The murders of University of Idaho college students Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle, Ethan Chapin, and Maddie Mogen shocked the complete nation, individuals who’d by no means even met these younger folks. But there’s one stranger who was struck significantly personally: her identify is Kerri Rawson.
Kerri is the daughter of serial killer Dennis Rader, the notorious BTK Killer. Her childhood turned her into a real crime aficionado — she’s even written two books about it: A Serial Killer’s Daughter and Breaking Free. So like many people on the market, she was following the case intently lengthy earlier than she knew it was tied to her in any method. Then Bryan Kohberger was arrested. And every thing modified.
Related: How Bryan Kohberger Was Caught Using Genealogy Websites
As you could have heard, Kohberger is a criminology PhD pupil. It’s one of many solely issues we learn about him for certain. Well, it seems he’s learning below a reasonably famend criminologist, a lady named Dr. Katherine Ramsland. She’s additionally written a ebook about BTK — in reality, she wrote a ebook with BTK, 2016’s Confession of a Serial Killer, which options conversations with Rader. The truth the suspect on this case turned out to have studied below the foremost skilled on her father was a intestine punch for Rawson.
In an interview with NewsNation over the weekend, she recalled:
“My first reaction was my stomach churned and I literally physically got ill. I’ve been pretty invested in the Idaho case, and I was shocked to see there was a connection to Ramsland and my father.”
It’s potential, as Kerri sees it, that Kohberger went to Washington State University simply due to Ramsland and BTK. After all, his household is from Pennsylvania, he went all the way in which throughout the nation.
He might even “have had communication with” Rader himself! Kerri defined:
“It’s very common for criminal justice students and in general the true crime community or fans to contact my father via mail and occasionally speak on the phone. Knowing how personally connected Ramsland is to my father, I would not be surprised if at the very least Kohberger tried to write to him.”
Wow. She famous:
“If he has contacted my father there would be letters in his house and in my father’s jail cell.”
That thought hits Rawson laborious. She lamented:
“It’s hard to be the kid of this guy and live with this. And then see somebody else go do this and wonder did your dad influence this? Did my dad talk to him?”
Truly disturbing. She talked about on Twitter as nicely that she had “ongoing concerns, knowing how common it is for criminology students, true crime fans, and others to correspond regularly with my father, that Kohberger could have been in contact with my father” — however made clear she has no proof it occurred.
Related: Did Bryan Kohberger Post True Crime TikToks About The Murders?!
However, there may be yet one more connection — her father additionally studied criminology. She reminded her followers:
“My father graduated with a bachelors in Criminal Justice, from Wichita State University, making a mockery of this important field, using his college courses to study his own ongoing murders and get access to LE information in the 1970s.”
The concept that criminology was a possible approach to get nearer to a killer is a really actual risk so far as Kerri is worried. She puzzled aloud on NewsNation:
“Was he studying my father outside of academics? Am I ever going to get answers to that, I don’t know.”
If he did examine criminology due to BTK and to assist him commit his future crimes, then how lengthy did he plan to do that?? A really disturbing thought…
As for Dr. Ramsland, she has declined to remark, saying solely concerning the case:
“I cannot make media statements about him at this time.”
See the complete interview for your self (under):