FALLSBURG, New York -- A satanic cult was behind the 'Son of Sam' murder spree in the 1970s that left six dead and terrorized thousands of New Yorkers, convicted killer David Berkowitz claimed in an interview to air Monday.
Speaking with the syndicated show 'Inside Edition' from his upstate New York prison cell, Berkowitz, convicted of the slayings, called the eight lovers' lane attacks that killed six and wounded seven 'sacrifices' to the devil.
'I did not pull the trigger at every single one of them,' Berkowitz said.
Police maintain that Berkowitz acted alone during a year-long murder spree targeting young couples in New York City lovers' lanes. After one shooting, Berkowitz planted the first of a series of cryptic letters signed 'Son of Sam' and laden with satanic symbolism used to bait police and fuel a public panic.
Berkowitz said the letters were written by cult members to 'create an atmosphere of terror.'
Berkowitz claimed at the time of his arrest that he was ordered to commit the murders by a dog belonging to neighbor Sam Carr.
In the first interview since his 1977 arrest, Berkowitz said Carr's sons John and Michael -- both now dead -- also took part in the terror spree, along with others he did not name. Berkowitz said he pulled the trigger in only three of the six slayings.
The former postal worker said he was recruited into a satanic cult in Yonkers, N.Y., and was on the scene for all of the attacks.
Berkowitz took credit for the July 29, 1976, murder of Donna Lauria, 18, that began the killing spree. He also said he committed the April 17, 1977, double slaying of Valentina Suriani, 18, and boyfriend Alexander Esau, 20.
Berkowitz denied he pulled the trigger in the most infamous of the murders, that of Stacy Moskowitz, 20, on July 31, 1977.
'Everyone played a role...understanding that this was going to be another sacrifice to our gods,' Berkowitz said.
Berkowitz said at one cult meeting, 'I was chanting the name of Lucifer over and over. And I was calling out to him, 'Son of the morning and prince, my Lord, come into me right now, take control.' I felt like I was being emptied of my personality and that something else, somehow, was coming in.'
'I am so very sorry that it happened,' Berkowitz said in the interview. 'People who didn't deserve to lost their lives.'
Berkowitz is serving six 25-year sentences in a Sullivan County prison.
