00:00:13
Our episodes deal with serious and often
00:00:15
distressing incidents. If you feel at
00:00:18
any time you need support, please
00:00:20
contact your local crisis center. For
00:00:23
suggested phone numbers, for
00:00:24
confidential support, and for a more
00:00:27
detailed list of content warnings,
00:00:29
please see the show notes for this
00:00:31
episode on your app or on our website.
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Today's episode involves crimes against
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children and won't be suitable for all
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listeners.
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What is this that I can see? Cold, icy
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hands taking hold of me.
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The death has come. You all can see hell
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has opened its gate to trick me.
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Oh death. Oh death, can't you spare me
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over for another year?
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I'll stuff your jaws till you can't
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talk. I'll bind your legs till you can't
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walk. I'll tie your hands till you can't
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make a stand. And finally, I'll close
00:01:14
your eyes so you can't see.
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I'll bring sexual death unto you for me.
00:01:45
The poem arrived on Friday, February 10,
00:01:48
1978,
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2 months after the murder of Nancy Fox.
00:01:53
It was delivered in an envelope
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addressed to the studio office of local
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Kansas news television station Cake TV
00:02:01
titled Oh Death to Nancy. The poem was a
00:02:05
twisted parody of the folk song Oh Death
00:02:08
in which a man pleads with the grim
00:02:09
reaper to spare his life.
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Listed four times along the left margin
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were the letters BTK, each paired with a
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small handdrawn hangman's noose. He had
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also included a highly detailed sketch
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of a partially naked woman bound face
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down on a bed depicting Nancy Fox's body
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with striking accuracy.
00:02:33
The scene was further brought to life in
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an accompanying two-page typewritten
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letter marked by BTK's characteristic
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poor spelling and grammar.
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It described the layout of NY's
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apartment, the clothes she was wearing,
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how her body was positioned and
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restrained, and the condition of her
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belongings, including the theft of her
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driver's license.
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These were details only NY's killer
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could have known.
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The letter contained unreported details
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from Shirley Vianne's crime scene as
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well.
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BTK claimed responsibility for Shirley's
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murder, too, admitting he had planned to
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kill Shirley's three young children by
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suffocating the boys with plastic bags
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and hanging the girl.
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He lamented that it would have been a
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quote beautiful sexual relief to do so
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before describing in obscene detail the
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pleasure he took in killing 11-year-old
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Josie Oro the same way.
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Ultimately, he said he gave up the idea
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of killing Shirley's children only
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because the ringing telephone spooked
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him.
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Fearing the unanswered call might prompt
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someone to visit the house and check in
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on the family, he ended his plans
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prematurely to secure his escape.
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BTK expressed frustration that a poem he
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claimed to have previously sent to the
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Witcher Eagle about Shirley Vanne hadn't
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received media attention.
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I find the newspaper not writing about
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the poem on Venne unamusing, he wrote. A
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little paragraph would have been enough.
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I know it's not the news media's fault.
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He went on to blame police chief Richard
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Lemonan for the lack of coverage, even
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though neither he nor anyone at the
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Eagle's office had any knowledge of the
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supposed poem.
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The police chief, he keeps things quiet
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and doesn't let the public know there is
00:04:34
a psycho running around loose,
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strangling mostly women, BTK complained.
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Following this revelation, staff at the
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Witcher Eagle reviewed all their
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recently received mail.
00:04:47
In the classified advertising
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department's dead letter pile, they
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found a 3x5 in index card which had
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arrived 9 days earlier.
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Stamped onto it with the children's
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rubber letter kit was a short, poorly
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written poem.
00:05:03
It was an adaptation of the children's
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nursery rhyme Curly Locks about a girl
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who gets lost in the woods and befriends
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three bears who live in a cabin.
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The index card version referenced
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Shirley Venne.
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Shirleys Shirleys wilt to thou be mine?
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Thou shalt not scream nor yet flee the
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line, but lay on cushion and think of me
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and death and how it's going to be.
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signed BTK. It was followed by a
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postcript stating, "Poem for Fox next."
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Given that the card didn't list a
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specific department or recipient of the
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Eagle, it had been inspected by a cler
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in the mail room. They assumed it was a
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cryptic Valentine's poem intended for
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the personal section in the papers
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upcoming February 14 edition.
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The card was forwarded to classified
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advertising, but as it lacked the
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required payment for publication, it was
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ultimately discarded into the dead
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letter pile.
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In the Cake TV letter, BTK attempted to
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offer an explanation for his crimes.
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"You don't understand," he wrote.
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"Because you're not under the influence
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of Factor Rex."
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He blamed his actions on this vague,
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seemingly supernatural force, claiming
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it had also driven many other killers,
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including Jack the Ripper, Son of Sam,
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and the Boston Strangler.
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BTK appeared to draw inspiration from
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these other notorious killers. His
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crimes echoed aspects of theirs, and
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they too had taunted police through
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their writings.
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In the words of one psychiatrist,
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each of them chose to share themselves
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with society in their own ways to
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imprint themselves on history.
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BTK claimed the only cure for Factor X
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was death or being caught and put away.
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He described living with it as a
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terrible nightmare, yet noted he didn't
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lose any sleep over it.
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The letter ended with BTK proposing a
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list of names he wished to be known by.
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His first suggestion was the BTK
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Strangler, followed by alternatives such
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as Witchita Strangler, Poetic Strangler,
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and Bondage Strangler.
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He also offered darker monikers,
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including the Witcher hangman or
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executioner, the Garrett Phantom, the
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esphyxiator, or simply just psycho.
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But it was two specific lines in his
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letter that drew the most alarm.
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One read, "There are seven in the
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ground. Who will be next?" The other
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said, "Seven down and many more to go."
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But the four members of the Otero
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family, in addition to Shirley Venne and
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Nancy Fox, accounted for just six
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victims.
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When it came to his unnamed seventh
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victim, BTK wrote,
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"You guess motive and victim."
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Police Chief Richard Lemonan read BTK's
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latest letter slowly and silently.
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It was clear the man behind the persona
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relished not only notoriety and fear,
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but also took pleasure in taunting the
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police by turning his unidentified
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victim into a puzzle he dared them to
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solve.
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The way he numbered his known victims
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suggested that this murder had occurred
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after the Oteros, but before Shirley
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Vennean
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began reviewing homicides from this
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3-year 2-month period, which had
00:08:52
previously been considered a hiatus for
00:08:54
the killer.
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He found that just 3 months after the
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Otero murders, an incident occurred that
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in hindsight bore several familiar
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hallmarks.
00:09:06
After midday on Thursday, April 4, 1974,
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21-year-old Katherine Bride arrived at
00:09:13
her home on East 13th Street in
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Northeast Witchah with her 19-year-old
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brother, Kevin.
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Kevin had spent the previous night at
00:09:22
Catherine's house to avoid having to
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drive through recent snowfall.
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As they entered the dwelling, the
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siblings were laughing about a joke
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Catherine had told. They moved down a
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hallway and past a bedroom when a voice
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startled them. Hold it right there.
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Waiting for them was a man the siblings
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had never seen before. He was white,
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approximately 25 to 28 years old, just
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under 6 ft tall, and looked to weigh
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around 180 lb. He had a few days worth
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of stubble with a thick mustache that
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reached the corners of his mouth. A
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yellow and black stocking cap covered
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his head and a silver wristwatch with an
00:10:06
expansion band was visible on his left
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wrist.
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He brandished an automatic pistol with
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gloved hands while a revolver sat
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holstered in a shoulder rig on his left
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side.
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Catherine demanded to know who the man
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was and what he was doing in her home.
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He claimed he was wanted in California
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and needed provisions, specifically a
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car, money, and firearms to make a clean
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getaway to New York.
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The words the man used struck Kevin as
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odd. He spoke as if he was reading from
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a turn of the century detective novel,
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sounding far more polished and
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intelligent than his backstory implied.
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People just don't say provisions when
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they mean food or firearms when they
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mean guns, Kevin thought.
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Stranger still, the man thought he
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recognized Kevin.
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Don't I know you? I think I've seen you
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up by the university, he asked,
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seemingly in reference to Witchita State
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University.
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There was little conversation after
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that.
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The man told Catherine and Kevin he was
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going to tie them up, but assured them
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they wouldn't be hurt. He said he was
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only there to rob them and would leave
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once he had what he needed.
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Because he hadn't brought anything to
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bind the siblings, the man rummaged
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through a dresser and collected
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bandanas, belts, scarves, pantyhos, and
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t-shirts.
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He then led them into another room and
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ordered Kevin to tie Catherine to a
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chair.
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Afterwards, he forced Kevin into a front
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bedroom, and ordered him to lie face
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down on the floor.
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The man tied Kevin's hands behind his
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back, stuffed a washcloth into his
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mouth, and then secured it with a scarf
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before leaving the room.
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Kevin heard the man rifling through the
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house, presumably searching for money.
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At one point, he turned a radio up so
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loud that it drowned out almost all
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other noise.
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Minutes later, the man returned to Kevin
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and asked if he thought he could untie
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himself.
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Gagged, Kevin couldn't answer. The man
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then looped a pair of pantyhose around
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Kevin's neck and pulled tight.
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As Kevin felt his life slipping away, he
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thrashed desperately and managed to free
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his hands. He stood and charged at the
00:12:34
man who quickly raised his pistol and
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fired.
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The bullet hit Kevin, dropping him to
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the floor as blood pulled around his
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head.
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The gunman then fled the room.
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From across the house, Catherine
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screamed, "What have you done to my
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brother?"
00:12:55
The man eventually returned to Kevin
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only to discover that he was still
00:12:59
alive. The bullet had only grazed his
00:13:02
forehead. A violent struggle ensued as
00:13:06
the man attempted to strangle Kevin
00:13:08
again.
00:13:10
Kevin clawed at the revolver in the
00:13:11
man's shoulder holster and had almost
00:13:14
wedged his finger against the trigger
00:13:16
when the man drew his pistol and shot
00:13:18
Kevin again.
00:13:20
Kevin went limp as blood gushed from
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another wound in his head. By this
00:13:25
point, the man had lost all control and
00:13:28
composure.
00:13:29
Sweat dripped down his tired face.
00:13:33
Believing Kevin was finally dead, he
00:13:36
left the room once more.
00:13:39
Against all odds, Kevin was still alive.
00:13:44
The second bullet had struck his upper
00:13:46
jaw, knocking out two teeth.
00:13:49
He lay still, playing dead until he
00:13:52
heard his sister moaning in distress in
00:13:54
the other room.
00:13:56
Kevin tried to formulate a plan. Despite
00:14:00
the reassurances the intruder had given
00:14:02
them, it was clear he had intended to
00:14:04
kill them both from the very beginning.
00:14:08
Kevin knew he was unlikely to survive
00:14:10
another confrontation in his condition.
00:14:14
Summoning the little strength he had
00:14:16
left, Kevin got up and snuck out the
00:14:19
front door. He ran out onto the street
00:14:22
and flagged down a passing car.
00:14:25
bleeding from the head with a pair of
00:14:27
panty hoes still around his neck. Kevin
00:14:29
told the two men inside the car about
00:14:31
the gunman.
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He's in there now doing a number on my
00:14:36
sister. Please help me, he cried.
00:14:40
The driver rushed Kevin to the hospital
00:14:42
while the passenger went to call 911.
00:14:46
Police radios crackled with reports of a
00:14:49
resident's robbery in progress as
00:14:51
officers Dennis Landon and Raymond
00:14:53
Fletcher raced to the scene.
00:14:56
Catherine's house was still and silent
00:14:58
when Officer Fletcher approached the
00:15:00
front door and knocked.
00:15:02
Meanwhile, Officer Landon went to the
00:15:05
rear of the property and noticed the
00:15:07
glass in a back door was broken,
00:15:09
revealing the intruder's entry point.
00:15:12
As Landon moved into the house, he cited
00:15:15
a young woman lying face down in a pool
00:15:17
of blood outside a bedroom.
00:15:21
It was Katherine Bright. She was cold
00:15:24
and clammy, and her face was tinged with
00:15:26
a bluish hue.
00:15:28
Panty hose was tied tightly around her
00:15:31
ankles, and another pair secured her
00:15:33
wrists. A blue scarf and a length of
00:15:36
white rope were looped loosely around
00:15:38
her neck and tangled in her hair.
00:15:42
Officer Landon carefully rolled
00:15:44
Catherine over.
00:15:46
She was still alive and begged him to
00:15:48
untie her legs.
00:15:50
Landon cut through the panty hose using
00:15:52
a pocketk knife and officer Fletcher
00:15:54
arrived as an ambulance was summoned.
00:15:58
With Catherine teetering on the edge of
00:16:00
consciousness, the two officers
00:16:02
questioned her to gather as much
00:16:04
information as possible.
00:16:06
When asked what had happened, Catherine
00:16:08
lifted her blouse, revealing several
00:16:11
open wounds in her abdomen.
00:16:13
The officers pressed kitchen rags to the
00:16:16
injuries and elevated Catherine's legs.
00:16:19
She managed to tell them that she didn't
00:16:21
know her attacker, who had since fled.
00:16:25
At one point, Catherine grabbed
00:16:26
Fletcher's arm and repeated, "I can't
00:16:30
breathe. Help me."
00:16:33
He tried to keep her calm, but her
00:16:35
pupils remained fixed and blank, and her
00:16:37
breathing grew increasingly shallow.
00:16:43
Catherine had been stabbed five times in
00:16:46
the front and twice in the back.
00:16:49
She muttered, "One more, help me." As
00:16:51
she was taken into surgery, but died of
00:16:54
her injuries while on the operating
00:16:55
table.
00:16:57
Despite being shot twice in the head,
00:17:00
her brother Kevin miraculously survived.
00:17:04
The crime scene suggested a violent
00:17:06
robbery. Yet, something about it didn't
00:17:08
quite add up. The contents of
00:17:11
Catherine's purse were scattered beneath
00:17:13
a table in the entryway, and several of
00:17:15
her dresser drawers had been rifled
00:17:17
through. Yet, nothing appeared to be
00:17:19
missing.
00:17:21
Kevin's recollections allowed
00:17:22
investigators to create a suspect
00:17:24
sketch, but it didn't match any
00:17:26
offenders wanted in California.
00:17:30
When no leads emerged, a $5,000 reward
00:17:33
was offered, and the case was added to
00:17:35
the secret witness program alongside the
00:17:38
still unsolved Otero murders.
00:17:41
Investigators did consider whether the
00:17:43
two cases were linked as both involved
00:17:46
fatal home invasions, but the
00:17:48
differences made any connections
00:17:49
extremely tenuous.
00:17:52
The Otero killer brought his own
00:17:54
restraints, whereas Catherine and Kevin
00:17:56
were bound with items from Catherine's
00:17:58
home. Even the knots differed with clove
00:18:02
hitches used on the Otteros and granny
00:18:04
knots for the Brightes.
00:18:07
The killer broke into the Bright
00:18:08
residence and lay in wait whereas he
00:18:10
entered the Otto home when the family
00:18:12
was present.
00:18:14
Catherine's phone lines were intact and
00:18:17
the bright scene contained no sexual
00:18:19
undertones while none of theos had been
00:18:22
shot or stabbed.
00:18:25
Coincidentally, police officer Raymond
00:18:27
Fletcher, one of the first responders at
00:18:29
the bright scene, was also the first to
00:18:32
arrive at Shirley Van's murder 3 years
00:18:34
later.
00:18:36
While Fletcher immediately recognized
00:18:38
Shirley as likely being a victim of BTK,
00:18:41
he didn't draw the same conclusion with
00:18:43
Catherine.
00:18:45
In the letter sent to Cake TV following
00:18:47
the murder of Nancy Fox, BTK taunted.
00:18:52
Did the cops think that all those deaths
00:18:54
are not related? Golly G. Yes, the MO is
00:18:58
different in each, but look, a pattern
00:19:01
is developing.
00:19:03
The victims are tied up. Most have been
00:19:05
women. Phone cut. Bring some bondage.
00:19:09
Sadist tendencies. No struggle. Outside
00:19:12
the death spot. No witnesses except
00:19:15
Vianne's kids.
00:19:18
Police Chief Richard Lmanion deduced
00:19:20
that Catherine Bright was likely BTK's
00:19:23
unknown victim.
00:19:25
While the pattern was evident, it was
00:19:28
incomplete.
00:19:29
It appeared that BTK had intended to
00:19:32
carry out his signature killing, but
00:19:34
when Kevin Bride escaped, the plan was
00:19:36
cut short. Much like what happened with
00:19:38
Shirley Vanne,
00:19:40
he likely altered his methods in
00:19:42
subsequent killings, such as abandoning
00:19:44
the use of a knife to avoid being linked
00:19:47
back to the Bright case.
00:19:50
Lemanion suspected BTK had avoided
00:19:52
naming Catherine in his letter, not
00:19:54
merely as a part of a depraved guessing
00:19:56
game with authorities, but because the
00:19:58
crime had been sloppy and riddled with
00:20:01
mistakes.
00:20:03
Most significantly, Kevin's survival
00:20:05
presented a major threat.
00:20:08
He provided a reliable and credible
00:20:10
account of his sister's murder,
00:20:12
including a detailed physical
00:20:14
description of her killer and his
00:20:16
possible connection to Witchah State
00:20:18
University.
00:20:21
How many do I have to kill before I get
00:20:23
a name in the paper or some national
00:20:25
attention? BTK threatened in his Cake TV
00:20:28
letter.
00:20:30
Up until that point, Chief Lemonion had
00:20:32
kept news of the serial killer under
00:20:34
wraps to maintain order. But now with
00:20:38
seven confirmed victims and threats of
00:20:41
more, Lunan spoke with Cake TV's news
00:20:44
director.
00:20:46
He fully expected the chief to urge him
00:20:48
to bury the story entirely. But to his
00:20:51
surprise, Lemanion said, "For the good
00:20:55
of everybody, it's time we tell what we
00:20:58
know.
00:20:59
We've got to warn people.
00:21:08
That evening, Chief Lemonan held a press
00:21:10
conference in which he announced,
00:21:13
"The purpose of this news conference is
00:21:15
to advise the public of an extremely
00:21:17
serious matter involving a series of
00:21:19
murders which have occurred in our city.
00:21:22
This person has consistently identified
00:21:24
himself with the initials BTK and wishes
00:21:27
to be known as the BTK strangler."
00:21:31
The decision for the police to
00:21:33
officially go public with the news of
00:21:35
BTK had its detractors. Even Lmanion had
00:21:38
doubts.
00:21:40
If BTK struck again, the chief worried
00:21:43
he would be blamed for provoking him
00:21:45
through the publicity.
00:21:47
Yet, he faced seven unsolved murders and
00:21:50
the public remained oblivious to the
00:21:52
danger.
00:21:54
Before the conference, Lemanion
00:21:56
consulted several psychologists to
00:21:58
determine whether publicly announcing
00:22:00
the case might prompt a BTK to
00:22:02
communicate again and provide valuable
00:22:04
intelligence.
00:22:06
Their guidance persuaded him to move
00:22:08
forward.
00:22:11
Calmly and with resolve, Lemanion
00:22:13
informed the people of Witchita that a
00:22:16
serial killer was among them.
00:22:19
He also addressed the difficult question
00:22:21
of why news of BTK had been withheld for
00:22:24
so long.
00:22:26
We felt the lack of news coverage would
00:22:28
forall any more killings. That was what
00:22:31
was hoped at the time, he admitted
00:22:34
before adding that investigators were
00:22:36
never fully certain all the murders were
00:22:38
connected until recently.
00:22:41
There were of course very definite
00:22:43
similarities, but at the same time there
00:22:46
were very significant differences.
00:22:50
Lemonan explained that the police had
00:22:52
every reason to believe BTK had the
00:22:55
capability to kill again, but they
00:22:57
didn't know if, when, or where he might
00:23:00
strike next.
00:23:02
Worse still, they had no worthwhile
00:23:04
leads or suspects. He urged residents to
00:23:08
remain vigilant.
00:23:11
After murdering Nancy Fox, BTK wrote
00:23:14
that he simply went home and carried on
00:23:16
with his life, quote, "Like anyone
00:23:18
else."
00:23:20
He went on to warn
00:23:23
and I will be like that until the urge
00:23:25
hits me again.
00:23:31
Based on this information, Lmanionan
00:23:33
emphasized that BTK wouldn't appear to
00:23:35
be an obvious monster within their
00:23:37
community, nor would he seem insane. He
00:23:41
would be hiding in plain sight, living a
00:23:43
seemingly normal life outside of his
00:23:45
crimes and appearing like any ordinary
00:23:48
man in every respect.
00:23:50
A psychologist agreed, explaining, "I
00:23:54
don't think one could get very close to
00:23:56
the guy, but he might not appear
00:23:58
particularly different superficially."
00:24:02
FBI criminal profilers suspected BTK was
00:24:05
a lone wolf in his mid30s who performed
00:24:08
well at work, but rarely stayed in one
00:24:11
job as he disliked being told what to
00:24:13
do.
00:24:15
He likely had military training and an
00:24:17
interest in law enforcement, reading
00:24:19
detective magazines that gave insight
00:24:21
into police procedures and ways to avoid
00:24:24
detection.
00:24:25
He would criticize the BTK investigation
00:24:28
in casual conversations and would be
00:24:30
known to drive around frequently.
00:24:34
Profilers believed he likely lived
00:24:36
within a few miles of the crime scenes
00:24:38
and might have known one or more of the
00:24:40
Oteros personally.
00:24:43
In his private life, BTK likely consumed
00:24:46
pornography and engaged in sedom
00:24:48
masochistic acts involving both the
00:24:51
infliction and reception of pain.
00:24:54
While he clearly derived sexual
00:24:56
gratification from torture, it was
00:24:58
notable that he hadn't committed rape.
00:25:01
As a killer, he was controlling and
00:25:04
sadistic.
00:25:06
Megalamania was the term used to
00:25:08
describe him, someone gripped by
00:25:10
delusions of grandeur and power.
00:25:13
He dared people to catch him almost as
00:25:15
if he wanted to get caught yet was
00:25:17
exhilarated by the chase. One
00:25:20
psychologist emphasized
00:25:23
the unfortunate part of this is that he
00:25:25
is stimulated by publicity.
00:25:29
Much to his embarrassment, police chief
00:25:31
Richard Lemonan admitted that
00:25:33
authorities didn't know how to stop BTK.
00:25:37
Research from the FBI indicated that
00:25:39
serial killers were extraordinarily
00:25:41
difficult to catch.
00:25:44
Most of the time it was a game of
00:25:45
waiting and hoping. Waiting for the
00:25:48
killer to strike again and hoping they
00:25:51
made a mistake.
00:25:53
I'll say this about BTK. Lemanion said
00:25:57
he's very good. He doesn't leave much
00:25:59
behind for us to work with.
00:26:05
To anticipate BTK's next possible
00:26:07
target, investigators attempted to
00:26:09
create a victim profile.
00:26:12
All the murders had occurred within a 3
00:26:14
and 1/2 mile radius in Witchita's East,
00:26:17
suggesting the killer was intimately
00:26:19
familiar with the area and likely
00:26:21
considered it his home turf.
00:26:24
His victims were analyzed for similar
00:26:26
characteristics, including details as
00:26:29
specific as eye color, but they varied
00:26:31
widely.
00:26:33
However, several of his victims wore eye
00:26:36
glasses.
00:26:37
BTK had even mentioned 11-year-old Josie
00:26:40
Otero's glasses in his first letter and
00:26:43
included Nancy Fox's glasses in the
00:26:45
sketch depicting her murder,
00:26:48
thinking they might hold particular
00:26:50
significance. This gave police an idea.
00:26:55
Given that BTK had sent a letter to Cake
00:26:58
TV, it was likely he watched their
00:27:01
broadcasts.
00:27:03
Chief Lemanion arranged to discuss the
00:27:05
case on their newscast during which an
00:27:07
image flashed on the screen for a
00:27:09
fraction of a second.
00:27:12
It showed Nancy Fox's eyeglasses exactly
00:27:15
as BTK had sketched them accompanied by
00:27:18
the words, "Now call the chief."
00:27:22
The subliminal message was intended to
00:27:24
entice BTK to respond.
00:27:27
While many viewers saw it and contacted
00:27:30
police, BTK did not.
00:27:34
It marked the first and last time
00:27:36
Witchita police used subliminal
00:27:38
messaging to reach a killer.
00:27:42
Although BTK wasn't speaking to police,
00:27:45
there were countless reports of him
00:27:46
contacting others.
00:27:49
Various households and women received
00:27:51
calls from people announcing, "This is
00:27:54
BTK. You're next."
00:27:57
Although they were deemed cranked, the
00:27:59
calls did little to ease the panic and
00:28:02
distrust gripping Witchita under BTK's
00:28:04
looming presence.
00:28:07
Knowing he had the capacity to
00:28:09
indiscriminately strike anyone, anywhere
00:28:11
through carefully planned attacks or
00:28:14
spontaneous violence, everyone feared
00:28:16
the killer equally.
00:28:19
Men, women, children, and entire
00:28:21
families were at risk.
00:28:24
Witchita's deputy police chief
00:28:26
explained,
00:28:27
"What makes this person so terrifying to
00:28:30
people is that they fear they could be
00:28:32
the next person chosen.
00:28:34
It's this fear of the unknown that makes
00:28:37
the terror so personal and so powerful.
00:28:44
On the night of Saturday, April 28,
00:28:46
1979,
00:28:48
63-year-old widow Anna Williams arrived
00:28:50
at her small two-bedroom home on South
00:28:53
Pinerest Street in Witchita's East.
00:28:56
She had been expected home hours
00:28:58
earlier, but had deviated from her
00:29:00
normal routine, deciding to go square
00:29:03
dancing and then visit her 24-year-old
00:29:06
granddaughter, Rebecca.
00:29:08
Rebecca had planned to accompany Anna to
00:29:10
spend the night at her place, but her
00:29:13
boss had called her in for overtime on
00:29:15
the evening shift.
00:29:17
By the time Anna arrived home alone, it
00:29:20
was around 11 p.m.
00:29:23
In contrast to how she left it, she
00:29:26
noticed the door to her spare bedroom
00:29:28
was a jar.
00:29:30
Inside, the drawers of a dresser had
00:29:32
been opened and clothes were scattered
00:29:34
across the floor.
00:29:36
Someone had stolen jewelry, clothing,
00:29:39
and a sock in which Anna had hidden $35.
00:29:43
Even more disturbing, belts, bindings,
00:29:46
and ropes had been laid out on the bed.
00:29:50
Anna rushed to call the police only to
00:29:52
find her phone line was dead.
00:29:55
Terrified, she ran to a neighbor's house
00:29:58
who called for help.
00:30:00
When officers arrived, they found no
00:30:03
sign of the intruder, but they noticed
00:30:05
Anna's phone line had been cut and her
00:30:07
basement window had been broken into.
00:30:12
The following month, Anna received a
00:30:14
package in the mail.
00:30:16
It was addressed to her deceased
00:30:18
husband, his name spelled out in big
00:30:21
block letters.
00:30:23
Inside were various items, including a
00:30:26
scarf and a piece of jewelry stolen from
00:30:28
Anna's home during the April burglary.
00:30:32
There was also a drawing of a bound and
00:30:34
gagged woman on a bed, naked, except for
00:30:37
a pair of panty hoes.
00:30:39
Her hands and feet were tied to a pole
00:30:41
in a manner reminiscent of how safari
00:30:44
hunters trust a big game, and designed
00:30:46
so that any struggle to free herself
00:30:48
would only tighten her restraints.
00:30:52
There was also a poem originally
00:30:54
addressed to someone named Lois, but the
00:30:57
name had been crossed out and replaced
00:31:00
with Anna.
00:31:01
Riddled with typos, the poem was titled,
00:31:05
"Oh, Anna, why didn't you appear and
00:31:08
referred to her within the text by the
00:31:10
letter A."
00:31:13
It was the perfect plan of deviant
00:31:15
pleasure so bold on that spring night.
00:31:18
My inner feeling hot with propension of
00:31:20
the new awakening season. Warm wet with
00:31:24
inner fear and rapture. My pleasure of
00:31:26
entanglement like new vines so tight.
00:31:30
Oh, why didn't you appear?
00:31:35
Drop of fear. Fresh spring rain would
00:31:37
roll down from your nakedness to scent
00:31:39
the lofty fever that burns within. In
00:31:42
that small world of longing, fear,
00:31:45
rapture, and desperation, the games we
00:31:47
play fall on devil's ears.
00:31:51
Fantasy spring forth mounts to storm
00:31:53
fury. Then winter calm at the end.
00:31:57
Olay, why didn't you appear?
00:32:01
Now in another time span I lay with
00:32:04
sweet en raptured garments across most
00:32:06
private thought. Bed of spring moist
00:32:10
grass clean before the sun enslaved with
00:32:13
control warm wind scenting the air.
00:32:16
Sunlight sparkle tears in eyes so deep
00:32:19
and clear.
00:32:21
Alone again I trod in past memory of
00:32:24
mirrors and ponder why you number eight
00:32:27
was not.
00:32:29
O A, why didn't you appear?
00:32:34
The poem was signed with a peculiar
00:32:36
signature.
00:32:38
The letter B had been scrolled sideways
00:32:41
to resemble a pair of eyeglasses with a
00:32:43
T next to it joined to the following K
00:32:46
forming a smile dangling beneath the
00:32:49
glasses.
00:32:50
BTK.
00:32:52
It was the first time he had marked his
00:32:54
correspondence in such a stylized way.
00:32:58
Curiously, a similar package had been
00:33:01
sent to Cake TV.
00:33:04
It contained copies of the OA poem and
00:33:06
the drawing of the restrained woman, as
00:33:09
well as a few other items stolen from
00:33:11
Anna's house.
00:33:14
It was now abundantly clear that it was
00:33:16
BTK who had broken into Anna Williams
00:33:19
home intending to kill.
00:33:22
He must have had knowledge of her
00:33:23
schedule, but because she had made
00:33:25
spontaneous plans that night, she wasn't
00:33:28
home when he expected.
00:33:31
Eventually, he got tired of waiting and
00:33:33
left.
00:33:36
Anna was a perplexing target. At 63, she
00:33:40
was older than BTK's other victims, who
00:33:43
were all under 40.
00:33:45
Investigators wondered whether BTK had
00:33:48
actually intended to target Anna's
00:33:50
24year-old granddaughter, Rebecca, who
00:33:52
would have been with her that night had
00:33:54
she not worked late.
00:33:57
Whatever the case, the close call
00:33:59
rattled Anna, and she fled Kansas as a
00:34:02
result.
00:34:07
BTK had eluded police once again, but at
00:34:10
least he hadn't claimed another life.
00:34:13
He seemed to go dormant after his failed
00:34:16
attack on Anna Williams, leading
00:34:18
investigators to consider whether
00:34:20
personal distractions in his daily life
00:34:22
prevented him from committing crimes
00:34:24
more regularly.
00:34:26
1984 marked the 10th anniversary of the
00:34:29
Otto family killings and the ongoing
00:34:32
cat-and- mouse game between BTK and the
00:34:35
authorities.
00:34:37
But times had changed.
00:34:39
Advancements in technology and forensics
00:34:42
in the new decade were proving
00:34:43
invaluable to police work. Computers
00:34:47
saved thousands of man-hour that were
00:34:49
previously spent searching and comparing
00:34:51
documents while enabling vast amounts of
00:34:54
data to be stored efficiently.
00:34:57
For the first time, police also had the
00:34:59
capability to perform DNA testing.
00:35:04
With these developments opening new
00:35:06
investigative opportunities in cold
00:35:08
cases, police chief Richard Lemonan
00:35:10
handpicked several detectives and
00:35:13
computer consultants to form a secret
00:35:15
task force to re-examine the BTK case. A
00:35:19
recently released film inspired their
00:35:22
code name, The Ghostbusters.
00:35:26
The task force was housed in a dedicated
00:35:28
office off limits to other police
00:35:30
personnel where they spent their first
00:35:32
month painstakingly reading over the
00:35:34
thousands of pages of reports in the BTK
00:35:37
case file. Afterward, they began
00:35:40
reviewing the vast quantities of
00:35:42
evidence stored securely in underground
00:35:44
vaults 50 mi northwest of Witchita.
00:35:48
Every detail of the crime scenes was
00:35:50
scrutinized, while previously ruled out
00:35:53
suspects were reintered.
00:35:56
The audio recording of BTK's 911 call
00:35:59
reporting Nancy Fox's murder was
00:36:01
released publicly.
00:36:04
Investigators wondered whether the
00:36:06
number three appearing in each victim's
00:36:08
house number was more than a
00:36:10
coincidence.
00:36:12
They studied books on numerology,
00:36:14
mythology, witchcraft, and demonology to
00:36:17
explore its possible significance.
00:36:20
They even analyzed the moon phases
00:36:22
during each attack, searching for a
00:36:24
connection.
00:36:27
Advice was sought from interstate
00:36:29
agencies that had recently faced their
00:36:31
own serial killer investigations,
00:36:33
including the detectives who caught Son
00:36:35
of Sam in New York and those still
00:36:38
pursuing the hillside strangler in Los
00:36:40
Angeles.
00:36:41
At one stage, confidential files,
00:36:44
including crime scene photos, were
00:36:46
shared with trusted members of the
00:36:48
press. They weren't meant for
00:36:50
publication. Investigators simply wanted
00:36:53
to see if a fresh set of eyes noticed
00:36:55
something they had overlooked.
00:36:58
BTK's written correspondence remained
00:37:01
one of the case's few substantial clues,
00:37:04
though he had been careful not to lay
00:37:06
fingerprints or DNA on any of them.
00:37:09
All of his letters, except the very
00:37:11
first one, were determined to be photo
00:37:14
copies of an original document.
00:37:17
Some were several generations removed
00:37:19
from the original.
00:37:22
It appeared he had made the copies to
00:37:24
obscure the text to prevent authorities
00:37:26
from identifying the typewriter he had
00:37:28
used, while also preserving the original
00:37:31
as a keepsake.
00:37:34
Photocopters leave toolmark fingerprints
00:37:36
along the edges of each sheet they
00:37:38
process, which can potentially be traced
00:37:41
back to the specific machine used.
00:37:45
BTK had the foresight to trim the
00:37:47
margins of his messages.
00:37:50
Nevertheless, the Ghostbusters became
00:37:53
experts in the hundreds of copiers
00:37:54
available in Witchita, learning
00:37:57
everything about them from their parts
00:37:59
to their ink components.
00:38:01
They studied the types of trees used to
00:38:04
produce different kinds of paper and
00:38:06
learned which companies manufactured
00:38:08
various pulp varieties.
00:38:11
They even analyzed the trace minerals
00:38:13
present in different paper brands, a
00:38:15
byproduct of the fertilizers used on the
00:38:18
trees from which the paper originated.
00:38:22
This line of investigation received a
00:38:24
boost when staff from the US printing
00:38:26
corporation Xerox offered their
00:38:28
expertise.
00:38:30
As pioneers of the photocopier market,
00:38:33
they offered to examine BTK's letters in
00:38:35
their lab and determined that the poem
00:38:38
sent to Anna Williams in 1979 had likely
00:38:41
been copied at the Witchita Public
00:38:43
Library.
00:38:45
It was in this same library that BTK had
00:38:48
hidden his first letter confessing to
00:38:51
the Otero murders.
00:38:54
The poem and letter sent to Cake TV
00:38:56
following Nancy Fox's murder were
00:38:58
definitively traced to a copier located
00:39:01
in the life sciences building at Witchah
00:39:04
State University.
00:39:06
The institution had come up in the case
00:39:09
before when the killer had told Kevin
00:39:11
Bright that he might have seen him on
00:39:13
campus.
00:39:15
The yellow and black stocking cap he
00:39:17
wore during the attack on the Bright
00:39:19
Siblings also echoed the school's
00:39:22
colors.
00:39:23
Furthermore, the text Oh, Death, which
00:39:26
had inspired the Nancy Fox poem, was
00:39:29
found in a textbook used in an American
00:39:31
folklore class there.
00:39:34
However, Witchah State shredded their
00:39:36
student records after 3 years, leaving
00:39:39
no official enrollment information for
00:39:41
1978,
00:39:43
the year the Nancy Fox letter had been
00:39:45
copied on site.
00:39:51
The Ghostbusters began compiling
00:39:53
extensive lists.
00:39:55
They started by cataloging every local
00:39:58
white male fitting BTK's age profile,
00:40:01
dead or alive.
00:40:03
They then tracked men who had lived
00:40:05
within a quarter mile of the Oteros,
00:40:08
Katherine Bright, Shirley Vanne, and
00:40:10
Nancy Fox at the time of their murders.
00:40:13
Those connected to Witchita State
00:40:15
University were included along with
00:40:18
known animal abusers, window peepers,
00:40:20
prison inmates, sex offenders, and men
00:40:23
who owned the type of pistol used
00:40:25
against Kevin Bride.
00:40:28
If a name appeared on two or more of the
00:40:30
lists, it was considered significant.
00:40:34
But this barely narrowed things down as
00:40:37
tens of thousands of men fell into this
00:40:39
category.
00:40:41
One individual appeared in four lists,
00:40:44
while the smallest list contained just
00:40:46
eight names.
00:40:48
These were men who had checked out the
00:40:50
textbook applied engineering mechanics
00:40:52
from the public library around the time
00:40:54
the OTO confession letter had been
00:40:56
hidden within its pages.
00:41:00
Each individual was systematically ruled
00:41:02
out until the total number of names was
00:41:04
narrowed down to 30 men who were living
00:41:07
in Witchita and another 185 who were
00:41:10
living elsewhere.
00:41:12
Two teams of detectives worked 7 days a
00:41:15
week, 12 to 14 hours a day, traveling to
00:41:18
visit each of these men in person.
00:41:21
They collected blood and saliva samples,
00:41:23
searched homes for clues such as
00:41:25
detective magazines or bondage
00:41:27
equipment, and interviewed current and
00:41:30
former wives and partners to determine
00:41:32
if any of the men engaged in Sedo
00:41:34
masochism.
00:41:36
The biological samples were compared to
00:41:39
the seaman left by BTK at the Oro and
00:41:42
Fox crime scenes, but there were no
00:41:44
matches.
00:41:47
The task force didn't relent. They
00:41:49
simply compiled new lists and continued
00:41:52
the search.
00:41:56
At noon on Thursday, December 31, 1987,
00:42:01
Witchita mother of two, Mary Fagger,
00:42:03
returned to her family's one-story brick
00:42:05
ranch home on East 14th Street after
00:42:08
visiting relatives out of town.
00:42:11
The Fagger's gray Volkswagen rabbit was
00:42:13
missing from the driveway.
00:42:16
Mary assumed that her oldest daughter,
00:42:18
16-year-old Kelly, had taken her
00:42:21
9-year-old sister Sher out for a drive.
00:42:25
It wasn't until Mary entered the house
00:42:27
that she realized something was horribly
00:42:29
wrong.
00:42:31
Her 37year-old husband, Philip, lay dead
00:42:34
on the living room floor, having been
00:42:36
shot twice in the back at close range.
00:42:40
When first responders arrived, they
00:42:42
discovered a horrific scene in the
00:42:44
basement.
00:42:46
Beneath the fabric cover of a bubbling
00:42:48
above ground hot tub were the bodies of
00:42:50
Kelly and Sher Fagger.
00:42:53
9-year-old Sher was in her pajamas and
00:42:55
had been bound with half-inch wide black
00:42:58
electricians tape before being strangled
00:43:00
to death and her body then dumped in the
00:43:02
tub.
00:43:04
16-year-old Kelly was naked and had been
00:43:07
esphixxiated, but was still alive when
00:43:09
placed into the 92° hot tub 8 hours
00:43:12
after Sherry.
00:43:15
The lid was then sealed over Kelly,
00:43:17
leaving her to drown.
00:43:21
Rumors swirled in the aftermath of the
00:43:23
killings. Police Chief Richard Lammanion
00:43:26
was quick to assert doubt over any links
00:43:28
between the Fagger murders and any other
00:43:30
unsolved cases.
00:43:32
Instead, police focused on Bill
00:43:34
Butterworth, a contractor who had
00:43:37
recently built the Fagger's sun room.
00:43:40
He was tracked down to Florida after
00:43:42
stealing the Fagger's car, withdrawing
00:43:44
all the money from his bank account, and
00:43:47
buying new clothes.
00:43:50
On Tuesday, January 5, less than a week
00:43:53
after the triple homicide, a letter
00:43:55
arrived at the Fagger residence.
00:43:59
Mary opened it to find a poorly written
00:44:01
anonymous poem titled, "Oh God," he put
00:44:04
Kelly and Sherry in the tub.
00:44:07
It was accompanied by a drawing of a
00:44:09
young girl lying beside a hot tub with
00:44:12
her hands bound behind her and fear
00:44:14
etched across her face.
00:44:17
In the lower right corner was a familiar
00:44:19
symbol, the letter B on its side with a
00:44:23
T and K below, this time forming a
00:44:26
frown.
00:44:28
This marked BTK's first communication in
00:44:32
8 years. However, the letter contained
00:44:35
no insider details of the Fagger
00:44:38
murders, and the drawing was inaccurate,
00:44:40
suggesting it was inspired by news
00:44:42
coverage rather than firstirhand
00:44:44
knowledge.
00:44:46
BTK did not confess or claim
00:44:49
responsibility for the crime. Instead,
00:44:53
he expressed admiration for the family's
00:44:55
alleged killer, Bill Butterworth.
00:45:00
This letter marked an unusual shift for
00:45:02
BTK, who was now composing taunting
00:45:05
verses and illustrations for crimes he
00:45:07
hadn't committed purely to provoke fear,
00:45:10
distress, and uncertainty. His
00:45:13
self-insertion into the Faker case left
00:45:16
his figurative DNA all over it and was
00:45:19
believed to have contributed to Bill
00:45:21
Butterworth's acquitt.
00:45:27
By this point, thousands of man-hour and
00:45:30
hundreds of thousands of taxpayer
00:45:32
dollars had been spent chasing an
00:45:34
overwhelming number of tips, theories,
00:45:37
persons of interest, hoaxes, alleged
00:45:39
confessions, and false correspondents in
00:45:42
the BTK investigation.
00:45:45
Every lead had reached a dead end, and
00:45:47
the case remained stone cold.
00:45:51
Police Chief Richard Lemonan assured the
00:45:53
public the case file wouldn't gather
00:45:55
dust. But behind the scenes, the
00:45:57
Ghostbusters were being reassigned.
00:46:01
Only one detective remained actively
00:46:03
working the case, though he was
00:46:05
periodically pulled away for other
00:46:07
investigations until he was transferred
00:46:09
to the homicide unit.
00:46:12
The 3-year investigation had taken a
00:46:14
heavy toll on the Ghostbusters team, who
00:46:17
felt they had exhausted every lead. Yet,
00:46:20
unanswered questions plagued them daily.
00:46:24
Their relentless work brought fatigue,
00:46:26
self-doubt, and personal strain. They
00:46:30
endured sleepless nights, and some
00:46:32
turned to alcohol to cope. Their family
00:46:35
suffered too, living in constant fear
00:46:38
that BTK might harm them as payback.
00:46:43
This threat became very real for Chief
00:46:45
Lemanion.
00:46:47
During BTK's reign, a parallel
00:46:50
investigation in Witchita targeted a
00:46:52
mysterious individual known only as the
00:46:54
poet.
00:46:56
Some suspected that the poet and BTK
00:46:59
were one and the same, given their
00:47:01
shared interest in writing cryptic,
00:47:03
sexually charged poems about murder.
00:47:06
When the poet sent a letter threatening
00:47:08
Leman's wife, the chief personally
00:47:11
entered the investigation to track down
00:47:13
the elusive figure.
00:47:15
This story is covered in episode 308 of
00:47:18
Case File titled Ruth Finley.
00:47:23
Richard Lemanion had begun his tenure as
00:47:25
police chief determined to catch the
00:47:27
Otero family's killer. Over the years,
00:47:31
he oversaw investigations into three
00:47:33
more BTK victims. Yet, when he stepped
00:47:37
down in 1988, the cases remained
00:47:40
unsolved.
00:47:42
He called it the greatest disappointment
00:47:44
of his 12 years as chief. A devastation
00:47:47
that was shared by the Ghostbusters.
00:47:51
During an interview, one former member
00:47:53
broke down in tears, feeling as if he
00:47:55
had failed young Josie Oro.
00:47:59
Another told the Witchita Eagle, "When I
00:48:02
think of the Ghostbusters, all I can
00:48:04
think of is what a failure it was and
00:48:07
what I didn't do and how I could have
00:48:10
done more. If only I'd been smarter."
00:48:15
As time passed with no word from BTK,
00:48:18
people wondered whether he had moved
00:48:20
away, been incarcerated, confined to a
00:48:23
mental health facility, or had died.
00:48:26
Perhaps he had found a partner willing
00:48:28
to indulge his violent sexual fantasies,
00:48:31
satisfying urges that might otherwise
00:48:33
have driven him to attack others.
00:48:36
Whenever a Witchita homicide bore a hint
00:48:39
of BTK's MMO, questions arose about his
00:48:42
involvement.
00:48:44
But since he never claimed
00:48:45
responsibility, the answer was always
00:48:48
the same.
00:48:50
Maybe, maybe not.
00:48:54
Some held out hope that BTK would
00:48:56
eventually be discovered, perhaps over
00:48:59
something as simple as someone noticing
00:49:01
him wearing Joe's wristwatch.
00:49:04
An investigator who worked on the case
00:49:07
in 1978 was far less optimistic.
00:49:11
He told the Witchita Eagle,
00:49:14
"It's sad to say the only way that we'll
00:49:16
ever find out who this individual is
00:49:19
will have to be a victim."
00:49:23
Another investigator noted, "If the BTK
00:49:27
strangler died tomorrow of natural
00:49:29
causes or some accident, society might
00:49:32
never know who he was."
00:49:36
But if he lived on, one question
00:49:39
remained.
00:49:40
Would he kill again or was he satisfied
00:49:44
to fade away into obscurity?
00:49:53
By the 2000s, life in Witchah had
00:49:56
returned to normal. Those who had lived
00:49:58
through BTK's reign of terror had moved
00:50:01
on with their lives, and the younger
00:50:03
generations didn't even know what the
00:50:05
initials stood for.
00:50:08
As far as police knew, BTK hadn't
00:50:10
claimed any victims since 1977,
00:50:13
and it had been over a decade since he'd
00:50:16
sent any correspondents.
00:50:18
He barely made the news anymore,
00:50:20
appearing only in brief mentions on the
00:50:23
anniversaries of his murders.
00:50:26
One such article appeared in the January
00:50:29
2004 edition of the Witchita Eagle to
00:50:31
mark the 30th anniversary of the
00:50:33
killer's first known crime, the 1974
00:50:36
Otero family quadruple homicide.
00:50:40
The piece suggested that many Witcherans
00:50:42
probably have never heard of BTK, a
00:50:45
claim supported by local lawyer and
00:50:47
criminal justice lecturer Robert Bey.
00:50:51
When Bey referenced the case during his
00:50:53
class, the response surprised him.
00:50:57
I had zero recognition from the
00:50:59
students. Not one of them had heard of
00:51:01
it, he recalled.
00:51:04
This prompted Bey to write a book about
00:51:06
the case slated for release that coming
00:51:09
April.
00:51:10
He predicted it would draw attention,
00:51:13
remarking,
00:51:14
"I'm sure we will be contacted by both
00:51:16
crackpots and well-meaning people who
00:51:19
have little to contribute,
00:51:21
but I do not think we'll be contacted by
00:51:24
BTK."
00:51:27
2 months later, on Friday, March 19,
00:51:30
2004, an envelope arrived at the
00:51:32
Witchita Eagle addressed to the papers
00:51:35
newsroom.
00:51:37
According to the return label, it had
00:51:39
been sent by a man named Bill Thomas
00:51:42
Kilman listing an address on South Old
00:51:45
Manor Road in Witchita.
00:51:48
The newspaper received about 700 pieces
00:51:51
of mail daily, but this one stood out.
00:51:55
Inside was a single sheet of paper that
00:51:58
contained grainy photocopies of several
00:52:00
images, including three Polaroid
00:52:03
photographs depicting a woman bound on
00:52:05
the floor.
00:52:07
At the top of the page was a cryptic
00:52:09
string of stencled letters.
00:52:12
GBS OAP7-
00:52:15
TNL TD
00:52:17
ITBS FAV14.
00:52:22
At first, it was assumed to be just a
00:52:25
senseless, incoherent letter from a
00:52:27
mentally unwell individual, and it was
00:52:29
almost discarded.
00:52:32
But what drew attention was a faint
00:52:34
graffiti-ike symbol in the lower right
00:52:37
corner of the page.
00:52:39
It consisted of a letter B tipped over
00:52:42
to resemble a pair of breasts. Each
00:52:44
curve marked with a dot for a nipple.
00:52:48
Underneath it were the letters T and K
00:52:51
fused together to suggest arms bound
00:52:53
behind the breasts and legs spled wide.
00:52:58
Adding to the unease was the sender's
00:53:00
name.
00:53:02
Bill Thomas Killman bore the initials
00:53:04
BTK and the surname Killman didn't seem
00:53:09
coincidental.
00:53:12
The letter had been postmarked 2 days
00:53:14
earlier on March 17, which happened to
00:53:17
be the 27th anniversary of Shirley Van's
00:53:20
murder.
00:53:21
Newspaper staff found no record of a man
00:53:24
named Bill Thomas Killman in Witchah and
00:53:27
the address he listed on South Old Manor
00:53:29
Road led to a vacant apartment building.
00:53:33
It was assumed to be part of the joke.
00:53:36
Old manor sounded a lot like old man, a
00:53:40
nod to the stage of life BTK would
00:53:43
presumably now be in.
00:53:46
The Polaroid photos of the bound woman
00:53:48
looked disturbingly like crime scene
00:53:50
photographs, but it was quickly pointed
00:53:53
out that the woman's arms were in
00:53:55
different positions across the photos.
00:53:58
In some she was fully clothed, while in
00:54:00
others her top and bra were pushed up to
00:54:03
partially expose her breasts.
00:54:06
Police never moved a body around like
00:54:09
that when documenting a crime scene,
00:54:11
meaning they couldn't possibly be
00:54:13
genuine.
00:54:15
Everything suggested the letter was just
00:54:17
an elaborate, distasteful hoax, hardly
00:54:20
the first in BTK's long history.
00:54:24
Yet, something else stood out. Among the
00:54:28
images of the bound woman was a
00:54:30
photocopy of a Kansas driver's license.
00:54:34
The accompanying photo showed a woman
00:54:36
looking pleasantly at the camera, her
00:54:38
thick, shoulderlength blonde hair and
00:54:40
fringe framing her face.
00:54:43
Her date of birth was listed as March
00:54:46
25, 1958 and her address was on West
00:54:49
13th Street North in Witchita.
00:54:53
Her name was Vicky Wgaly.
00:54:56
The Eagle staff felt a chill run down
00:54:59
their spines.
00:55:06
Over 17 years earlier, late on the
00:55:08
morning of Tuesday, September 16, 1986,
00:55:11
a 911 call was placed from Witchita.
00:55:15
"I think someone has killed my wife,"
00:55:17
the distressed male caller reported,
00:55:20
wailing repeatedly.
00:55:22
"Vicky, Vicky, Vicky! Oh god, no, no,
00:55:27
no."
00:55:29
Two firefighters arrived first on scene,
00:55:32
a multi-story family home on West 13th
00:55:35
Street North.
00:55:37
On the front porch, they found the man
00:55:39
who had called 911, Bill Waggley.
00:55:44
He was punching a wall in anguish,
00:55:46
saying, "If I could have been here 5
00:55:49
minutes earlier, I could have done
00:55:51
something."
00:55:53
Inside the main bedroom, the
00:55:55
firefighters found Bill's wife,
00:55:57
28-year-old Vicky Wgley.
00:56:00
Her body was wedged in a 3-FFT space
00:56:03
between the bed and a television
00:56:04
cabinet.
00:56:06
Her jeans were unzipped and her breasts
00:56:08
were partially exposed with her wrists
00:56:11
tied behind her back.
00:56:13
Her ankles were bound with leather
00:56:15
shoelaces and a deep liature mark
00:56:17
encircled her neck.
00:56:20
Vicki had fought fiercely, clawing some
00:56:23
of her killer's skin under a fingernail,
00:56:25
but she was ultimately overpowered and
00:56:28
strangled with a pair of panty hoes
00:56:30
taken from her own dresser drawer.
00:56:33
Bill Waggley, who was a house painter by
00:56:36
trade, told the police that he had gone
00:56:38
home for lunch that day as he was
00:56:40
working on a site nearby.
00:56:42
Vicki was there with their youngest
00:56:44
child, 2-year-old Brandon, while their
00:56:46
eldest daughter was at school.
00:56:49
As Bill drove home, a gold 1978
00:56:53
Chevrolet Monte Carlo luxury coupe
00:56:55
passed in the opposite direction.
00:56:58
For a moment, Bill thought it was
00:57:00
Vickiy's car as she drove the exact same
00:57:03
vehicle.
00:57:05
But when he saw a tall man alone at the
00:57:07
wheel, he realized he was mistaken.
00:57:12
Upon arriving home, Bill noticed
00:57:14
Vickiy's car was gone, and he found
00:57:16
Brandon alone inside.
00:57:19
Though it wasn't like Vicki to leave
00:57:21
Brandon behind, Bill assumed she had
00:57:24
just stepped out briefly and he waited
00:57:26
for her to return.
00:57:29
When 45 minutes passed with no sign of
00:57:31
her, he searched the house, discovered
00:57:34
her bound body in the bedroom, and
00:57:36
promptly called 911.
00:57:42
Police zeroed in on who they thought was
00:57:44
the most logical suspect in cases like
00:57:47
these. the husband.
00:57:49
They thought that Bill Waggley appeared
00:57:51
suspicious.
00:57:53
He showed little visible emotion, coming
00:57:56
across as cold-hearted, and the fact
00:57:59
that he'd been at home for 45 minutes
00:58:01
before discovering Vickiy's body seemed
00:58:03
like a convenient cover.
00:58:06
Vicky's car was ultimately found within
00:58:08
walking distance of the Waggley home,
00:58:11
parked in a lot next to a meat market.
00:58:14
Nothing was found in or around the
00:58:16
vehicle to indicate that a stranger had
00:58:18
driven it. If the car had been stolen,
00:58:21
and Bill saw it being driven away on his
00:58:24
journey home, investigators wondered how
00:58:27
it had ended up so close by.
00:58:30
Bill took two polygraph tests and failed
00:58:33
both of them.
00:58:35
Realizing he was being viewed as the
00:58:37
prime suspect, Bill refused to cooperate
00:58:40
further with police.
00:58:43
Though there was insufficient evidence
00:58:44
to charge him with Vickiy's murder, many
00:58:47
detectives remained convinced that he
00:58:49
was responsible.
00:58:51
Rumors that Bill had killed his wife
00:58:53
followed him for years to come and his
00:58:56
children were teased for it. Throughout
00:58:59
it all, Bill Waggley maintained his
00:59:01
innocence, consistently asserting that
00:59:04
he had loved Vicki and would never have
00:59:06
harmed her.
00:59:09
Those who knew the family agreed.
00:59:12
In their view, the WGs had a happy
00:59:14
marriage. Their home was always filled
00:59:16
with warmth, laughter, and the
00:59:18
occasional sound of Vickiy's beautiful
00:59:20
piano playing.
00:59:23
Bill had always been a reserved man who
00:59:25
didn't show much emotion, but he
00:59:27
regularly visited his family during his
00:59:29
workday because he enjoyed doing so.
00:59:33
Given that Vicky's body wasn't visible
00:59:35
from the bedroom doorway, it made sense
00:59:37
that he might not have noticed it
00:59:39
immediately.
00:59:41
At the time of Vickiy's murder, the task
00:59:44
force reinvestigating BTK was winding
00:59:46
down, though a few detectives had
00:59:49
visited the WGLY crime scene to rule out
00:59:51
any connections.
00:59:54
There were several details that struck
00:59:56
them as significant.
00:59:58
2-year-old Brandon had told the police,
01:00:01
"Man hurt mommy."
01:00:04
The Ghostbusters reasoned that a child
01:00:06
wouldn't use the word man if he meant
01:00:08
daddy.
01:00:10
What stood out most, however, was that
01:00:13
Vickiy's driver's license appeared to be
01:00:15
the only item missing from her home.
01:00:18
Her wallet, money, and credit cards had
01:00:21
been left behind.
01:00:23
A driver's license held little value to
01:00:25
an ordinary burglar unless it was taken
01:00:29
as a trophy.
01:00:32
While the victim profile, bindings,
01:00:35
method of killing, and missing driver's
01:00:37
license were notable, there was nothing
01:00:39
to definitively prove BTK was
01:00:41
responsible for the crime.
01:00:44
The Ghostbusters came away believing
01:00:47
Bill Wgaly was likely innocent, but they
01:00:50
refrained from imposing their judgment
01:00:52
on the detectives actively investigating
01:00:54
Vickiy's case.
01:00:57
As far as they were concerned, their
01:00:59
sole focus was BTK.
01:01:02
By the following year, the Ghostbusters
01:01:05
had effectively disbanded and the WGLY
01:01:08
case remained unsolved.
01:01:15
Almost two decades later, the Witchita
01:01:18
Eagle received a letter from someone
01:01:20
claiming to be BTK taking responsibility
01:01:23
for Vicky Waggle's murder.
01:01:26
He hadn't claimed a victim since Nancy
01:01:28
Fox nearly 9 years before Vicki was
01:01:31
killed.
01:01:33
While the newspaper assumed it was
01:01:35
likely a hoax confession, they reported
01:01:37
it to the police regardless.
01:01:40
They confirmed that the woman in the
01:01:42
Polaroid photographs was indeed Vicky
01:01:45
Waggley.
01:01:47
The problem was no crime scene photos
01:01:50
had been taken of her body in situ as
01:01:52
first responders had moved her from the
01:01:54
bedroom to a larger room to attempt CPR
01:01:57
before police arrived.
01:02:00
In fact, no official photographs were
01:02:02
taken of Vicki inside her home as she
01:02:04
was rushed to the hospital before any
01:02:06
could be captured.
01:02:09
This meant the polaroids could only have
01:02:11
come from one person,
01:02:13
her killer.
01:02:16
Vickiy's killer had also provided
01:02:18
authorities with his DNA in the form of
01:02:21
skin scrapings collected from beneath
01:02:23
her fingernails.
01:02:25
With forensic tests available in 2004,
01:02:28
investigators were finally able to
01:02:30
conclusively clear Bill Waggley after
01:02:33
nearly 18 years as the crime's prime
01:02:35
suspect.
01:02:37
The exoneration came as a relief for
01:02:40
Bill, who told the police, "I'm glad you
01:02:43
cleared me. All I ever wanted was for
01:02:46
you to find who killed Vicki."
01:02:49
The DNA from the scrapings were compared
01:02:52
to the seaman left at BTK's crime
01:02:54
scenes.
01:02:56
Upon receiving the results, one
01:02:58
detective remarked,
01:03:01
"Fuck, it's him. Oh [ __ ] [ __ ] [ __ ]
01:03:06
After all the years of speculation about
01:03:09
what had become of BTK, it turned out he
01:03:12
had never left Witchita at all. He had
01:03:15
victims the police didn't even know
01:03:17
about, and he wasn't prepared to let
01:03:20
them go unaccounted for.
01:03:23
BTK's DNA was entered into a newly
01:03:25
developed national database of
01:03:27
criminals, but there was no match.
01:03:32
Vicky Wgley was now the eighth known
01:03:34
victim of BTK.
01:03:37
While the realization that she had been
01:03:38
killed by the notorious serial killer
01:03:40
was deeply distressing for her family,
01:03:43
they remained hopeful that the person
01:03:45
responsible might finally be caught and
01:03:47
the case be solved.
01:03:49
It was a hope shared by the loved ones
01:03:51
of BTK's other victims.
01:03:55
Though it was troubling to know he was
01:03:57
still at large, his recent contact had
01:03:59
brought investigators a mix of
01:04:01
exhilaration and relief as it meant they
01:04:04
still had a chance to catch him.
01:04:07
But it wouldn't be easy. BTK was careful
01:04:11
not to leave any forensic traces on the
01:04:13
latest documents he sent to the
01:04:15
Witchitaar Eagle, and the meaning behind
01:04:17
the string of 23 stencled letters at the
01:04:20
top of the page remained a mystery.
01:04:23
With BTK's return, the Ghostbusters task
01:04:26
force was reactivated, bringing together
01:04:29
several original members along with new
01:04:32
detectives.
01:04:35
What led BTK to come forward after all
01:04:37
those years could only be speculated.
01:04:41
Did the article about the anniversary of
01:04:42
the Otto family murder 2 months earlier
01:04:45
prompt him to step back into the
01:04:47
spotlight out of fear of irrelevance?
01:04:49
Or maybe he wanted to reveal all his
01:04:52
crimes so that nothing would be missed
01:04:53
in the book being written about him.
01:04:57
Perhaps he wanted to control his legacy
01:04:59
instead of leaving it to a random
01:05:01
author.
01:05:03
to FBI criminal profilers. BTK simply
01:05:07
couldn't resist coming forward. He was
01:05:10
essentially saying, "Look at what I've
01:05:13
done."
01:05:14
The profilers believed that knowing the
01:05:16
truth about Vicky Waggle's murder all
01:05:19
these years was a heady, intoxicating
01:05:21
experience that left BTK feeling as
01:05:24
though he was playing God.
01:05:28
Seeing BTK appear in the headlines again
01:05:31
stirred up long dormant fears in
01:05:33
Witchita.
01:05:35
Familiar warnings were issued for
01:05:37
residents. If you're being followed,
01:05:39
don't go home. If you return home and
01:05:41
notice anything unusual, like lights on
01:05:44
or doors open, don't go inside.
01:05:47
Check your telephone. If it isn't
01:05:49
working, get out. Keep windows and doors
01:05:53
closed and locked.
01:05:56
Don't let anyone in without verifying
01:05:58
their identity first.
01:06:01
As the BTK case became a top priority
01:06:04
for police once again, they were left
01:06:07
wondering where had he been all these
01:06:09
years.
01:06:11
The prevailing theory by 2004 was that
01:06:14
he had died. But this clearly wasn't the
01:06:17
case.
01:06:19
Whatever the explanation, BTK had gotten
01:06:22
Witchita's full attention once again,
01:06:25
just as he intended.
01:06:28
A retired forensic psychologist told the
01:06:30
Witchita Eagle,
01:06:32
"Everything he does has a purpose and
01:06:35
elaborate forethought.
01:06:37
I think he'll savor the next few days.
01:06:40
He's got the pot stirred."
01:06:46
With the rise of the internet, the case
01:06:48
became an obsession for online sleuths.
01:06:52
Some theorized that BTK and the Zodiac
01:06:55
Killer were the same person.
01:06:57
Others suspected that BTK could be
01:07:00
responsible for other infamous unsolved
01:07:02
cases, including the strangling of
01:07:04
6-year-old John Bernet Ramsay in
01:07:06
Colorado.
01:07:08
The finger was pointed at everyone from
01:07:10
Witchita State University professors to
01:07:13
homicide detectives and journalists who
01:07:15
covered the case. Even Robert Bey, the
01:07:19
lawyer writing the book about BTK, was
01:07:21
accused.
01:07:24
On Tuesday, May 4, 2004, 46 days after
01:07:28
the Witchita Eagle received the letter
01:07:30
linking BTK to the murder of Vicky
01:07:33
Waggley, an envelope arrived at Cake TV.
01:07:38
This one was sent from Thomas B. Kingman
01:07:41
whose initials formed an anagram of BTK.
01:07:46
It contained several items. One was a
01:07:49
complex full page word puzzle titled
01:07:52
chapter 8.
01:07:54
Similar to a word search, it was divided
01:07:56
into three sections, M O ID, and ruse.
01:08:02
Each section contained words related to
01:08:05
its heading.
01:08:06
The words cruise, follow, prowl, and the
01:08:10
phrase go for it were found in the MO
01:08:12
section.
01:08:14
Ruse included handyman, serviceman,
01:08:17
insurance, realtor, and wrong address.
01:08:21
The ID section contained strong,
01:08:24
Anderson, telephone company, officer,
01:08:27
and school.
01:08:30
This information related to another
01:08:32
document that contained photo copies of
01:08:34
handmade and falsified ID cards with
01:08:36
their photos blacked out as well as a
01:08:39
fake police badge.
01:08:42
One of the ID cards bore the name
01:08:44
Francis Strong and claimed he was a
01:08:47
supervising service foreman for a
01:08:49
telecommunications company.
01:08:52
The other was a school security ID
01:08:54
featuring the name Larry Anderson.
01:08:58
These items confirmed a long-standing
01:09:00
police theory that BTK sometimes gained
01:09:03
access to victim's homes by pretending
01:09:06
to be on official business.
01:09:09
This aligned with the story given by
01:09:11
Shirley Vianne's young children that
01:09:13
their mother's killer had posed as a
01:09:15
detective.
01:09:17
The cake TV envelope also contained a
01:09:20
piece of paper with the chapter headings
01:09:22
for what was described as the BTK story.
01:09:26
They were presented like a table of
01:09:28
contents as follows.
01:09:32
One, a serial killer is born. Two, Dawn.
01:09:37
Three, fetish. Four, fantasy world.
01:09:42
Five, the search begins. Six, BTK's
01:09:46
Haunts. Seven, PJs.
01:09:50
Eight, Mo ID Ruse.
01:09:54
Nine hits. 10 treasured memories. 11.
01:10:00
Final curtain core. 12. Dusk.
01:10:06
The title of the final chapter number 13
01:10:09
asked,
01:10:10
"Will there be more?"
01:10:15
To be continued next week.