Um...okay...that's an odd description. It almost seems like it's intended to be an admiration of sorts, and I'm not sure what to say to it.
As for the rest...
Personally, I think his method was very awkward and amateurish...and really unwisely high-risk, since he was outnumbered 3-to-1 and probably couldn't shoot in three different directions at once if his targets decided to make a run for it on their bikes/scooters. This makes me think he lacked social skills, or maybe he became desperate because he had no other means of making contact with his intended targets(others may have sensed he had ulterior motives, and kept their children away from him).
I would almost expect him to be a first-time offender, but I don't think he is because of all the similar acts of violence against children(such as Jared) that look like they could be connected to this.
I'd never really given thought to the idea that the gun could have been fake, but now I'm thinking it's more likely that it was. If he had a mask and a gun that(maybe) seemed to be a toy, it makes even more sense that one of the boys had at first thought the incident looked like a joke...but, the risk of not taking someone who approaches like that seriously could be a very dangerous one, especially in the dark.
If it was a real gun, by chance, and he'd have fired it, someone with a bigger gun could have shown up. I wonder if he'd been watching the nearby houses for activity. If he was extremely local, he might have known enough about everyone's schedule to be able to identify patterns - and that could be one possibility for his apparent lack of concern about how much time he was spending at the scene, interrogating the boys.
My gut tells me he canvassed a large(but probably familiar) area, looking for victims to take back to wherever he was based and harm/kill them...but, as someone on another thread commented, the vast majority of missing people turn up within a very short distance(whether dead or alive) from their abduction site. Two to five miles, I think.
I keep hoping that Jacob will be found alive like Shawn Hornbeck was, but I can appreciate how much more time has passed since he went missing.
Well don't say anything to it-it's not an odd description-just a statement of fact. Regarding your BBM....that's a negative in this case, not a positive. I DON'T admire it in the least! IMO it could be these qualities that could have been used for nefarious purposes. It is a positive in normal, law abiding people....but definitely a negative in anyone with nefarious thoughts and/or deeds bent upon their own deviations from the norm. As for the gun....it could have been indeed REAL......my point was that from the boys' perspective it didn't matter....Trevor saw it....and seeing is believing so their gut reaction is to obey....that's it. As for the connection between Jacob and Jared....it has not yet been established.