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On November 29, 1992, the world of circus entertainment was rocked by the murder of one of its most infamous figures, executed by a hired assassin.
Known as “Lobster Boy” due to a rare genetic condition, Grady Stiles Jr. was a familiar face on the carnival circuit, his hands and feet resembling claws.
However, away from the spotlight, Stiles was notorious for his violent behavior, often fueled by his daily consumption of a bottle of whiskey.
Suffering from ectrodactyly, Stiles’ fingers and toes were fused, a trait that ran in his family and was passed down to his children.
His unique appearance made him a star in the “freak show” circuit, where he capitalized on displaying his physical differences to audiences.
When not performing, Stiles resided in a trailer in Gibsontown, Florida, a place renowned as a winter retreat for numerous circus performers.
It was there that he would bully his family, who lived in terror of him.
In 1978, he murdered his daughter’s fiance on the eve of the wedding.
He was found guilty of third-degree murder, but he wasn’t sent to jail because no facility could care for a man with his condition.
Instead, he was sentenced to house arrest.
Terrified of his death threats and constant abuse, his wife, Mary Theresa Stiles, decided he needed to die.
She asked her oldest son, Henry Glenn Newman III, to find a hitman to kill him.Â
Newman, a child from a previous marriage, specialised in driving nails into his nostrils in the family circus sideshow act.
He hired 19-year-old classmate Christopher Wyant to kill Stiles.
Wyant shot Stiles three times as he watched TV on the sofa in his trailer.
He was paid $1500 for the murder.
It did not take police long to connect the dots and arrest all those responsible.
Stiles’ wife, Mary, spent six years in jail on a manslaughter conviction.Â
Wyant was jailed for 15 years before being released on probation.
Newman was given a life sentence and died behind bars in 2014.
Four years after his murder, Stiles’ face was used as the cover for Australian band Silverchair’s album ‘Freak Show’.
