Dennis Rader: The BTK Killer

Dennis Rader, born March 9th in 1945, is an American serial killer from Pittsburgh, Kansas, USA. He had been convicted of ten murders and all of his victims were residents of the Sedgwick County in Kansas. Although it has been assumed that Rader had many other victims who he had stalked, this was never completely confirmed. His killings occurred over a span of 17 years, from 1974 to 1991. He was arrested on February 25 in 2005 and the final verdict for his actions was to serve ten consecutive life sentences at a correctional facility in Kansas. Dennis Rader was also given the name “BTK Killer,” which stood for “Blind. Torture. Kill,” which was later known as his scandalous signature.

Dennis Rader graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Administration

His victims’ ages ranged from nine years to 62 years of age. It was later confirmed that Rader had indeed intended to murder others as well, including two females who he had stalked thoroughly, however he was arrested in time. His primary methods of killing included strangulation and suffocation and he has used a variety of weapons including: knives, ropes, bare hands, plastic bags, and even nylon stockings and pantyhose.

Rader’s infamous signature lead him to be known as the BTK Killer. His signature behaviour suggests his psychological and emotional needs and reflect the true nature of his underlying personality. As a child, Rader admitted to develop fantasies about control, bondage, and torture. To fulfill this desire, he used to torture cats and dogs and them kill them by hanging them. Rader’s need to be dominant and in control can be seen in all of his killings, in which he first blinded his victims. He would then tell his victims that he was about to rape them, just to cause panic and see it in their eyes. It is through this way that Rader felt in control. Rader did develop a Zodiac- esque signature letter to the police, so that he would be credited with the

Since it is a learned behaviour that can be changed, one cannot always link incidents by MO. Every MO will contain the following elements: ensure the success of the crime, protection of identity, and effect an escape. Initially, Rader did not have an MO because his first kill was random. Afterwards, he targeted older women who would be alone, and then break in acting as if he were a government official. After the 17-year span of killings was done, he began his most infamous signature of dropping handwritten accounts of the killings and pictures of the actual acts to police