13 years old. He did not leave any clues. For a long time, Richard had fantasized about killing Charley. Every time their paths crossed, the boy bothered and humiliated him. He soon ambushed the other boys in the gang and left them almost dead after beating them up. Later nobody else would mess with him "It is better to give than to receive" would declare years later during the interview