Possible Serial Killer(s) Targeting College kids

[perandor]

http://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/story?id=4742858&page=1
Binding, torturing and killing victims is how serial killer Dennis Rader methodically murdered 10 people near Wichita, Kan., during a 20-year killing spree that garnered him the nickname "BTK strangler."

Like Rader, who began his work in the 1970s, several infamous serial killers have taken ritualistic approaches, either by leaving signature characteristics or repeating their steps in the killings.

Albert Desalvo, the 1960s "Boston Strangler," was convicted of strangling 13 women and then tying nylon stockings in a bow around their necks. Jeffrey Dahmer, who killed 17 men between 1978 and 1991, routinely took body parts from his victims and stored them in his refrigerator. The Zodiac Killer, who got his name from the symbols he drew on notes to the media, is still unidentified, despite having killed at least five people between 1968 and 1969 in California.

So, when two New York City detectives found smiley faces painted at the crime scenes of more than 40 young men — typically high achieving college students initially presumed to have drowned in 25 cities in 11 different states — they began to wonder if they had uncovered yet another overtly proud serial killer.

"We believe they were specifically leaving a clue for us or anyone who was paying attention to these drownings, that the cases were ultimately linked," Detective Kevin Gannon told ABC's "Good Morning America."


ABC News Photo Illustration
The 'Zodiac Killer,' the 'Boston Stranger'... View Full Caption
The 'Zodiac Killer,' the 'Boston Stranger' and the 'BTK Killer' were all known for their signature killing methods. Now investigators wonder if smiley faces found near the crime scenes of 40 college boys' killings are the sign of another serial killer. CloseThe detectives found the smiley faces in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Wisconsin and Iowa.

While there has yet to be a sexually-driven motive identified in the smiley face case, criminologists told ABCNEWS.com that it's an example of the kind of signature typically left by psychopathic killers who derive sexual arousal from their killings and are so proud of their murders that they'll do anything they can to get credit for them.


Killers Leave Marks, Clues at Murder Scenes
"Signatures are ritualistic crime scene behaviors that are done for psychosexual gratification," said Louis Schlessinger, a professor of forensic psychology at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York. "It goes beyond what is necessary to kill that person because killing alone is not enough."

"The most typical types or signature is leaving the woman in some sort of sexual degrading position," said Schlessinger, who added that he has studied cases where killers put dirt in the mouths of their victims or sodomize them with foreign objects.

These crime scene signatures, according to Schlessinger, are often indications that the killer wants to brag about his accomplishment.

"They're trying to show the police that they're very proud of what they've done and that they feel tremendous," Schlessinger said. "It's arousing to them to feel control and power."

Jack Levin, author of "Serial Killers and Sadistic Murderers," agreed.

"The signature that they leave is often designed to give them what is otherwise missing in their drab and dreary lives — they feel important and special. They've achieved national prominence, even anonymously, and it makes them feel as though they have succeeded."

Levin told ABCNEWS.com that while many serial killers don't leave signatures, many decide to do so, not only to achieve fame, but also to tease law enforcement.

"To a serial killer, torturing and killing victims are great accomplishments and is something that he wants the world to know," Levin said. "At the same time, he leaves the signature at the crime scene to taunt the police

Signatures often help investigators — much like those in the smiley face case — to link several crimes together and, more than anything, to establish a dialogue between authorities and perpetrators, that can often be helpful in solving these crimes.

"Any information investigators can obtain may suggest that there's a possible inroad to who might be doing this, or a lead," said N.G. Berrill, a forensic psychologist and director of the New York Center for Neuropsychology and Forensic Behavioral Science.

Of the smiley faces, Berrill said, "there's obviously some dialogue that's being established with these signatures, clues or symbols."

Many serial killers have historically reached out to the media for attention, said Berrill, notably Unabomber Ted Kaczynski, who sent a series of mail bombs, killing three and injuring 23 from the late 1970s to the mid 1990s.

"The idea is that some kind of dialogue will tantalize the authorities and provoke them or tease them," Berrill said. "It's not a cry for help, it's a cry for attention.

"These guys have no conscience," he added.

Okay, hear me out. This article is from 2008, but to my knowledge no one has been arrested for these crimes. Recently, in Indiana a young college student went missing (she is from Westchester NY) http://www.myfoxny.com/dpp/news/no-l...t-20110608-ncx The above case with the 'smiley-faces' was triggered by the disappearance of a male from Westchester NY Patrick McNeill that was found in the river in Brooklyn in 1997 -- the detective on the case promised his mom he wouldn't stop until he found a killer since his suspicions didn't accept an accidental drowning. I'm reaching hard on this one, but I think, essentially this a large network of criminals who make snuff films or god knows what else. The pattern here, seemed to change to a female (if god forbid she isn't alive). Westchester is a big county, but let's not forget Son of Sam was from there, he said he witnessed animal sacrifices at Untermyer Park (I was there once and it has a creepy vibe to it). Also, it's known that the police are always in on the take, according to Jim Keith in his book Mind Control, World Control Son of Sam had help from two Yonkers police officer (from what officers in NYC told me, they are the most corrupt in NY). The murders are scattered throughout the US, but I just have this feeling there is a connection to Westchester somehow. I did some research and found that no satanic holidays seem to be coming up anytime soon; also a young girl in Westchester went missing around the same time (Friday morning) as the young college student. I know I don't have much to go on, but I just have this feeling a bunch of these are connected somehow.

[the obliterati]

Smiley Face Killers.
Reviving this thread about this fascinating topic. There are anywhere from 40 to over 100 deaths and disappearances of young males associated with distinctive graffiti of the "Smiley Face Killer". The stories mostly sound the same: A popular, young white male college student leaves a house party or bar, usually on a holiday or his birthday, then vanishes mysteriously only to turn up in a body of water days to months later.

Many people believe these incidents to be the work of a group of psychopathic killers as their initiation ritual or some bizarre occultic work. Convicted killer Jeramy Alford and associates allegedly lead a group called the Dealers of Death, some of whom have taken responsibility for the Smiley Face deaths.

Here is a website that summarizes a lot about this seemingly connected series of deaths that at first glance appear totally random and often no foul play is suspected because of the circumstances:

http://surfdete.ipower.com/patterns.html

Most recent apparently connected death was Nathan Bihlmaier in Portland, Maine:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/0...n_1537567.html

"The body of a Harvard Business School student was recovered from a Maine harbor on Tuesday, three days after the man disappeared during a drunken night out in celebration of his upcoming graduation.

Portland police divers pulled the body of Nathan Bihlmaier, 31, from the water in Portland's Old Port around noon. The Kansas native, scheduled to earn his MBA on Thursday, went missing early Sunday morning after being ejected from a waterfront bar.

Portland Police Chief Michael Sauschuck called the discovery -- which was not deemed suspicious -- a "tragic end.""

[the obliterati]

There may be some connection with the Zodiac killer, maybe this is his second career or cult of admirers. There are a lot of parallels and possibly intentional similarities/connections.

http://surfdete.ipower.com/zodiac.html

[night_gaunt]

Originally Posted by perandor

http://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/story?id=4742858&page=1
The Zodiac Killer, who got his name from the symbols he drew on notes to the media, is still unidentified, despite having killed at least five people between 1968 and 1969 in California.

Better watch my back... and hope he's too old now to catch me