Piers Morgan confronts 'Kansas City Strangler' Lorenzo Gilyard on 'Serial Killer'

In a new interview, Kansas City serial killer Lorenzo Gilyard tells British interviewer Piers Morgan that he is innocent of the crimes, and gets angry when Morgan scoffs at the claim.

Gilyard was convicted in 2007 of killing six women in Kansas City. His interview with Morgan is said to be his first since he went to prison.

"I feel bad, but there ain't nothing I could do about it," Gilyard said of the crimes during an interview at the Crossroads Correctional Center in Cameron, Mo., where he is serving several life sentences.

Reportedly, Gilyard does not like being called a "serial killer."

The interview will air tonight, March 1, on Morgan's new series, "Serial Killer," on the British network ITV. The sit-down has grabbed a bit of attention from British media, who are referring to Gilyard in headlines as the "Kansas City Strangler" and "the former bin man who waged a campaign of terror across the city for 15 long years."

The interview is described as a "chilling and disturbing encounter."

Gilyard is the second serial killer Morgan has interviewed for the documentary series. In the first episode aired last fall, Morgan, known for his blunt, in-your-face style of interviewing, sat down with Mark Riebe, one of Florida's most notorious murderers.

Gilyard is considered Missouri's most prolific serial killer. Prosecutors used his DNA profile to accuse the married trash-collection supervisor of strangling two girls and 11 women, most of whom had worked as prostitutes, from 1977 to 1993.

He was accused of preying on the women and picking them up for sex before strangling themwith a shoelace, electric cord or article of clothing.

Prosecutors dropped a push for the death penalty when Gilyard agreed to a bench trial instead of a jury trial on seven of the killings. They dropped six other murder cases but left the door open for future action on them.

In 2007 a judge sent him to prison for life for killing Catherine Barry, 34; Naomi Kelly, 23; Ann Barnes, 36; Kellie Ford, 20; Sheila Ingold, 36; and Carmeline Hibbs, 30. The judge acquitted him in the death of 19-year-old Angela Mayhew.

"What do you feel, Lorenzo, about what happened to all these women? Because they were all taken off the streets, they were all strangled — and each strangulation apparently took several minutes, so a gruesome way to die," Morgan asked Gilyard.

"Right. I know," Gilyard said.

"So what do you feel about what happened to them?" Morgan pressed him.

"I feel bad, but there ain't nothing I could do about it.," Gilyard told him.

According to British media reports, Gilyard told Morgan he is innocent.

"I'm sorry what happened to them, that's all I can say," Gilyard said. "I didn't do it, but I'm sorry."

Morgan pressed him, asking why his semen was found on the victims if he is innocent. Gilyard said the police had never taken samples from him, though there is record of one taken in 2004 after he was arrested at a Denny's restaurant in Kansas City. Police officers had been tailing him after the DNA linked him to the murders.

Morgan challenged him when Gilyard couldn't offer a defense.

"You were charged with killing 13 women and you don't know what your defense was?" Morgan said. "Do you think I'm an idiot, Lorenzo? Do I look like an idiot to you?"

Gilyard reportedly walked out of the interview at that point.

According to Britain's The Sun, Morgan also interviewed the daughter of one of Gilyard's victims, detectives who worked on the case, and former neighbors and colleagues who say they never suspected such a mild-mannered man could commit such gruesome crimes.

This story was originally published March 1, 2018 at 10:53 AM with the headline "Piers Morgan confronts 'Kansas City Strangler' Lorenzo Gilyard on 'Serial Killer'."