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Biography[]

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Find sources: "Dennis Rader"news · books · scholar · JSTOR

The man who would end up being one of the most infamous serial killers the United States would have, Dennis Rader was born on March 9, 1945, in Pittsburg, Kansas but his parents moved to Wichita, Kansas where he grew up. Born into a family of four siblings, and being the eldest son, his childhood was regarded as normal because he hid his abnormalities such as strangling animals from his family. He went to collage but dropped out instead joining the Air Force. When he returned from the service, he met and married his wife, Paula in 1971. It was not until 1974, however, when he started working for ADT, that he began the killing span that would terrorize Wichita for the next four decades.

Known as the BTK killer (Bind, Torture, Kill), his motives were purely sexual sadism, and power related in nature. He is a sexual sadist which is one of the most vicious kinds of killers and is a malignant narcissist. These types feel no remorse for what they do, their satisfaction and needs are the only ones that matter. His first kill, January 15, 1974, was a quadruple homicide. He killed four members of the Otero family. His modus operandi was specific, he would bind his victims, torture them, rape the women, and then kill them, hence the BTK name which he chose for himself. Not being happy enough with his crimes themselves he began sending letters to KAKE, a news channel in Kansas with taunts and clues. He reported his second killing to the police, calling 911 and advising them of where the victims would be found.

Mr. Rader was caught in 2004 because of his need for notoriety. He mistakenly believed that law enforcement must tell the truth. Instead, he was caught because of digital information on the floppy disk that he sent leading back to his church, where he was a deacon. By the time he was caught he had 10 murders and no remorse at all. He seemed very proud of his accomplishments and told the court unashamedly what he did and how he did it.

Victims[]

Confirmed victims[]

Name Age Date of Death Cause of Death
Joseph Otero 39 January 15, 1974 Suffocation
Julia Maria Otero 33 January 15, 1974 Strangulation
Joseph Otero, Jr. 9 January 15, 1974 Suffocation
Josephine Otero 11 January 15, 1974 Strangulation
Kathryn Bright 21 April 4, 1974 Stabbing
Shirley Relford 24 March 17, 1977 Strangulation
Nancy Fox 25 December 8, 1977 Strangulation
Marine Hedge 53 April 27, 1985 Strangulation
Vicki Wegerle 28 September 16, 1986 Strangulation
Dolores Davis 62 January 19, 1991 Strangulation

Survivors[]

Name Age Date of Attack Note
Kevin Bright 19 April 4, 1974 Shot twice and strangled, feigned death and ran away while Rader killed Kathryn Bright.
Anna Williams 63 April 28, 1978 Escaped death by returning home much later than expected. Rader spent hours waiting at her home but became impatient and left when she did not return home from visiting friends.

Disproven victims[]

Name Age Date of Death Cause of Death Real Killer
Shauna Beth Garber 22 November 3, 1990 Strangulation Talfey Reeves

Timeline[]

Timeline Missing
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Bibliography[]

Literature[]

  • Beattie, Robert (2005). Nightmare in Wichita: The Hunt for the BTK Strangler, New American Library. ISBN 0-451-21738-1
  • Singular, Stephen (2006). Unholy Messenger: The Life and Crimes of the BTK Serial Killer, Scribner Book Company. ISBN 1-4001-5252-6
  • Smith, Carlton (2006). The BTK Murders: Inside the "Bind Torture Kill" Case that Terrified America's Heartland, St. Martin's True Crime. ISBN 0-312-93905-1
  • Douglas, John E. (2007). Inside the Mind of BTK: The True Story Behind the Thirty-Year Hunt for the Notorious Wichita Serial Killer, Jossey-Bass. ISBN 978-0470325155
  • Wenzl, Roy; Tim Potter; Hurst Laviana; L. Kelly (2007). Bind, Torture, Kill: The Inside Story of the Serial Killer Next Door, HC an imprint of HarperCollins. ISBN 978-0-06-124650-0
  • Welch, Larry (2012). Beyond Cold Blood: The KBI from Ma Barker to BTK, University Press of Kansas. ISBN 978-0-7006-1885-9
  • Ramsland, Katherine (2016). Confession of a Serial Killer: The Untold Story of Dennis Rader, the BTK Killer, Foredge. ISBN 978-1-5126-0152-7
  • Rawson, Kerri; Thomas Nelson (2019). A Serial Killer's Daughter: My Story of Faith, Love, and Overcoming,. ISBN 978-1400201754

Articles[]

Documentaries[]

Television[]

YouTube Documentaries[]

Podcasts[]

In popular culture[]

  • Stephen King has said his novella A Good Marriage, and the film based on it, were inspired by the BTK killer.
  • Novelist Thomas Harris has said that the character of Francis Dolarhyde in his 1981 novel Red Dragon is partially based on the then-unidentified BTK Killer.

Film/TV adaptations[]

Music[]

  • "BTK" by Thrash metal band Exodus, was inspired by Dennis Rader's crime history.
  • The song "Raider II" from Steven Wilson's 2011 album Grace for Drowning is written primarily about Rader's murders.

Related Articles[]

See also[]

Links[]

Notes[]

  1. An abbreviation for "Bind, Torture, Kill".
  2. Also known as: Feast of the Assumption: The Otero Family Murders.

References[]