Top 10 Most Likely Scranton Strangler Suspects on The Office

On the surface, Toby Flenderson seems like the very last character to commit such horrendous acts of violence and crime. Throughout the show, he's often seen as a shy, timid, soft-spoken, mild-mannered sad sack who distances himself from the rest of his coworkers at Dunder Mifflin. He generally gets along well with everyone in The Office, including Michael, who openly hates him.

However, while he may appear this way on the outside, we can only imagine the amount of blood that boils inside of him. His boss hates him, his wife divorced him, he struggles to connect with his daughter, the women he tries to approach are taken, and any ounce of enjoyment he gets is destroyed by Michael. All of this could easily culminate in the need to strangle people as a way to let out his pent-up frustrations.

Towards the end of Season 5, Toby briefly moves away to Costa Rica, most likely in an effort to pursue a new life filled with happiness. This is cut short when Toby suffers a neck injury from a zip-lining accident and is quickly sent back to Scranton. During that time, Pam is pregnant with her first child, Cece. Toby has made it well known that he has feelings for Pam, which Pam, unfortunately, doesn't reciprocate. As soon as Toby returns from Costa Rica, we get our first mention of the Scranton Strangler at the beginning of Season 6. The timing fits in weirdly well with Toby's trip to Costa Rica and Pam's pregnancy. You can expect a lot of weird timing and coincidences regarding Toby in the coming episodes.

The Scranton Strangler isn't mentioned again until Season 7, Episode 8, "The Viewing Party." At the very beginning, everyone in The Office is huddled around a computer screen watching a live police chase with the Scranton Strangler - everyone except Toby Flenderson. To make matters even weirder, the phone near Toby's desk rings while this is happening. Usually, calls are supposed to be delivered to reception. Because of this, it's widely speculated that... more

While I'm convinced that Toby is the Scranton Strangler, I also think that Gabe is a very likely suspect. He has some factors going for him.

Firstly, Gabe is introduced in Season 6 after the merge with Sabre, the very same season in which the Scranton Strangler is first mentioned. Throughout his time at Dunder Mifflin, Gabe is often the target of ridicule, arguably even more so than Toby. Strangling people could be his way of releasing his frustrations from working with his colleagues.

Gabe also has apparent anger issues, clearly shown when he confronts Andy about trying to set himself up with Erin. From this point onward, Gabe and Andy have a sort of rivalry, and it's clear Gabe sees Andy as his worst enemy.

Although Gabe has the incentives to be the Strangler, one thing makes me question his involvement. He was present at Dunder Mifflin during the police chase. Unless he paid someone to distract the cops, it's unlikely Gabe was behind it. Still, it's worth mentioning the evidence in favor of Gabe, even if it's relatively small.

Creed is another common suspect when it comes to being the Strangler, and I certainly think it's possible, if only for the fact that Creed himself is this strange enigma within the office capable of doing anything he truly desires. A few pieces of evidence that could point to Creed's suspiciousness are his overall demeanor and how he reacts to certain situations.

During a Halloween episode, Creed "dressed up" in an outfit with blood stains on it. It's revealed that those blood stains are actually real, and he simply forgot it was Halloween. Another interesting piece of information is that Creed has admitted that he has multiple different identities. This leads to a completely separate theory that Creed Bratton isn't actually his name, but rather an identity he stole from someone he killed. Lastly, the real Creed Bratton (the actor) has claimed that Creed is the Scranton Strangler. While he's most likely teasing the audience, it's certainly possible that Creed could very well be the Strangler.

However, while the evidence is compelling, there are still some aspects I'm not completely sold on. Firstly, it's possible that none of the events Creed often talks about actually happened and are rather a result of him being incredibly senile. Another interesting aspect is that Paul Lieberstein, Toby's actor, claimed that the Strangler didn't actually kill anybody, but rather strangled people until they passed out. This statement contradicts a lot of major evidence that could have pointed to Creed.

Additionally, Creed was present during the car chase. Much like Gabe, unless he was able to pay someone to distract the cops, it's very unlikely he actually did it. Still, I wouldn't completely count out Creed given his mysterious nature, and I'd say it's still possible despite my few doubts.

An underrated suspect, but I'm willing to believe David Wallace has the potential to be the Strangler as well. Like Toby and Gabe, the timing fits oddly well with David. He was fired near the end of Season 5, and Sabre wasn't introduced until the beginning of Season 6, which is the same season the Scranton Strangler is first mentioned.

In a later episode, we see a bit of David's post-Dunder Mifflin life. His wife had divorced him, leaving him alone as his life fell apart. This makes it plausible that David saw strangling people as a coping mechanism for his hardships. On top of that, even David Wallace's actor believes he is capable of being the Strangler, further lending credibility to the theory.

While I think it's possible, the Scranton Strangler is still mentioned in Season 9, despite David Wallace having bought back the company from Sabre. This gives him less of an incentive to strangle, knowing he has his life back on track. Hearing more about the Strangler during this time lessens the credibility of this theory. I wouldn't completely rule out the possibility, though. He may very well be the Strangler.