Murder In Moscow: Bryan Kohberger And The BTK Killer

BTK serial killer Dennis Rader expressed sympathy for Bryan Kohberger in early 2023 as Kohberger sat in solitary confinement at the Latah County Jail awaiting further court proceedings in the murders of Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin. Rader, who was serving ten consecutive life sentences for murdering ten people in Kansas, said he understood the isolation Kohberger was experiencing because he had also spent months alone in a cell after his own 2005 arrest. Rader described solitary confinement as extremely lonely and recalled how receiving mail, reading the Bible and writing poetry helped him pass the time. His comments were notable not because he offered any insight into Kohberger’s guilt or innocence, but because one of America’s most notorious serial killers was publicly identifying with the accused Idaho murderer’s experience behind bars.

The connection between Rader and Kohberger had already attracted attention because Kohberger had studied criminology under Katherine Ramsland at DeSales University, and Ramsland had spent years studying and interviewing Rader before writing a book about him. Rader’s daughter, Kerri Rawson, had also spoken publicly about the Idaho case, saying she felt an unsettling familiarity while following the investigation and was stunned when she learned of Kohberger’s academic connection to Ramsland. At that stage, prosecutors had alleged that Kohberger’s DNA was found on the knife sheath recovered at the crime scene, that a white Hyundai Elantra connected to him had been captured near the house and that cellphone records placed him in the area repeatedly before the killings. Despite the strange academic link and Rader’s unsolicited commentary, there was no evidence that Kohberger and Rader had ever communicated or had any personal relationship.


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