After a failed attempt on a would-be fourth victim, Eisele was arrested and linked to the previous crimes, to which he subsequently admitted in a written confession published after his hanging in 1868.
He often worked as either a carpenter or woodworker, but was considered to be mediocre at his job, preferring to spend his time at saloons, amassing massive debts in the process.
[2] In the meantime, when Lillenthal's body was discovered, the sheer brutality of it sent the city into a panic, with an innocent black man named Taylor being falsely imprisoned for the crime, but eventually released due to lack of evidence.
[3] Soon after his newfound expenses dried up and he was unable to find a job, Eisele contacted another German merchant, Aloys Ulrich, offering him a lucrative business opportunity in Wheeling.
[2] In the early morning of June 29, after reaching a stone culvert along the Hempfield Railroad, Eisele pulled out his hatchet and started viciously hacking at his companion, decapitating him in the process.
[4] Nevertheless, after finding a case of saddler's needles and a ticket for the steamer Express, authorities narrowed down the decedent's possible identities to two men: basket-weaver John Andrews, who had vanished from Wheeling two weeks prior, or the German merchant Aloys Ulrich.
[5] After allowing his new friend to visit his rented apartment near the railroad depot, Eisele took out his hatchet and hit Tsutor on the back of the head, killing him in one blow.
He was found guilty and sentenced to death, and when the presiding grand jury read out the verdict detailing his crimes, the speaker also remarked how tragic it was that an educated man like Eisele had chosen such a dark path.