From our Ginsu knife conversation, I deduce that:
- Someone (likely a housewife, elderly person, or other person in a stay-at-home capacity) already had this knife in their kitchen. The killer had access to this person's house. So, I believe the person who originally bought the Ginsu knife is related to this killer. I also believe that this relative's residence is the location where our torso victim was dismembered. Serial killers tend to live with either very passive, submissive wives or same type of mother or sister if it's a female relative, and it's usually a female relative. Otherwise, they live alone. So it is technically in the realm of possibility that this killer is home a lot, and ordered the knife himself. I think he is too smart for that, though. I think he had access to the knife before he kidnapped the victim.
- Since Forensics tells us that the victim was dismembered within a 50-100 mile radius of the rest stop, we can theorize that the killer has a relative of some kind, or a friend, who lives in a 50-100 mile radius of the rest stop.
- Serial killers operate within spheres. They have "hunting grounds" which are usually close to where they live or work, or a place they are familiar with, so if the killer has a friend/relative's house within 50-100 miles of the rest stop, he is likely to live or work near that area.
The only thing that would throw this theory out was if the killer was an Interstate serial killer, which is a relatively new concept and the profile hasn't been established well enough. I personally do not feel this is in Interstate killer (like a trucker type) because the victim was dismembered relatively close to the rest stop, which means he needed a secure location for it, like a shed, basement, barn, etc.
Thank you to Bflocket and Carl and everyone else for these details on the dismemberment tool. This is valuable insight. I think if we stop getting hung up on the obvious (the victim) and we can slowly analyze other things at the crime scene.
My next question to you out there on the Interwebs:
Why the rest stop?
There are a lot of places to dump a body out in that area. I live very close to the area and it's a small town, rural, about 50 miles from St. Louis. There are tons of National Parks and large farms around, and there are a lot of small towns and larger cities along I-70 in that area. I know the initial response is "to get attention ASAP." But I feel that the rest stop at the particular spot on I-70 is significant in some way. I don't think the killer took all the time to kidnap a woman, assault her, kill her, dismember her, and then frantically dump her at some random rest stop. It had to have been planned out like the rest of the murder. So, does he frequent the area and saw that it was moderately busy and the back gate was open at the rear of the rest stop on the Westbound side of I-70? That means he had to have scoped out the rest stop at various times. That means that he travels that way frequently, or lives near the area.
Side note: The ditch the victim was put in is on the Westbound side of I-70 at the rest stop in Wright City. The only way to access that is from a gate that was left open the night before. Otherwise, that area is locked after dark. We know the victim was dumped there around 9-11pm on a Sunday night. Locals in Wright City say the gate is sometimes left open, sometimes not, depends on if the groundskeepers close it behind them. There's not a pattern with this gate. So this leads me to believe the killer had been at that location enough times to know he had a good chance of the gate being open.
For what it's worth, ME said killer did not carry the torso into the ditch. He tossed her from the curb into the ravine area, probably shielded by his vehicle. He then took the time to place the knife nearby.
Another random fact worth noting is that 2 witnesses at the rest stop said they noticed a white utility van at the rest stop at that time, near the area (the kind with the white painted windows so you can't see inside). A van would have made sense to transport a body in.
My question is: Why that particular rest area?
I know this is all based on conjecture. But if we go down enough rabbit holes, I am convinced something will turn up at some point!
