An average Joe with a 30 year-old dark secret
THE BTK KILLER
-DENNIS RADER
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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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Speaks
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dennis_Rader
http://marriage.about.com/od/infamous/p/de
nnisrader.htm
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6988048/
http://blogcritics.org/archives/2005/08/05/174
5274.php