Dennis Rader’s Dormancy Period: The Truth or a Coverup?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47611/jsr.v12i3.2050Keywords:
Dennis Rader, Crime, Criminology, BTK, BTK Strangler, BTK Killer, Serial KillerAbstract
This paper discusses in detail and at length the crimes and victims of Dennis Rader, known primarily as the BTK Strangler. Rader’s dormancy period prior to his capture by the police has been of question and fascination to researchers and scholars, all of whom are trying to dissect this man to know once and for all if his dormancy period was true, or if Rader found a new way to kill. The “truck stop killings” spanning from 1999-2004 have uncovered uncanny similarities in the methods and signatures of the killings in comparison to Rader’s 10 known murders, for which I have investigated and compared in this paper. The apparent correlation between the two sets of murders, while unnerving nonetheless, have failed to prove any concrete connections of Dennis Rader to the “truck stop killings”, leaving everyone to continue wondering if Rader ever truly went dormant.
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