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FOCUS Criminal Investigative Analysis in Sex-Related Homicide


Dennis Rader, “The BTK Killer” would stalk his victims prior to the murders to ascertain when they would be alone. His MO was to cut the telephone wires at the victim’s home before entering. He broke into some homes and waited for the victims to return. In one case, he told his victims that he was on the run and needed cash. He told them he would only tie them up so he could make his getaway.


In another case, he pretended to be a student at Wichita State University and carried books to blend into the neighborhood. He also purported to be a detective and carried a briefcase to gain access to another victim’s home. Rader also pretended to be an ADT inspector and a Southwest Bell telephone repairman. Although he used several different MOs, his “Signature” re- mained constant. In each of the cases, he would bind, torture, and kill his victims in a unique and distinctive manner with his bindings. He strangled his victims to death both manually and with ligature. In one case, he strangled the young woman unconscious and then brought her back and told her he was “BTK” as he tightened the belt around to kill her. He would then communicate with authorities and taunt them with fan- tasy drawings and communications that he personalized with his BTK symbol.


Rader kept all of the color Polaroid™ photos of his victims along with his fantasy drawings and his original communications to au-


thorities. He also kept “trophies” of his conquests in the form of jewelry and personal items taken from his victims so he could fan- tasize and re-live the murders in a secret location that he referenced as his “Mother Lode.” Dennis Rader’s activities are an excellent example of the “Signature” aspect of the violent sexual predator. Offenders who engage in sexual activities do leave unique signatures, which allow law enforcement to link their crimes and similar events. Although the rituals may not be exactly the same or identical in nature to the behavior of the offender with his victim, the sexual theme will be consistent. The investiga- tive question is, “What did the offender do that went beyond that necessary to commit the crime?”


As a homicide investigator, you should focus on the similari- ties of cases as you develop an investigative hypothesis. If you have a second victim killed in a similar fashion with an MO and Signature that is consistent with the other case, then you must think of the possibility of a serial killer.


Commander Vernon J. Geberth, M.S., M.P.S., is a homicide and forensic consultant and the former commander of NYPD’s Bronx Homicide.


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30 LAW and ORDER I June 2015


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