When BTK Strangler serial killer Dennis Rader was arrested it was due to his "drops," his series of 11 packages, cards and letters he created during a nearly one year period from March 2004 until February 2005. Prior to then he had basically gotten away with murder, at least 10 of them, as well as gotten away with taunting the people of Wichita, Kansas with his feared self-created persona. Even the police had nearly given up the hunt for him, which started in 1974 with the murders of four members of the Otero family in their home. There hadn't been a confirmed message from BTK since 1979, and no one had been able to link any subsequent murder definitively to him. It was assumed the killer was dead, incarcerated, locked up in a mental institution or otherwise out of commission. He wasn't, of course, but was alive and well and living in nearby Park City, Kansas with his wife and two children, an otherwise law-abiding citizen who raised no suspicions of being a serial killer. The murders would continue as well, until at least 1991.
If he had maintained his silence, BTK would still be a free man today, writing citations and catching dogs for the city of Park City. But his ego was way too big for his hat, and he just had to let everyone know he was still at large, the same old feared serial killer on the loose. Perhaps it was caused by the release of the first book exclusively about him, Robert Beattie's "Nightmare in Wichita, the Hunt for the BTK Strangler," which was intended to alert a whole new generation of Wichitans to the crimes of BTK as well as the struggle to apprehend him. So instead of easing toward an eventual quiet retirement into oblivion, BTK instead unwittingly unleashed one of the biggest manhunts in US history. But he himself became so obsessed by the resulting media barrage that he couldn't resist feeding it further and further with more of his outlandish drops.
It all started in March, 2004 when a letter arrived at the Wichita Eagle newspaper, from a "Bill Thomas Killman." It contained 3 photocopied photos of a woman who appeared to be dead or unconscious, posed differently in each one. It also contained a photocopy of the driver's license of the same woman, who was murder victim Vicki Wegerle. She had been killed at home one morning in 1986, and the only item known to be missing from her house was her driver's license. The letter bore a signature, a weird symbol of the intertwined letters BTK. The letter was authenticated by the FBI as a genuine communication from the Bind-Torture-Kill serial killer, and an old cold case was closed as another BTK murder.
The dust from the resulting uproar hadn't begun to settle when another mysterious letter arrived, this time on May 5, 2004 at the studios of KAKE-TV, the Wichita ABC affililiate. This was a lengthy word puzzle consisting of columns of letters and a few numbers mixed in. The FBI verified that this also came from BTK, as he characteristically used his unique signature, but couldn't make any particular sense out of the puzzle. There were a number of words and phrases discerned within it, but what did it all mean?
Article comments
1 - Phillip Winn
What a captivating and enthralling story. Thanks!
2 - uao
This is a really fascinating piece; very well done.
BTK is one of the most remarkably arrogant serial killers in recent memory. Ironic how it was this arrogance that ultimately put him away.
3 - Deej
Thanks for this fascinating article. I follow this case on TV and on the internet but had never heard about some of the details in his communications until just now when I read your article.
Thanks
4 - Stacy L Harp
I watched Dateline last night as they aired confessions of BTK and I was amazed at his arrogance. Great story, and I'll be checking out your site too.
5 - Kim
Great story , how about some info on his earlier communications. One of my big wonders is about the baby picture that he sent. Has anyone ever found out who the baby is in that photo?
Thanks
6 - Frank Waldron
The baby photo sent to KSN-TV in April 2004 was never validated as a BTK drop by the FBI or even by BTK himself. No one seems to know who the baby is, but conspiracy theories abound.
7 - Debbie Goodine
I would like to know if a serial killer can't help themself then how did btk go 20 years without continuing to kill.
8 - Frank Waldron
We don't know for sure that he did stop killing, as there are unsolved homicides in the Wichita area right up until 2004. BTK has made statements that as he got older he became less sure of himself such as if he got into a physical fight with a victim. It also presumably means he became less sexually driven as well. But the 10 murders he is charged with are the ones where sufficient evidence exists for a conviction. There could be a number of others.
9 - JoJo
Wow- what a loser. Hopefully he'll get BTKed in the prison yard.
10 - Frank Waldron
The links for The BTK Site and BTK Victims, Survivors and Evidence Gallery in this article don't work correctly. The correct URL for The BTK Site is here. The correct URL for BTK Victims is here. Sorry for the errors.
11 - Annonymous
Frank, I'm wondering if they ever released a copy of the "Death to Landwehr" poem BTK sent in his 5th communicaton? I haven't ran across it anywhere, so doubt they released it?
12 - Frank Waldron
Good question. I've never seen anything in the media about the exact words written, just general statements.
We can't edit these blogs once they are published, but it should be corrected to say that Rader was arrested on his way home to lunch, not after his lunch.
13 - sam
i hate btk he is the worst man in the world i hope he gos to hell for doin that to all them poor peoples i fell so sorry fir them.i will be prayin for those peoples familys
14 - Sophiered
Frank your site is amazing. You couldn't find anything on the web that is more complete when it comes to information on BTK.
I had no idea we could comment, I always find so many links here to use that I didn't know if we scroll down we could comment.
Well done.
Anne.
15 - chiloe mcdonald
wow man your site is awesome