As The Wrap explains, Frank Salerno worked in LA-area law enforcement for nearly 50 years, first for the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department juvenile and narcotic bureaus for some three decades, and then in homicide for almost 20 years more. It was under Salerno's watch that investigators discovered that the Hillside Strangler was in fact two men: cousins Kenneth Bianchi and Angelo Buono (via Biography). Together, Bianchi and Buono reportedly killed 10 women in their '70s-era crime spree.
By the time he was assigned to the Richard Ramirez case, Salerno was already held in high esteem by his colleagues, as Marie Claire notes. According to History, Salerno and other detectives on the case received a tip that a man named Ramirez was responsible for the crimes of burglary, murder, and rape that were taking place in the city and had local residents on edge. Ramirez would be convicted on 13 counts of murder and sentenced to death, but he died from cancer before his execution could be carried out, per Britannica. Crucial to Salerno and his team was a fingerprint lifted from Ramirez's car, which was later linked to him.
