Tony Hughes Jeffrey Dahmer

Who was Jeffrey Dahmer victim Tony Hughes and where are his family now?

Tony was both deaf and mute


Tony Hughes was one of the 17 men killed by Jeffrey Dahmer. The 31-year-old’s life is portrayed in Netflix’s recent series – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story. The ten-part series shares details of Dahmer’s murders in detail before his arrest in 1991. Tony Hughes is one of his victims who met Dahmer at a gay bar and was lured back into his apartment. Here’s everything we know about Tony Hughes including whether he was actually dating Jeffrey Dahmer like the Netflix show suggests and where his family are now.

Who was Tony Hughes?

Tony Hughes was born in 1960 as Anthony Hughes. As we learn in the Netflix show, Tony permanently lost his hearing as a baby because of the side effects of medicines given to him as a child. Tony was an aspiring model and moved to Madison for college and to break into the fashion and modelling industry. According to Ryan Murphy’s Netflix show, Tony struggled to find a job because he was deaf. He ended up working at a clothes store where he communicated with his manager through sign language.

Tony Hughes also identified as gay and regularly visited gay bars.

What happened to Tony Hughes and what did Jeffrey Dahmer do?

Tony Hughes met serial killer cannibal Jeffrey Dahmer at a Milwaukee gay bar in 1991. Jeffrey Dahmer was a regular at this bar, it’s where he met his victims and lured them back to his apartment with the promise of sex. As shown in the Netflix series and according to sources, Tony agreed to go back with Jeffrey Dahmer.

Once Tony was inside Jeffrey Dahmer’s apartment, Dahmer drugged him and then strangled him to death. Tony’s body was then reportedly dissolved in acid and Dahmer kept his skull.

Were Tony Hughes and Jeffrey Dahmer dating?

The Netflix show depicts a romantic relationship between Jeffrey Dahmer and Tony before the murder, however there’s no real life indication of this actually happening. Some sources have claimed before that Tony’s mother mentioned her son had found a new job two weeks before his murder and Tony apparently told her his employer’s name was Jeffrey.

The following year Jeffrey Dahmer was convicted and sentenced to 16 consecutive life terms in prison. He then died in prison in 1994 after fellow inmate Christopher Scarver killed him.

Where is the family of Tony Hughes now?

Tony’s mother, Shirley Hughes, was interviewed after Jeffrey Dahmer was arrested. She described her son Tony as “cheerful”, “outgoing” and someone who “loved to help others and make friends”.

Shortly after Jeffrey Dahmer’s murders broke into public news, Career Youth Development Inc., a non-profit agency, provided counsellors to help the victims’ families get through their grief. One of those counsellors said Shirley worked hard to pick up her family and find religion. It’s been reported Shirley, alongside Tony’s other family members, lives out of the limelight and have kept alive through prayers and memories of Tony.

Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story is available now on Netflix. For all the latest Netflix news, drops, quizzes and memes like The Holy Church of Netflix on Facebook. 

Feature image via Netflix.

Related stories recommended by this writer:

• Meet Lionel Dahmer, serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer’s dad who is still alive today

• What happened to Joyce Dahmer? The mother of serial killer cannibal Jeffrey Dahmer

• Inside the real life apartment once owned by Jeffrey Dahmer – and if it’s still there now