'BTK' Serial Killer In Custody, Claims Police

The Associated Press

Published: March 1, 2005 (Issue # 1048)

WICHITA, Kansas - Police say they are confident that the arrest of a man suspected of being the "BTK" serial killer will end 30 years of fear.

Dennis L. Rader was arrested Friday and allegedly confessed to six of the killings, said a source on Sunday.

"The guy is telling us about the murders," the source said on condition of anonymity.

Rader, 59, could appear in court as early as Monday to stand in front of a judge on video while prosecutors recite yet-to-be-filed criminal charges against him. The judge would also review Rader's bond and set a permanent amount.

Rader was being held on $10 million bond in the deaths of 10 people between 1974 and 1991.

A source said police are looking into whether Rader was responsible for the deaths of two Wichita State University students as well as a woman who lived down the street from another known victim of BTK, the killer's self-coined nickname that stands for "Bind, Torture, Kill."

The BTK killer re-emerged during the last year, taunting police with letters and packages sent to media organizations.

Mike Tavares, who worked with Rader, described him as a "by-the-books" employee.

"I never would have guessed in a million years," said a tearful Carole Nelson, a member of Christ Lutheran Church, where Rader was an usher and the president of the church council.