THE BTK KILLER-DENNIS RADER

An average Joe with a 30 year-old dark secret

Who is the BTK killer?

Dennis Rader named himself the BTK killer because of his method of “bind, torture, kill”

He is responsible for the murders of 10 people in and around Wichita Kansas

He sent many letters and pieces of evidence to the local police and news stations bragging about his killings

He began killing in 1974 and committed his last murder in 1991

He was caught in 2005 after he resumed sending letters to the media in 2004

Childhood

Unlike many serial killers, Rader was born to a seemingly normal family

His was born March 9th, 1945 to William Elvin Rader and Dorothea Mae Rader in Pittsburg Kansas

He grew up in Wichita Kansas and his childhood friends described him as unnoticed, normal, and having a lack of humor

His friends also said that they did not believe there was any way his parents could have abused him and that Radar was a pretty nice guy

After his arrest Rader confesses he knew he was not normal as early as elementary school and was surprised no one discovered this

Early Adulthood

After graduating from Wichita Heights High School, Rader attended Kansas Wesleyan University from 1965-1966

He then spent four years in the U.S. Air Force making his way up to a Sergeant and was even awarded the good conduct medal

In 1971 he married Paula Dietz who he would later have 2 children with

After the Air Force he went to community college earning an associates degree in electronics in 1973 and enrolled in Wichita State University that same year.

At the University he received his bachelors in Administration of Justice

JOBS

From 1965-196 he worked in the meat department for Leeker's IGA in Park City

From 1972-1973 Rader worked at the Coleman Company which created outdoor equipment

From 1974-1988 he worked for ADT Security Services where he learned to get around and deactivate home security systems

In 1989 he worked on the census in Wichita From 1991-2005 Rader worked as the supervisor of the

Compliance Department at Park City. He enjoyed this job because of the power over people it gave him and he was constantly getting on to peoples cases and punishing them for minor faults, he even euthanized a dog for no reason

The BTK Killings

The victims

Julie and Joseph Otero, along with two of their children, Joseph Jr. and Josephine. Strangled in their home in January, 1974.

Kathryn Bright, 21, stabbed to death in her home in April, 1974.

Shirley Vian, 24, tied up and strangled in her home in March, 1977.

Nancy Fox, 25, tied up and strangled in her home in December, 1977.

Vicki Wegerle, 28, strangled in her home in September, 1986.

Marine Hedge, 53, abducted from her home on April 27, 1985.

Delores "Dee" Davis, 62, abducted from her home on January 19, 1991

Motives and Method

The BTK killer was a sadist, he gained pleasure from watching people suffer

He called each killing a different “project” and murdering them completed his sexual fantasies

He would stalk his victim, break into their home, bind them up, and strangle them slowly until they were dead.

In some cases he used plastic bags to cover their heads in others he used his hands to strangle, and in others he used panty hose and ropes

He even brought along a bag which he called his “hit kit” and a change of clothes he called his “hit clothes”

Rader would frequently take mementos like a drivers license or Polaroid's of the dead bodies in bondage

Contact with the Outside World

Not only did Rader hold up different jobs during his murderous life, but he was also a leader in the Christ Lutheran Church and the leader of a Boy Scout’s Troop.

But the “demon” of Rader, BTK, had a different type of contact. His contact was through letters and numerous pieces of evidence and scare tactics.

A Desire for Recognition

During the 1970s he wrote 3 letters to police and media. They are very graphic in order to prove that he committed the crimes. He is very proud and boastful of his ”accomplishments.” In these letters are descriptions of his first 7 murders.

The third letter he had sent was sent to the media and his intended victim with a sketch of what he would have liked to do with her and a poem called “Oh Anna Why Didn’t You Appear”

After a 25 year silence, in 2004 he began contacting the police and media again. Sending out puzzles and evidence like cereal boxes with dolls in bondage, photos, and drivers licenses

In the beginning his letters were full of rage and hurt, he wanted a name for himself, but his later letters were more of a puzzle to get himself caught.

The Arrest

In 2005 Rader sent in a floppy disk to the police department

The disk was traced back to a computer at his church Christ Lutheran, when the preacher was asked who had access to the computer Rader was revealed

Rader’s daughter also sent in her DNA samples after suspecting her father might be the infamous BTK killer. Specialists were then able to match the daughter’s DNA with DNA from the crime scene

Citations

A&E – Documentary Special – The BTK Killer Speaks

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dennis_Rader

http://marriage.about.com/od/infamous/p/dennisrader.htm

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6988048/

http://blogcritics.org/archives/2005/08/05/1745274.php