30 Famous People Who Were Murdered

2Pac by Michael O’Neill on Wikimedia

30 Famous People Who Were Murdered

Several murders of prominent people have and have been occurring across the world which affects people directly and indirectly. These murders can be termed assassinations as they are political and have major impacts on the community.

Assassinations did not begin recently as some of the prominent people were murdered a long time ago and others recently. The murders of people like Archduke Franz Ferdinand sparked World War I which had a great impact on the world.

Below are the 30 Famous People Who Were Murdered:

1. Archduke Franz Ferdinand

Brustbild Franz Ferdinand, Erzherzog von Österreich-Este (1863–1914) in Uniform. Photo by Ferdinand Schmutzer on Wikimedia

Archduke Franz Ferdinand Carl Ludwig Joseph Maria of Australia was assassinated on 28th June 1914. Before his murder, Archduke Franz Ferdinand was the heir presumptive to the throne of Austria-Hungary which never came to happen.

On that fateful Sunday, the Archduke and his wife had made their way to the Governor’s residence when they were attacked with the launched grenade affecting one car of their convoy. Reaching the residence of the Governor, the Royal family demanded to go to the local hospital to visit the affected people of their convoy.

On their way to the hospital in Sarajevo, their vehicle was caught up between traffic of other vehicles giving 19 years old Gavrilo the opportunity to carry out the murder. Gavrilo Princip was a member of Young Bosnia and a group of assassins who shot the royals to death. The assassinations of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife led to the beginning of World War I.

2. John F Kennedy

John F. Kennedy, photograph in the Oval Office. Photo by Cecil Stoughton on Wikimedia

John F Kennedy or Jack served as the 35th president of the United States of America from 1961 to 1963 when he was assassinated. He was the youngest to assume the presidency through an election and the youngest president at the end of his tenure.

The then-president was assassinated in Dallas at 12:30 PM CST on Friday 22nd November 1963. He was on a political trip where he was supposed to smooth over friction in the Democratic Party between two liberals. The two liberals who were involved were Ralph Yarbrough and conservative John Connally.

As he was in his presidential motorcade through downtown Dallas, John F Kennedy was shot once in the back with the bullet exiting via his throat, and once in his head. John F Kennedy was rushed to Parkland Hospital for emergency medical attention but was pronounced dead at 1:00 PM.

3. Tupac Shakur

2Pac by Michael O’Neill on Wikimedia

Born as Lesane Parish Crooks, Tupac Amaru Shakur also known as 2Pac or Makaveli was a very influential American rapper. Tupac will always be remembered as one the most influential rappers of all time through his songs.

On the 7th of September 1996 night, Tupac Shakur was in Las Vegas to celebrate his business partner Tracy Danielle’s birthday. Tupac also attended the Bruce Seldon versus Mike Tyson match at the MGM Grand. A lot of stuff happened this night before Tupac met his death.

At around 11:15 PM at a stop light in the streets of Las Vegas, a Cadillac sedan was pulled by the passenger side of Tupac’s vehicle. An occupant opened fire hitting Tupac four times, once in the arm, once in the thigh, and twice in the chest with a bullet going through his right lung.

Tupac was rushed to the University Medical Centre of Southern Nevada, he was heavily sedated and put on life support. However, he was pronounced dead on 13th September 1996 at 4:03 PM.

4. Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln. Photo by Alexander Gardener on Wikimedia

Abraham Lincoln was an American lawyer and statesman who also served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until he was murdered. Abraham Lincoln was a great promoter of equality for every American including black people.

On 14th April 1865, Lincoln signed legislation establishing the United States Secret Service before he was assassinated. At 10:15 that evening, John Booth entered the back of Lincoln’s theatre box and shot and mortally wounded Lincoln after aiming at his head. Major Henry Harvard tried to arrest Booth after firing the shot but he was stabbed allowing the assassin to flee.

Doctor Charles Leale and two other doctors attended to Lincoln before taking him across the street to Petersen House. Abraham Lincoln stayed in a coma for eight hours and was pronounced dead at 7:22 AM on April 15th.

5. Martin Luther King Jr.

Born Michael King Jr., Martin Luther King Jr. was an American Baptist and activist. He was one of the most prominent leaders of the civil rights movement from 1955 to his assassination in 1968. Martin Luther King Jr advocated for civil rights for people of color in the US through nonviolence and civil disobedience.

On 29th March 1968, Luther King went to Memphis where he was to support the black sanitary public works employees. His plane had been delayed over some bomb threat. In Memphis, Tennessee, Martin Luther King stayed at Lorraine Motel in Room 306.

On Thursday, 4th April 1968 at 6:01 PM, Martin Luther was fatally shot by James Earl Ray as he stood on the second-floor balcony. The assassin’s bullet went through his right cheek, smasher his jaw, and traveled down his spinal cord before lodging in his shoulder. Martin Luther King underwent emergency chest surgery but he died at 7:05 PM at St Joseph’s hospital.

6. Malcolm X

Malcolm X waiting for a press conference to begin on March 26, 1964. Photo by Marion S. Trikosko on Wikimedia

Born as Malcolm Little and later Malik el-Shabazz, Malcolm X was an American Muslim minister. He was also a human rights activist who was renowned during the civil rights movement. Malcolm X was also the spokesman for the Nation of Islam until his assassination in 1965.

On 19th February 1965, Malcolm X told interviewer Gordon Parks how the Nation of Islam was actively trying to assassinate him. On 21st February 1965, Malcolm was preparing to address the OAAY in Manhattan’s Audubon Ballroom when he met his death. A man pulled a shotgun and shot Malcolm in his chest.

Two other men charged at Malcolm X firing semi-automatic handguns. He was rushed to Columbia Presbyterian Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 3:30 PM. An autopsy revealed he had 21 gunshot wounds on the chest, left shoulder, arms, and legs as well as ten buckshot wounds from the shotgun.

7. Mahatma Gandhi

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi who is popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi was an Indian lawyer. He was also an anti-colonial nationalist and political ethicist. Mahatma Gandhi used nonviolent resistance which led to the successful campaign of India gaining independence from British rule.

On 30th January 1948 at 5:17 PM, Gandhi was having some time with his grandnieces in the garden of Birla House. He was on his way to address a prayer meeting. Nathuram Godse who was a Hindu nationalist fired three bullets at close range into his chest. Mahatma Gandhi died on the spot as per some sources, while others state that he passed on 30 minutes later.

8. Gianni Versace

Gianni Versace during an interview. Photo by Unknown author on Wikimedia

Giovanni Maria Gianni Versace was an Italian fashion designer and founder of Versace. He was also a socialite and businessman whose Versace brand was an international luxury-fashion house that produces accessories, fragrances, make-up, house furnishings, and clothes.

In the early morning of 15th July 1997, Versace headed to Ocean Drive to retrieve his morning magazines which were not his usual routine as his assistant used to pick them up. As he returned to his Miami Beach mansion, a man carrying a backpack shot Gianni Versace in the head point-blank. Versace was rushed to Jackson Memorial hospital where he was pronounced dead at 9:21 AM.

9. Robert Francis Kennedy

Brother of John F Kennedy, Robert Francis Kennedy was an American lawyer and politician. He also served as the 64th United States Attorney General from 1961 January to 1964 September. Robert was also a US Senator from New York from January 1965 to his assassination in June 1968.

Robert had scored major victories and was to address his supporters in a ballroom at The Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles on 5th June 1968. He left the ballroom to the press room through the hotel kitchen as a shortcut which his bodyguard, a former FBI agent, Bill Barry had warned him against.

The kitchen passageway was crowded but some people greeted him handing Sirhan Sirhan an opportunity to open fire with a 22-caliber revolver. The Palestinian shot Robert three times and wounded five other people.

Robert Francis Kennedy was rushed to Good Samaritan Hospital where he had extensive neurosurgery to remove the bullet and bone fragments. However, he was pronounced dead at 1:44 AM on 6th June 1965, 26 hours after he was shot.

10. Shinzo Abe

Portrait of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe. Author: Prime Minister of Japan Official on Wikimedia

Shinzo was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan, and President of the Liberal Democratic Party. He was also the longest-serving prime minister in Japanese history. Shinzo also served as Chief Cabinet Secretary as well as briefly as the opposition leader in 2012.

During a campaign trial on 8th July 2022 at around 11:30 JST in Yamoto-Saidaiji Station, Shinzo was shot by an assassin. The assassin approached him from the back with a homemade gun and he shot two bullets, one missing him and the other fatally striking his heart.

Shinzo was rushed to the Nara Medical University Hospital by helicopter and he was given 100 units of blood. However, due to heavy blood loss, Shinzo was pronounced dead at 17:03 JST.

11. Nipsey Hussle

Armies Joseph Asghedom who was professionally known as Nipsey Hussle was an American rapper who had started going international. On 31st March 2019, Nipsey Hussle was shot ten times in the parking lot of his store, Marathon Clothing in South Central Los Angeles at 3;18 PM.

The assassin also kicked Hussle on his head after shooting him and two other people who were wounded badly. They were rushed to the hospital where Hussle was pronounced dead at 3:55 PM.

12. Indira Gandhi

Then-president Reagan Nancy Reagan and then-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi of India on the North Portico before a state dinner. Photo by Unknown author on Wikimedia

Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi was an Indian politician and central figure of the Indian National Congress. She was and is the first and only female prime minister of India. Indira was also the second most serving prime minister of India after her father, Jawaharlal Nehru.

On 31st October 1984, Indira Gandhi was shot by two of her Sikh bodyguards, Satwant Singh and Beant Singh. She was in the garden of the prime minister’s residence when they shot her using their service weapons. Satwant fired 30 rounds while Beant shot her three times.

She was rushed to the All India Institutes of Medical Sciences at 9:30 AM and pronounced dead at 2:20 PM. A post-mortem revealed that she sustained 30 bullet wounds, 23 passed through her, and 7 were in her body.

13. Dian Fossey

Dian Fossey was an American primatologist and conservationist. She is widely known for undertaking an extensive study of mountain gorilla groups from 1966 to her murder. Her studies were done daily in the mountain forests of Rwanda.

On the morning of December 27th, 1985, Dian’s body was found in the bedroom of her cabin which was located at the fat edge of the camp in the Virunga Mountains in Rwanda. Her assailant’s hole which was used to access her cabin was in the wall. Wayne Richard, her assistant revealed that she was killed by one strike of a machete on her face. This was not a case of robbery as her items were still in the cabin.

14. Lord Mountbatten

portrait of Lord Mountbatten. Photo by Allan Warren on Wikimedia

Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas Mountbatten, the 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma was a British naval officer. He was also a colonial administrator and a close relative of the British Royal family.

Lord Mountbatten used to holiday at his summer home at Classiebawn Castle on the Mullaghmore Peninsula in County Sligo. He had escaped an assassination attempt from IRA as a sniper failed to take his shot due to bad weather.

On 27th August 1979, Lord Mountbatten went lobster potting and tuna fishing on his 30-foot wooden boat. The previous night, an IRA member got into the unguarded boat and attached a radio-controlled 23kg bomb.

Lord Mountbatten boarded the boat alongside several of his family members with the bomb detonating as they were a few yards offshore. He was pulled from the water by fishermen badly injured and died a few minutes before they got on shore.

15. Lee Harvey Oswald

Lee was a US Marine veteran who assassinated then-president John F Kennedy. He was arrested one day after the death of the 35th president of the United States of America.

On 24th November 1963 at the age of 24, Oswald was brought through the basement of Dallas Police Headquarters toward an armored car. He was destined to the city jail where he was to be held in custody.

By 11:21 AM CST, Jack Ruby approached the convoy and shot Oswald in his abdomen which got him to the floor unconscious. He was rushed to Parkland Memorial hospital where he was pronounced dead at 1:07 PM.

16. Kiki Camarena

Enrique Camarena Salazar, former DEA special agent was killed in Mexico. Photo by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration on Wikimedia

Enrique Kiki Camarena Salazar was an American intelligence officer working for the United States under the DEA department. Kiki was an undercover officer who uncovered several notorious drug lords but his life was taken bitterly.

In 1984, Kiki was suspected to be a source of information to a 1000-hectare of marijuana plantation that was estimated to produce $8 billion yearly. This plantation was destroyed by 450 Mexican soldiers backed by helicopters leading to the abduction of Kiki in broad daylight on 7th February 1985 by corrupt Mexican officials working for drug traffickers.

Kiki was tortured for 30 hours and then he was murdered by his abductors. His ribs were broken, his skull punctured by a piece of rebar, and his body wrapped in plastic before being dumped on 5th March 1985.

17. Empress Elisabeth of Austria

Duchess Elisabeth Amalie Eugenie in Bavaria was an Empress of Austria and Queen of Hungary. This was from her marriage to Emperor Franz Joseph I from 1854 to her assassination. In September 1898, the Empress traveled to Geneva, Switzerland for some official duties.

On 10th Saturday, September 1898 at 1:35 PM, Elisabeth and Countess Irma left the hotel to catch the steamship Genève for Montreux. They walked onto the ramp of the ship without her entourage which allowed 25 years old Italian anarchist Luigi Lucheni to assassinate the empress. Using a sharpened needle file fitted with a wooden handle, Luigi stabbed the empress in her left side.

She did not die immediately as the crochet she wore held off much blood loss but she lost consciousness while on board. The Countess alerted the ship’s captain who directed his crew to carry Elisabeth back to her hotel. Empress Elisabeth was pronounced dead at 2:10 PM.

18. Rajiv Gandhi

Rajiv Gandhi, Former Prime Minister of India. Photo by Bart Molendijk on Wikimedia

A son to then Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi was the sixth and youngest prime minister of India. On 21st May 1991 as he was campaigning for Lok Sabha Congress candidate, Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated.

At 10:10 PM, a woman who was a member of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam pretended to be greeting Rajiv. She bent to touch his feet when she detonated a belt that had 700 g of RDX explosives. The blast killed Rajiv Gandhi on the spot and 14 other people.

19. Huey Long

Huey Pierce Long Jr. was an American politician who served as the 40th governor of Louisiana from 1929 to 1932 and as United States Senator from 1932 till his assassination. Long was a left-wing populist member of the Democratic Party.

On 8th September 1935, Huey Long traveled to the State Capitol to pass a bill that made Judge Benjamin Pavy lose the position he had held for 28 years. At 9:20 PM, Benjamin’s son-in-law, Carl Weiss approved Long and shot him with a handgun from 1.2 meters away hitting his torso.

Long was rushed to Our Lady of the Lake Hospital, a surgery was conducted and found perforations in his intestines. Surgeons failed to stop the internal bleeding and confirmed him dead at 4:10 AM on September 10th, 31 hours after the assassination.

20. Tom Mboya

Tom Mboya with Histadrut secretary general Aharon Becker. Photo by Israeli GPO on Wikimedia

Thomas Joseph Odhiambo Mboya was a Kenyan trade unionist, independence activist, and statesman. Tom Mboya was one of the founding fathers of Kenya who also led negotiations for independence at the Lancaster House Conferences.

On 5th July 1969, Tom Mboya was shot dead at Nairobi CBD on Government Road after visiting a Pharmacy. His assassin was arrested and lamented on why they never pursued ‘the big man’ leading to claims that it was a political assassination.

21. Steve Biko

Bantu Stephen Biko was a South African anti-apartheid activist who was also a socialist. He led the anti-apartheid campaign during the late 1960s and 1970s. Before his death, a travel ban was put on him and other anti-apartheid activists which he never adhered to but traveled to Cape Town.

Steve Biko and his friend were arrested and taken to police custody for flaunting the traveling ban. He was then handcuffed, put in shackles, and interrogation by ten police officers. One of the police officers struck Steve Biko on the head causing brain lesions and a massive brain hemorrhage. He was later transferred to several facilities before he died.

22. Anwar Sadat

Vice President Walter Mondale (right) bids farewell to Egyptian President Anwar el-Sadat (left) before he departed from a state visit to the US. Photo by SGT VESSER on Wikimedia

Muhammad Anwar el-Sadat was an Egyptian politician and military officer who also served as the third Egypt president. He was the president of Egypt from 15th October till his assassination by fundamentalist army officers.

During the last months of Anwar Sadat, there were several rioting and a coup attempt, but he managed to retain his popularity. On 6th October 1981 during the annual victory parade in Cairo to celebrate the Suez Canal, Anwar was assassinated. Islambouli shot and emptied his assault rifle on the body of the president mortally wounding him. Several other people were also killed and others were wounded.

23. Muammar Gaddafi

Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi was a Libyan revolutionary, politician, and political theorist who was prominent across the world. He was a revolutionary chairman of the Libyan Arab Republic from 1969 to 1977 before he became the brother leader of the Great Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya till his death.

NTC refused negotiation requests by Muammar Gaddafi after the civil war when he surrendered. Gaddafi was gravely injured during the raid by the rebels who captured, tortured him, and threw off his dead body from a pick-up.

24. Sheikh Rahman

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman during the fifties. Photo by Unknown author on Wikimedia

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman who was widely known as Bangabandhu was a Bengali politician and founding leader of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh. Rahman was a renowned leader in Bangladesh who never believed warnings from India over a possible coup.

On 15th August 1975, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was killed along with several members of his family in his private home. A military coup led by renegade army officers killed Sheikh, his wife, three sons, two daughters-in-law, several other relatives, personal staff, and the brigadier general of the Bangladesh army.

25. Jo Cox

A British politician, Helen Joanne Cox who was popularly known as Jo Cox served as a Member of Parliament for Batley and Spen from May 2015 till her death. Jo Cox was also a member of the Labour Party before her death.

Jo Cox was killed by a white supremacist who was obsessed with Nazis, apartheid-era, and the US Neo-Nazi group National Alliance. On 16th June 2016 at 12:53 PM, Jo Cox was fatally shot and stabbed outside a library in West Yorkshire. She was about to hold a constituency surgery at 1:00 PM. A 77 years old man was also stabbed as he tried to fend off the attacker.

26. The Notorious B.I.G.

Mural of Notorious BIG in Brooklyn NY. Photo by Elhesinberg on Wikimedia

Christopher George Latore Wallace who was famously known by his stage name the Notorious B.I.G. was a prominent American rapper. He was rooted in East Coast hip-hop and was bringing major changes to his hometown.

On 8th March 1997, Christopher attended the Soul Train Awards after-party which ended earlier because of overcrowding. At 12:30 the following day, The Notorious B.I.G left the party with his convoy but was shot at the red light. He was rushed to Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre where an emergency thoracotomy was done but pronounced dead at 1:15 AM.

27. Marvin Gaye

Marvin Pentz Gaye Jr who was nicknamed ‘Prince of Soul’ was an American singer and songwriter. His successful career helped him shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s.

On 1st April 1984, Marvin intervened in a fight between his parents in their family house in West Adams, Los Angeles. He got involved in a physical altercation with his father who fatally shot him in the chest piercing his heart. Marvin Gaye was pronounced dead at 1:01 PM at California Hospital Medical Centre a day before his 45th birthday.

28. Adrienne Shelley

Adrienne Shelly as Dannie. Photo by Tex Brook on Wikimedia

Better known by her stage name Adrienne Shelly, Adrienne Levine was a celebrated American actress, film director, and screenwriter. The death of Adrienne Shelley was faced with major controversies.

Her husband found her dead at 5;45 PM on 1st November 2006 in an apartment in Manhattan’s West Village which she used as her office. A 19 years old man was arrested and confessed to killing her and then staged her death to look like suicide by hanging the body.

29. Sharon Tate

Sharon Maria Tate Polanski was a renowned actress and model of her era. She was hailed as one of Hollywood’s most promising young and talented actors before her death.

She was murdered on 9th August 1969 by thugs of the notorious Charles Manson Family. Sharon Tate was stabbed 16 times at her home when the gang broke into the house. She was 8 months pregnant during her death.

30. Christina Grimmie

American singer, actress, and YouTuber Christina Grimmie in November 2014. Photo by Justin Higuchi on Wikimedia

Christina Victoria Grimmie was a renowned American singer and celebrity YouTuber. Her YouTube career shot as she began posting a cover of top and popular songs. Christina hit two million subscribers and then released her first studio album. Her career was thriving before she met her death.

On 10th June 2016, Christina was performing with Before You Exit at The Plaza Live in Orlando, Florida. After the show, when she was signing autographs, a 27 years old Kevin James shot her. She was rushed to Orlando Regional Medical Centre and confirmed dead at 11:00 PM from the four gunshot wounds.