1972

Events

 * March 4 - Jean-Bédel Bokassa declares himself President-for-life of the Central African Republic.
 * June 17 - The Watergate scandal: Five men break into the Democratic National Committee (DNC) headquarters at the Watergate Office Building in Washington, D.C. on the orders of Richard Nixon in an attempt to sabotage the Democratic Party.
 * September 5 - The last murder attributed to the Freeway Phantom takes place when the body of Diane Denise Williams is discovered dumped alongside I-295, just south of the District line in Washington D.C.
 * September 5 to 6 - The Munich Massacre takes place: during the 1972 Summer Olympics, the Palestinian terrorist group Black September takes eleven Israeli Olympic team members hostage and kills them along with a West German police officer.
 * September 23 - President of the Philippines Ferdinand Marcos declares martial law.
 * October 5 - The National Rally is founded.
 * December 4 - 7-year Steven Stayner is abducted in Merced, California by child molester Kenneth Parnell. He would remain held captive for 7 years.
 * December 28 - Kim Il-sung is sworn in as the first President of North Korea.

Births

 * February 6 - Lev Parnas
 * June 1 - Mokhtar Belmokhtar
 * June 25 - Saif al-Islam Gaddafi
 * August 14 - Hani Hanjour
 * September 4 - Robert Bowers
 * October 24 - Scott Peterson

Villain deaths

 * March 8 - Erich von dem Bach-Zelewski
 * May 2 - J. Edgar Hoover
 * May 6 - Deniz Gezmiş
 * May 31 - Lee Roy Martin
 * September 6 - Luttif Afif
 * December 21 - Paul Hausser

Victim deaths

 * September 5 - Diane Denise Williams