A chilling new documentary revisits the story of Elmer Wayne Henley Jr., forever branded as the “serial killer’s apprentice.” At just 15 years old, Henley fell into the orbit of Houston murderer Dean Corll, known as the “Candy Man.” Corll lured Henley into a scheme promising easy money by recruiting hitchhikers, but the reality was far darker. Between 1970 and 1973, Corll tortured, raped, and murdered at least 28 boys and young men.
Henley, now 69 and serving a life sentence, opens up in The Serial Killer’s Apprentice, an Investigation Discovery film. Forensic psychologist Katherine Ramsland, who studied his case, explained his remorse: “When Wayne looks back — and he doesn’t like to — he’s horrified. He suffered from PTSD for some time after he first went to prison. He hates that he was a part of this.”
Raised in a broken home, Henley was easy prey for Corll’s manipulation. Ramsland said Corll reeled him in with lies: “That’s a lot of money for a kid, a 15-year-old who’s making peanuts at a part-time job at a gas station. And it sounded like nobody was getting hurt. This is Corll’s way to reel Wayne in.”
The killing spree ended in 1973 when Henley turned on Corll, fatally shooting him after the predator threatened to murder Henley and two other teens. He then led police to mass graves filled with victims. Still, Henley admitted to helping lure friends to their deaths, crimes that will forever stain his name.
Ramsland believes Henley’s case is both tragic and instructive. “Victims come in all varieties, and I don’t think you can deny that,” she said, underscoring the devastating consequences of evil disguised as friendship.
