Serial killers and true crime

Victims: Top (L to R): Molly Jean Dilts, Shannan Gilbert and Tracy Ann Roberts; Middle (Lto R): Melissa Barthelemy, Barbara Breidor and Kim Raffo; Bottom (L to R):Maureen Brainard-Barnes, Megan Waterman, Amber Lynn Costello

Criminologists have begun to piece together a profile of the serial killer responsible for the murder of up to 13 prostitutes in Long Island and Atlantic city.

According to experts, the man poilce are looking for is a white male in his mid 20’s to mid 40’s,  financially secure, well spoken and drives a nice car or truck.

Able to charm his Craigslist victims into a false sense of security, he will also have access to burlap sacks as part of his job and will have been treated for poison ivy infections received as he disposed of the bodies in thick undergrowth.

The New York Times came up with the chilling portrait after talking to retired and current criminal profilers familiar with the ‘Craigslist ripper’ case.

Speaking to the paper, Scott Bonn, an assistant professor of sociology at Drew University in Madison, N.J. said: ‘This is someone who can walk into a room and seem like your average Joe.

Who Is The Craigslist Ripper

Profilers have described the man as:

• He is most likely a white male in his mid-20s to mid-40s
•  He is married or has a girlfriend. He is well educated and well spoken.
• He is financially secure, has a job and owns an expensive car or truck.
•  He may have sought treatment at a hospital for poison ivy infection.
• As part of his job or interests, he has access to, or a stockpile of, burlap sacks.

‘He has to be persuasive enough and rational enough that he is able to convince these women to meet him on these terms.

He has demonstrated social skills. He may even be charming.’

He is also, according to the experts, very familiar with the Long Island beaches where 10 remains have so far been found.

Jim Clemente, a retired FBI investigator in the agency’s behavioural analysis unit, added: ‘He did not stumble upon that location. He has some familiarity with it.’

The ‘Craigslist ripper’ case started in December after the disappearance of 24-year-old Shannan Gilbert, a New Jersey prostitute who advertised on the site.

Although her body has not been found, the remains of 10 others have so far been uncovered with Maureen Brainard-Barnes, 25, Melissa Barthelemy, 24, Amber Lynn Costello, 27, and  Megan Waterman, 22, the only identified victims so far.

Detectives have also investigated the possibility that the same serial killer may also be responsible for the deaths of  four prostitutes in Atlantic city in 2006.

On Long Island, police returned for another day to the area subjected to land, water and air searches by the FBI and New York authorities from Suffolk and Nassau Counties.

Their most recent discovery earlier this month was two sets of human remains, including a skull.

Nassau Detective Vincent Garcia said police hacked through brush with machetes and chainsaws and used shovels to dig through sand to look for clues.

‘When we found the skull, we were hoping if we went back in we’d find a little bit more,’ Garcia said.

Nassau officer James Imperiale said police found two human teeth about a foot from the skull. It appears the teeth are related to the skull but authorities will run tests to confirm that, he said.

Imperiale said police also found a shoe but were unsure if it was relevant to their search.

‘We’re not sure if it has anything to do with the investigation but we did take it away as well,’ he said.

Sources indicated to the paper that the killer may have a heavily ritualistic element to the way he carries out the murders.

As the first four prostitutes discovered all disappeared in July or September, Mr Clemente said: ‘There may be a seasonal nature to his connection to the area, or to his fantasy and ritual.

‘It may be the time his wife or kids or parents are away for the summer. There are many possibilities.’

The use of increasingly rare burlap sacks also provides another clue as to his modus operandi.

As burlap is no longer a commonly used material, it is more easily traced than plastic.

Mr Clemente added: ‘To me, it takes away from his forensic sophistication and criminal sophistication and adds to the possibility that he is more interested in this ritual aspect.’

The experts also focused on the sadistic element of his crimes, particularly the fact he repeatedly used one of the victim’s mobile phones to call and taunt her teenage sister.

Mr. Clemente said: ‘That gives me an idea that he is a sadist.

‘That would be reflected in his relationship and jobs.

He is the one who laughs when a cat gets run over or a kid falls off his bike. He likes the suffering of others, and he really likes it when he can cause it or witness it.’

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NEW YORK, April 22 (UPI) — The killer who dumped women’s bodies on a Long Island beach east of New York City appears to be organized and methodical, profilers tell The New York Times. The newspaper interviewed several criminologists, including a former FBI profiler. Based on the information now public about the case, they said the killer is probably a white male with an age somewhere between mid 20s and mid 40s, intelligent, with some education and a job, who may live or have lived in the area near his burial ground. “This is someone who can walk into a room and seem like your average Joe,” said Scott Bonn, a sociologist at Drew University in Madison, N.J., who has researched serial killers. “He has to be persuasive enough and rational enough that he is able to convince these women to meet him on these terms. He has demonstrated social skills. He may even be charming.” So far, police have found 10 bodies on a stretch of beach off Ocean Parkway in Suffolk County but have identified only four. They all disappeared in the summer between 2007 and 2010 after advertising sexual services on Craigslist. Jim Clemente, who retired in 2009 as a supervisor in the FBI’s behavioral analysis unit, said the killer did not just stumble on his dumping ground. “He must have some familiarity with it,” he said. Behavioral analysis or profiling is not yet the exact science depicted on TV shows such as “Criminal Minds.” Thus the profile may not help police pick the killer out of the thousands of men who live in or visit that part of Long Island.

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