So I guess the Wichita police would have been totally baffled by our Enigma puzzles

[cartman]

Here's an article about one of the unpublicized clues the BTK killer sent to police, that they evidently couldn't make heads or tails out of. Seems pretty straightfoward.

hxxp://www.tabloidcolumn.com/btk-puzzle.html

[Ksyrup]

I'm confused - an "early" clue?

The guy killed between 1974 and 1994, I think I've read. This was sent less than a year ago.

Is it possible that they got the clues, but at that point were more concerned with having something more concrete than a puzzle? Unless Rob Morrow and his TV brother moonlight as DAs in Wichita, I doubt it.

I wouldn't be shocked to know that they've been on to this guy for a while, but felt, given the length of time between the killings, that they needed something pretty definitive to get him with, like DNA. Even the brother of one of the victims, who confronted the guy face-to-face, still can't positively ID him 30 years later.

[Ksyrup]

BTW, I see the word 'follow' in the 4th column, top section (upside down), and 'insurance' in the 2nd column, bottom section.

[Ksyrup]

And 'details' in the 6th column, top section.

[Calis]

I'm confused - an "early" clue?

The guy killed between 1974 and 1994, I think I've read. This was sent less than a year ago.

Is it possible that they got the clues, but at that point were more concerned with having something more concrete than a puzzle? Unless Rob Morrow and his TV brother moonlight as DAs in Wichita, I doubt it.

I wouldn't be shocked to know that they've been on to this guy for a while, but felt, given the length of time between the killings, that they needed something pretty definitive to get him with, like DNA. Even the brother of one of the victims, who confronted the guy face-to-face, still can't positively ID him 30 years later.

'86 was actually the last one, unless one of the new ones he apparently confessed to were later, not sure on that.

Would like to think that was right, but I'm not so when it concerns the Wichita Police. They had a whole big mess when they "supposedly" caught him a few months ago, and I'm sure that guy is sueing the crap out of them now.

This whole thing just has made them look stupid, and they keep bragging about how they caught him. It's amusing, but I'm pretty sick of hearing about it ALL THE TIME.

[Lonnie]

I see "FAKE ID" "WRONG" "HANDYMAN" all right away on the bottom three lines. They missed quite a bit for looking at it for an hour.

[Ksyrup]

This is a fascinating study, really. They've updated the puzzle to show some additional words, but they still missed 'handyman' at the bottom, and I also see 'shed' diagonally at the bottom as well. I haven't found this yet, but apparently 'drader' is in this puzzle - which is just insane. The guy clearly wanted to get caught. All of the different jobs and other words appear to be clues as to what disguises he used to gain entry into houses or otherwise get these people in a position to kill them.

[Ksyrup]

This is from the CNN article:


The first section seems to describe how the killer stalks a victim, showing words such as prowl, spot victim, follow, fantasies, steam builds and go for it.

Another section suggests possible disguises: realtor, insurance, serviceman, fake ID and handyman.

"Probably what he pretended to be, to perhaps gain entry into some of these homes, insurance salesman, realtor, maybe a handyman," said KAKE anchor Jeff Herndon.

Until his arrest, Rader worked as a compliance supervisor for Park City, north of Wichita, in charge of animal control, nuisances, inoperable vehicles and general code compliance. He worked for a home security company from the mid 1970s to the late 1980s -- a job that involved going into people's homes. He is married with two grown children.

The most surprising finding in the charts may be the numbers 6, 2, 2 and 0 -- the same as Rader's address in Park City.

The Wichita Eagle, which also has received numerous communications from BTK, reported finding 130 words, numbers and phrases.

[QuikSand]

The Wichita Eagle, which also has received numerous communications from BTK, reported finding 130 words, numbers and phrases.

All of which apprently eluded Barney Fife and company down at the five-oh. Good lord.

[Ksyrup]

I don't know. I get the feeling they have been on to him for a while. The fact that they apparently went out of their way to get a tissue sample from his daughter's medical records to test for DNA tells me that they simply wanted an air-tight case. Remember, the last (known) murder was 1991 (which frankly begs the question of whether this guy could really just stop all of a sudden, but I digress...), and they had nothing to go on prior to when he re-initiated contact last March.

It was highly unlikely they were going to catch this guy without his help. Given when these murders occurred and the science that has developed since then, I don't find that all that unusual. Of course, I don't know what facts they may have bungled along the way, either. But it was less than a year after he resurfaced and started leaving clues that they arrested him. I haven't seen anything that suggests they ignored or couldn't find the clues in this puzzle. Rather, it appears to me that the clues did precisely what they were supposed to do - lead to him, and when they realized what they had, they built an airtight case. I'll be very surprised to learn that they accidentally stumbled on this guy, or that they only really focused on him within the past month or so.

I'm assuming the way they went about gathering the DNA was because they were afraid of losing him if they took his DNA, watched him walk out of the police station, got a match, then found out he made a run for the border. The only thing worse than not catching a 30-year serial killer, I would imagine, is knowing you had him but letting him get away. Circumstantial evidence is rarely going to win you a conviction for 30-year old crimes, so the DNA is crucial. Even one of the witnesses who lived can't positively ID the guy. A good defense attorney could create reasonable doubt with that kind of case, and they probably didn't want to risk this case by running out and arresting him based on a crossword puzzle alone.

Just my two (rather uninformed, I admit) cents.

[Maple Leafs]

OK, but...

So they find 130 words. Then what? What are they supposed to do, round up every handyman in town? Given that the article makes it clear that he also intentionally dropped in "wrong" clues to lead them off the trail, how much would the puzzle clue have really helped them?

The bumbling cop who can't figure out the kindergarten-level puzzle story is an interesting one, but I guess part of me figures that it's quite possible that they found all the clues and just couldn't do much with them.

[QuikSand]

Yes, I suspect you're right, KSyrup. Hope so, at least. I didn't read the article initialy posted, just cartman's summary - leaving me with the impression that they got nothing at all from this cryptic thing full of patently obvious clues. But your argumnt makes plenty of sense to me, generally speaking. (also wholly uninformed)

[mhass]

For the guy to come forward now with any communication or clues tells me he wanted to get caught for the notoriety - like most serial killers. I have to believe that the cops in Kansas missed plenty of clues based only on the fact that he really wasn't that secretive (puzzle, clues now, digging in his own back yard at night!, communicating with media, etc.)