News Articles 2

News Articles 2

The following articles are the result of several people spending long hours at the Wichita Public Library.

and searches on the web by various people. They are presented here in chronological order.

Thank you to those people who have gathered these articles, most of which no longer seem to be

available on the internet.

Woman Says She Was Visited By BTK

By Dana Hertneky

KSNW-TV

Updated: 8:44 a.m. ET March 26, 2004

Whatever you feel about the reappearance of BTK, you don't know how frightening it can really be

until you experience it for yourself. We talked to a woman who almost became one of BTK's victims.

"He's a scary man. There's something definitely wrong with him," said "Sandy".

It was 1979 and Sandy came home from work early. She saw a light in her basement. That was

unusual, so she went to investigate. She found broken glass on the floor and semen all over her walls --

calling cards of BTK.

"The police, they told me he has a thing for lingerie, so he went through all my drawers and with the

semen on my walls on my basement it was a repeated type of problem that he would do," said Sandy.

Sandy lived in the 300 block of Old Manor, just three blocks from the Othero family, BTK's first victims.

But after her possible visit from BTK, she never went back. She moved, changed her name and bought

a gun.

"I refuse to be his victim, then or now."

Sandy says she'll do what she did back then and keep that gun close to her.

'70s Killer Sends Chill Into Wichita Once More

BTK Strangler, silent since 1979, apparently has resurfaced to claim he took 8th victim in mid-1980s

By Jon Yates

Chicago Tribune staff reporter

Published March 27, 2004

WICHITA, Kan. -- For some the memories had only recently faded, the gnawing dread that made them

check behind their doors when they came home at night, or look for broken windows before they entered.

Now, 30 years after the first of seven grisly murders that terrorized this city in the 1970s, fear has again

gripped many in Wichita after police said this week that the serial killer known as the BTK Strangler has

resurfaced.

A March 19 letter to a local newspaper suggests that the killer, last heard from in 1979, was responsible

for an eighth slaying, that of 28-year-old homemaker Vicki Wegerle in 1986. The letter included a copy of

her stolen driver's license and crime-scene photos as evidence.

The letter, which authorities believe is authentic, has spurred a run on pepper spray, prompted a flood of

calls to local home-security businesses and dredged up old nightmares of an unknown killer who some

say changed this city forever.

"He was our bogeyman," said Robert Beattie, a Wichita native who is writing a book about the killings. "If

this guy is out there, he's still dangerous because he was always dangerous."

Authorities say the Strangler first struck in 1974, killing a family of four in their home on the city's east

side. Over the next several years, police believe he killed three more times, brutally attacking young women

in their homes.

Richard LaMunyon, who was Wichita's police chief from 1976 until 1989, said investigators interviewed

several suspects but never could crack the case. LaMunyon said the Strangler communicated with police

through letters to local news organizations.

He got his moniker after a 1978 letter in which he asked for a nickname, suggesting nine possibilities.

Among his suggestions were the Wichita Executioner, the Poetic Strangler, the Asphyxiater and the

BTK Strangler--a reference to his method of killing: bind, torture and kill.

LaMunyon said his office consulted a group of psychologists who told him to agree to a name to establish

a line of communication. He became the BTK Strangler.

Until last week, the Strangler's last letter was in 1979, and many figured he had died. LaMunyon said that

from what he knows about the most recent letter, it is real--and it is the Strangler.

"We don't know if he was in jail, we don't know if he was here all along," said LaMunyon, who estimates the

man is now in his late 50s or early 60s. While LaMunyon doubts the Strangler would strike again, not

everyone is convinced.

"It's not that I'm afraid of him, but it's always in the back of your mind. It's imbedded," said Susan

Ferguson, 48, a waitress who remembers being convinced as a young woman that the Strangler would get

her if she stayed out after dark.

Ferguson said she still opens her door at home with extra force, in case somebody is hiding behind it.

Others, like 26-year-old Misty Dillon, are too young to remember how Wichita reacted in the 1970s. For

her generation, the BTK Strangler was a ghost story that now has become real.

"I was going to buy some Mace for myself, but I heard they were sold out," Dillon said. "It has me concerned."

Charles Bright, whose 21-year-old daughter, Kathryn Bright, was the Strangler's fifth victim when she was

killed April 4, 1974, said he never thought the Strangler would be heard from again.

"After it went on so long, I thought he was in prison or dead," Bright said Friday. "It's up to the police to find

him now. They've got hopes. I hope so too."

`30 years and this again?'

Rose Stanley, who was an anchorwoman at KAKE television in Wichita in 1977, said she was the target

of one of the Strangler's letters. In the letter, the Strangler said he was going to "get" a local newswomen.

At the time, she said, she was the only anchorwoman at the station.

Stanley, now an investment executive in Wichita, said she is being cautious.

"I think everybody is kind of shocked," she said. "It's kind of like, oh my gosh, 30 years and this again?"

Still, not everyone is afraid. Some wonder if it truly is the Strangler, or if it was a relative or friend who

acquired the pictures and sent them as a joke.

Matt Simmon, 40, said he remembers his father keeping a pistol under his pillow at night during the height

of fear about the BTK Strangler. Simmon, a meter reader for the local water company, said he hasn't even

considered taking similar action.

"I'm fascinated by it," he said. "I hope they catch whoever sent the letter because to be terrorizing the city

in this way is just kind of cruel."

Jodi Drinkwater said she is concerned but determined not to show fear, figuring fear is what the Strangler

thrives on.

"We left our house open," said Drinkwater, 36. "We always do. It's kind of in defiance. If he wants to break

into a house that's already open, that doesn't say much about his ability."

Investigators say that throughout his killings, the BTK Strangler maintained a routine. In all but one instance,

he cut the phone line to the home, then broke in and waited. The killings were particularly brutal, and he

apparently took photos at at least one of the homes.

Signs of authenticity: Mayor Carlos Mayans, who was in his late 20s when the killings began, said

police believe the latest letter is authentic because it included a photocopy of the victim's driver's license,

which was the only item missing on the night the woman was murdered. The letter also contained three

photographs of the body from the crime scene. At the time, Mayans said, police did not take photos at

the scene, meaning the only one who could have taken the photos was the killer.

"This person is back or never left or something happened for that gap in between," Mayans said. "He can

be your next-door neighbor. You just don't know."

Bernie Dorwatzky, a former Wichita police detective who helped investigate the first slayings, said he

always thought the BTK Strangler would resurface. This time, he said, police will get him.

"I think we overlooked something, there was something we missed," said Dorwatzky, who now lives in

Kaw City, Okla. "With the new forensics and DNA we have now, I think police have a lot more going for them."

BTK Strangler actions

Police previously had linked the BTK Strangler to seven slayings in Wichita, Kan. BTK stands for "bind,

torture and kill," his method of killing. The Stranger communicated with police through letters to the news

media.

PREVIOUS LINKS

+ Killings linked to BTK Strangler\line\line

- Letters to news media

1974

+ Jan. 15: The Otero family of four is found strangled in their home.

+ April 4: Police find a 21-year-old woman stabbed to death in her home, later linking the crime with the

Jan. 15 killing.

- October: The Wichita Eagle Beacon receives a letter from someone claiming to have killed the Oteros.

1977

+ March 17: A 24-year-old woman is found strangled and tied up in her home.

+ Dec. 8: A 25-year-old woman is found strangled and tied up in her home.

1978

- Jan. 31: A poem patterned after a nursery rhyme is received by the Wichita Eagle Beacon referring

to the March 17 killing.

1986

LATEST CLAIM

+ Sept. 16: A 28-year-old woman is found strangled in her home.

2004

- March 19: The Wichita Eagle receives a letter containing a copy of the 1986 victim's driver's license

and crime-scene photos.

Sources:

Wichita Eagle

Chicago Tribune

BTK Killer Back in the News

By Jason Kravarik, Lauragail Locke, Alia Mahi

KSNW-TV

Updated: 8:41 a.m. ET March 29, 2004

March 25 - New developments in the BTK strangler case have rocked the city of Wichita. The Wichita Eagle

has received a letter concerning the BTK case. Editors say they got the letter last Friday.

A police investigation is underway and officers say the letter contains details that make it appear legitimate.

The word serial killer simply didn't fit in Wichita until BTK. It was a time when Wichitan's were afraid to leave

their homes -- a memory that has now been dusted off some 30 years later.

THE HISTORY

It began when four bodies were pulled from a Wichita home. The youngest was just nine years old. Three of

the victims were bound with cord. The other was found hanging in the basement.

"It was a period of time when Wichita grew up," said Mike McKenna, retired detective.

But no one could know there was more "growing up" to come. Not far from the Otero-family murder police

would find their next victim on East 13th Street just three months later.

Someone had bound 21-year-old Kathryn Bright, then stabbed her to death.

Six months later that someone would identify their mantra - BTK, bind, torture, kill -- in an anonymous call

to the local media.

"This type of personality doesn't stop voluntarily. This type of person continues to kill," said Paul Dotson,

former police captain.

And he would again, but not for three years.

On March 17th, 1977, police head to the 1300 block of South Hydraulic. There they find another victim --

26-year-old Shirley Vian, bound with cord -- some of it was wrapped around her neck.

"It captivated the attention of virtually everyone you knew," said Dotson.

It captivated and paralyzed the city, wondering what would come next. Nine months after the latest homicide,

911 received a phone call from a downtown payphone.

"Just shortly after 8:00, about 8:20, individual said 'there's a homicide at 843 S. Pershing' and hangs up the

phone."

Police rush in every direction to the payphone where the call is made and to the address where a body is,

indeed, found.

Police found 25-year-old Nancy Fox strangled and bound -- the seventh victim.

Back at the payphone, a fireman gets the only-known glance of the killer, but it is too vague.

The killing would end there but not the question of "why."

Even after the murders, BTK sent letters to the newspaper boasting of his accomplishments and clamoring

for national attention.

No one had heard from him since 1978 until, perhaps, right now.

LIVING WITH THE MEMORY

The mention of BTK still upsets some Wichitans, especially those who lived near the homes where the

killings took place.

30 years ago, police believe the BTK killer went to a home on North Edgemoor and murdered four members

of the Otero family. One woman who lived in the neighborhood at the time would only speak with us on

the condition we don't reveal her name because the BTK killer still frightens her to this day.

"I don't want myself in danger and I don't want any of my family in danger."

"I ran a daycare and some police came to my door and asked if I had seen any strange looking people in

the area. I said, 'why has something happened' and he said, 'well we can't say right now.' I remember to this

day and I've never understood why I said, 'they're all dead aren't they?' And I don't know why I said that and

he said 'yes ma'am'".

"So they camped out in my living room for a few hours. I heard a few things, it was just places they wanted

to check out and some names they had collected and things like that."

"But it was a very, very, very scary time when this happened. There was a lot of crying. Mr. And Mrs.

Johnson and I spoke a lot and they were very upset and he was the one who had to go over with the kids

when they came home and saw the family as they were and he was the one who called the police."

"I would like to think the real BTK killer is either in prison serving time and nobody knows it's him. I didn't

know anything about a letter surfacing and if it's true, it's scary to think that person is still out there."

The woman we spoke with moved away from the neighborhood several years ago but she tells us what

happened there still haunts her to this day.

THREATS TO JOURNALISTS

The BTK serial killings certainly terrorized local families, but also the journalists who covered the story.

We spoke to a former TV anchor whom the killer mentioned several times in letters.

Former news anchor Rose Stanley dealt first hand with the BTK serial killings. Her station received

several threatening letters from the killer. In the letters, the killer delivered some haunting threats.

"'I'm gonna get that news lady.' Well at that time it was pretty obvious there weren't that many gals in news.

It was pretty obvious he was talking about me," said Stanley.

Stanley, now an investment executive, recalls the feeling of fear around the city.

"The city was scared, very scared. You had a string of brutal unsolved murders. It shook the place up."

During that time, Stanley says her station tried to address the killer.

"We ran a message that said 'BTK, call police now.'"

Police believed the suspect watched Stanley while she reported.

Thirty years later, she says she can't even guess if the new letter is real.

"I have no idea if the police are taking it seriously. They know their job."

CONFIRMED

Wichita police held a special briefing Thursday at 10:00 a.m.

In that news conference, they said they do believe the letter, referring to the unsolved Sept. 16, 1986

strangulation death of Vicki Wegerle is authentic and that it may very well have come from the BTK killer.

They ask that anyone who knows anything about this case please call (316) 263-0138 or email them

at coldcase@wichita.gov or write to them at P.O. Box 9202, Wichita KS, 67277-0202.