Otto is of course correct about fitness watches. They collect data (stored on the device for fairly long periods) about heart rate. I am wearing one right now (Apple watch). I can go and look at my heart rate for a 30 day period (easier to use the app on my phone, but the data is on my watch). I can't remember which other crimes involved fitness watch data, but there are some in the crime annals.
So if even one of the four victims was wearing an Apple watch or Fitbit, that would give a clear ToD for that person and therefore an estimate for the others.
***SPECULATION AHEAD***
Your post made me wonder about a lot of things. I too believe the house was watched. So, we can call that Peeping Tom behavior. In this scenario, the perp has a sexual motivation for this fixation and behavior.
I believe the perp either had access to the house before this fixation was developed OR that he went into the house (perhaps often) after the fixation developed. So now we have a form of stalking bordering on burglary (and we have no clue if this perp took things from the house - the residents themselves might not have noticed),
Perp may then have tried to ingratiate himself into the lives of the people in the house, attending their parties, etc. College students can be quite snippy to people they regard as problem people (which is how this guy may have appeared - not a student, perhaps more than a little "weird" from the POV of the young people in the house). The fact that the house was accessible (and observable) almost 24/7 is part of this case.
The fantasy "love affair" the perp was having with one or more of people in the house was destroyed by actually meeting them and being rebuffed. In this scenario, the perp suffers from a not-so-rare mental condition where they flip on people, going from love to hate in an instant. It's often bizarre and brutal to witness. It's often seen in stalkers.
Perp may not have seen the two downstairs residents often or at all. Perp may have regarded the 4 victims as a kind of "team" who had purposefully excluded him from all hope of human happiness, as he was fixated on one of the them (one of the young women would be the best guess). If in the perp's mind he had an unrequited fantasy relationship with K, then K's departure from the house would have triggered the perp, perhaps inducing actual psychosis, and when K returns briefly, he acts out his psychotic worldview. Psychotic people are often capable of being organized enough to hide the trail of their crime, but if this theory is correct, the perp will have spent many hours over many days thinking through what he wanted to do (because the love fantasy is now replaced with a revenge fantasy and he can't function without his fantasy life).
If this scenario is correct, it's possible that some of the roommates had noticed the "weirdo" inside their house or even asked him to leave if he was inappropriate (likely) at parties. And the odd thing is that many times, young people do not feel the need to be super-vigilant about such people, idealistic as they can be. I know I never thought much about the guy who moved into a spaced outside my room in a large shared house. I mean, I didn't like it at all, it was a covered and screened porch space and there he was, night after night, mostly just sleeping there. I mentioned it only to 1-2 people at the time. It seemed normal, I assumed the guy was a student. I knew people who were living rough while I was at uni, I figured he was just a clever one of those. The house I lived in did not lock its front doors, we all just locked our room doors. It was and still is open 24/7 for anyone to come in and out (except for major vacation periods).
Thank you for the kind confirmation regarding smart watch devices and their ability to track sensitive medical activity (with special Thanks to Steve, Steve, and Bill).
Thanks also for the dynamic response to my instincts on the home and the suspected perpetrator of these heinous crimes. I especially liked the *****speculation ahead***** banner! As a newbie, I’m just gaining my footing when posting. I’ll be sure to adopt this style of warning preceding such posts and info. Much gratitude.
Unfortunately, I’ve had the displeasure of multiple encounters of the nefarious kind over the course of my life’s journey. Peeping Toms can be distinguished from the “watchers” by their main objective. Peepers seek to gain sexual gratification through the act of watching someone who has no clue they are being watched. I think immediately of Martha Moxley, and the fact that Michael Skakel was a classic peeping Tom turned homicidal maniac. They are socially awkward, insecure, and have trouble with intimacy. Jealousy and the inability to control the object of their desire will drive them to this state of frenzied panic which in turn ends in murder on many occasions. That’s a dangerous place to be.
The “watcher” in contrast, also enjoys the fact he or she is seeing something which they shouldn’t. Something the victim has little or no idea is even being viewed (in most circumstances). They quickly become fixated and hyper focused on the object of their attention. Their catalyst is sexual gratification of a different kind. They are a totally different beast (think American Psycho). They are ALL about control. They NEED to feel empowered and superior to their mark, to their unsuspecting victim caught clearly in their crosshairs. Our perp falls into this category (I believe), and only derives his genuine satisfaction and a release through a sense of ULTIMATE CONTROL (ending them by his own hand). Yet, we both know control is an illusion. Especially anywhere close to the physical science world. And still, the killer…who more than likely considers him or herself to be the “smartest person in the room” is blissfully ignorant to this fact. No amount of intellect can substitute basic logic, reasoning, and common sense. None.
I agree with you, he definitely “stalked” his victim(s) prior to the homicides. I too, experienced this all too “lax and trusting” attitude while in Uni. Maybe it’s in the rush to be grown ups, that young adults often display such ambivalent and cavalier ambiguity toward any threat? All too often, it ends badly. I pretty much adhere to my own mantra of DTA. Don’t Trust Anyone.
The fantasy love affair paragraph stopped me in my tracks. It’s as if you were describing Elliott Rodger (UCSB) 2014. He had similar problems with the opposite sex, which manifested into a killing spree.
Elliot Rodger: How misogynist killer became 'incel hero'
…and as you wrote correctly: he can’t function without his fantasy life. His overwhelming need to control her, to make her love him, includes ending her. It’s the total sense of control and power he is after. He has a narcissistically grotesque self-born sense of entitlement. He’s intent on making his victims pay, and most assuredly made his presence “known” to them immediately prior to and during these killings. That’s a big part of the plan. He is now basking in the glow of these unspeakable crimes. He is ten feet off the ground with a toxic euphoria and an inconceivable sense of twisted grandiosity.
It’s highly likely that another housemate or student witnessed the “weirdo” around on more than one occasion. Yet, he may have focused most of his attention on those he attacked. They were all pretty close, and shared a lot time together. It is amazing how so few people ever used to lock the doors. It’s even more astounding that in 2022, uni kids still consider security to be at the bottom of their priority list. No cameras. No security lighting or motion lights. Broken window locks and doors routinely left unlocked. There’s an invaluable lesson in all of this, tiny fragments of little bits and pieces to be collected and never forgotten. Unspoken words for the wise, to be etched in the stone of the universe…and echoed across the wind for eternity - proving these four tragic deaths have not been in vain. MOO
