The confession of a serial killer Joseph Naso who claims 26 murders

Joseph Naso, a former photographer, was convicted in 2013 of murdering four women in California. However, new revelations suggest that his crimes may stretch far beyond those proven in court.

In Oxygen’s latest documentary series, Death Row Confidential: Secrets of a Serial Killer, which premiered on September 13, 2025, investigators and a fellow inmate reveal evidence that Naso may have killed as many as 26 women.

Naso's fellow death row inmate, William “Bill” Noguera, at San Quentin, spent more than a decade cultivating a strange relationship with Naso to win his trust. Convicted of a 1983 murder himself, Noguera worked with elderly prisoners in a disability program and was assigned to assist Naso.

Over the years, Naso allegedly opened up about his past, offering chilling details that pointed to a murder count far higher than the four convictions that sent him to death row.

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All about Joseph Naso's crimes and his victims

Joseph Naso was a father of two, a Little League coach, and a photographer who took school portraits and family pictures. But little did people know of the sinister double life he led, which came to light during a home inspection where police discovered photographs of women in compromising positions, who looked dead.

Alongside these images, investigators found a handwritten list of ten women, which prosecutors argued was his “hit list". In 2013, a Marin County jury convicted Joseph Naso of killing four women, Roxene Roggasch, Carmen Colon, Pamela Parsons, and Tracy Tafoya. Since his victims' first and last names began with the same letter, Naso was dubbed the “Alphabet Killer”.

According to Naso's fellow inmate Noguera, however, the alleged hit list did not reflect all of Naso’s murders. Joseph Naso allegedly confessed to killing 26 women in total to Noguera.

Noguera claimed investigators may have unknowingly uncovered evidence of this when they found a coin collection containing 26 gold heads in Naso’s home. He believes that each head represented a “trophy” for a victim.

Moreover, Naso’s own diaries revealed more than 100 sexual assaults dating back to the 1950s, many involving underage girls. Investigators believe his pattern of violence spanned decades. William Noguera documented Naso's confessions in a 300-page dossier, which he later passed on to retired FBI task force investigator Ken Mains, who took on the case pro bono.

Joseph Naso in court (Image via Getty)

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Connecting cold cases with Naso

Some of Naso's confessed crimes matched unsolved murder cases from the time. One account described him luring a woman through a modeling ad, driving her home, killing her, and disposing of her body beneath the Richmond–San Rafael Bridge.

That chilling story matched the disappearance of Berkeley resident Lynn Ruth Connes in the 1970s, who vanished after responding to a modeling advertisement. Her bicycle was later found chained near the exact spot Naso described.

Together, Noguera and Mains have been working to connect the cryptic notes and partial confessions by Naso to real cases to identify all 26 victims Naso boasted about. Moreover, the FBI and local law enforcement agencies are also re-examining cold cases to see how many may be connected to Joseph Naso.

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Where is Joseph Naso now?

Joseph Naso, who is now 91 years old, resides at California Health Care Facility in Stockton due to age and health concerns. He remains defiant, continuing to insist on his innocence.

The newest Oxygen documentary series explores Naso's crimes and the role played by Noguera in exposing them. If Naso’s claim of 26 murders proves true, it would make him one of the most prolific serial killers in California’s history.

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Catch all about Naso on Death Row Confidential: Secrets of a Serial Killer.

Edited by Sneha Haldar