You might find this sub-forum informative: Deaths of Male College Students/The River Killers
Smiley Face Murders
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MI MI - Cassandra Elizabeth Durham, 19, Roscommon, August 1, 1987
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I'll cross post this on the above mentioned forum as well but there was The Happy Face killer that signed his messages to police with a smiley face and he also painted smiley faces near his victims bodies. He was an interstate trucker.
There is not enough evidence of serial killers, but if we play with the idea. My theory (a long shot I know), is that the young men are used for a medical test of some sort. They are young, fit, same race and there for perfect as "lab rats". By using same type, you can get more precise results of the "test". They had a small amount of alkohol in their body, so they may be kept i a "bath" that has alkohol in it, that the body will absorb at a low rate. They seem to not have been harmed over 1-2 months, by animals or weather, before they are found, so where were they in all that time? There are no torture, no sexual abuse and they have not been robbed. They become extremely intoxicatet very quickly (roofie maybe), and then dissapear for a long time. I think that they should check for needle marks and/or electric shock injuries, as no one knows yet, what happens to them. Its not a typical "serial killer", but a medical test of some sort? Thats why I think, its hard to make a M.O. and and an I.D. of the killer/s - if the murders aint motivatet by the desire of death, sex or money, but of the science. Its a very different approach, that is needed, to catch the killer/s. The person/s might think they are doing good? well, its all just a theory and I dont think the smileyface has anything to do with the deaths.
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Shell_bell
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There is an infamous smiley face killer who was a truck driver and killed women. Labeled such because he signed notes with a smiley face I know they are not related in any way but wondering if this person is a fan of that one? Curious for sure
Kell1
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FBI Statement Regarding Midwest River Deaths
FBI Statement Regarding Midwest River Deaths
Washington, D.C.April 29, 2008
"Over the past several years, law enforcement and the FBI have received information about young, college-aged men who were found deceased in rivers in the Midwest. The FBI has reviewed the information about the victims provided by two retired police detectives, who have dubbed these incidents the “Smiley Face Murders,” and interviewed an individual who provided information to the detectives. To date, we have not developed any evidence to support links between these tragic deaths or any evidence substantiating the theory that these deaths are the work of a serial killer or killers. The vast majority of these instances appear to be alcohol-related drownings. The FBI will continue to work with the local police in the affected areas to provide support as requested,” said Supervisory Special Agent Richard J. Kolko, Washington, D.C.
FBI Statement Regarding Midwest River Deaths
Washington, D.C.April 29, 2008
- FBI National Press Office(202) 324-3691
"Over the past several years, law enforcement and the FBI have received information about young, college-aged men who were found deceased in rivers in the Midwest. The FBI has reviewed the information about the victims provided by two retired police detectives, who have dubbed these incidents the “Smiley Face Murders,” and interviewed an individual who provided information to the detectives. To date, we have not developed any evidence to support links between these tragic deaths or any evidence substantiating the theory that these deaths are the work of a serial killer or killers. The vast majority of these instances appear to be alcohol-related drownings. The FBI will continue to work with the local police in the affected areas to provide support as requested,” said Supervisory Special Agent Richard J. Kolko, Washington, D.C.
norest4thewicked
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That was Keith Jesperson and he was The Happy Face Killer - not Smiley Face Killer. Just FYI.
Twilightangelslight
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I remember that. That was Julia's father. I thought it was smiley face as well
Pickle_Rick
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Is this thread still active? I grew up in MN and this has always intrigued me
savagewoman
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Not sure, there is a active thread... not sure of name
Daphne1972
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I just watched a video on Michael Watts. And now I see this.
Chloebear3
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Unfortunately you will never 'unsee' it. Every news report, article, tweet, etc you read/hear/see about a drowning death of a young man, you will get the urge to read up on to see if it fits into the 'sfk mold'. Or if you become truly obsessed, like me, you will start your own database of vics who fit that 'sfk' m.o. It is very disheartening and frustrating because so many people - including LE - do not believe anything is going on, but once you start looking into these cases and seeing pattern after pattern, you realize it is not as far-fetched as people think it is.
But of course, just M.O.O.
Newbie here! I was thinking the same thing. SFK is the first thing I've searched after joining the forum - I've thought for a little while it seemed very similar to "The Pusher" in Manchester. I've heard of other cases people thought were linked but the Manchester incidents seem more frequent albeit in a much smaller area.
HMSHood
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imstilla.grandma
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At least 45 young men have mysteriously disappeared after a night out only to be found dead in a nearby body of water. Police classify them as "accidental drownings" but many believe there is a serial killer or gang of killers at work.
The "Smiley Face" murders are one of the longest-running serial killer theories in the U.S.
Since 1997, around 45 men mysteriously disappeared after a night out only to be found dead in a nearby body of water in 11 states in 25 cities.
In some of the cases, smiley faces were spotted by authorities near the areas where the bodies of the men were found, but police classify the incidents as "accidental drownings" but many believe there is a serial killer or gang of killers at work.
www.livenowfox.com
The "Smiley Face" murders are one of the longest-running serial killer theories in the U.S.
Since 1997, around 45 men mysteriously disappeared after a night out only to be found dead in a nearby body of water in 11 states in 25 cities.
In some of the cases, smiley faces were spotted by authorities near the areas where the bodies of the men were found, but police classify the incidents as "accidental drownings" but many believe there is a serial killer or gang of killers at work.
The 'Smiley Face' murders: What experts say about this theory
The theory centers around 45 men who mysteriously disappeared and were later found dead in what authorities classify as "accidental drownings."
Grouse
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At least 45 young men have mysteriously disappeared after a night out only to be found dead in a nearby body of water. Police classify them as "accidental drownings" but many believe there is a serial killer or gang of killers at work.
The "Smiley Face" murders are one of the longest-running serial killer theories in the U.S.
Since 1997, around 45 men mysteriously disappeared after a night out only to be found dead in a nearby body of water in 11 states in 25 cities.
In some of the cases, smiley faces were spotted by authorities near the areas where the bodies of the men were found, but police classify the incidents as "accidental drownings" but many believe there is a serial killer or gang of killers at work.
The 'Smiley Face' murders: What experts say about this theory
The theory centers around 45 men who mysteriously disappeared and were later found dead in what authorities classify as "accidental drownings."
If they are connected I hope someone gets to the bottom of this. Sounds like the stuff of crime fiction.
lonewanderer
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I don't personally think there is anything nefarious or coordinated going on here.
In my 20's, I fit the description of a lot of the victims, minus one difference. I was not a college student, I was a military member.
I noticed that there is a lack of military members who are victims this way. When you are military, your group of friends usually stay close to each other and most are you are going back to the same place together. We don't usually separate from the group for long, and there is usually at least on person in the group being responsible and looking out as a leader type (this has nothing to do with rank, just a member that hold the group together).
I could easily see myself parting from the group as a college student and stumbling into a body of water. One thing that a lot of white males tend to do when intoxicated is find a place to pee. A slightly secluded dark area would be ideal, and peeing in a body of water is quite common.
I would like to point out that mysterious water deaths of white males has been going on for a really long time, way before any theories or speculations. I am positive there is an older case, but one example is Chris Jenkins in 2002: Investigation Discovery show examines the suspicious death of Eden Prairie graduate Chris Jenkins.
IF this is some kind of coordinated effort, I could see a group of "incel" types aiming to kill "chads" with coordinated efforts through message boards, discord servers, that type of thing. I don't think this is the case though, as I could take one theme and point on a ton of cases with it. One, for instance, is a comparison of cases I made recently where victims where shot in their driveways. I did not cherry pick the 4 cases, but all of the solved cases involved a revolver and a woman who orchestrated the murder with a man that carried it out. Another set of cases (I lost count of how many) is the number of speculated suicides or homicides involving a gun inside a home where the wife was found deceased. One last example is a high amount of unsolved murders or suicide speculations involving male teens at parties. Those get convoluted and hard to identify what actually happened.
In my 20's, I fit the description of a lot of the victims, minus one difference. I was not a college student, I was a military member.
I noticed that there is a lack of military members who are victims this way. When you are military, your group of friends usually stay close to each other and most are you are going back to the same place together. We don't usually separate from the group for long, and there is usually at least on person in the group being responsible and looking out as a leader type (this has nothing to do with rank, just a member that hold the group together).
I could easily see myself parting from the group as a college student and stumbling into a body of water. One thing that a lot of white males tend to do when intoxicated is find a place to pee. A slightly secluded dark area would be ideal, and peeing in a body of water is quite common.
I would like to point out that mysterious water deaths of white males has been going on for a really long time, way before any theories or speculations. I am positive there is an older case, but one example is Chris Jenkins in 2002: Investigation Discovery show examines the suspicious death of Eden Prairie graduate Chris Jenkins.
IF this is some kind of coordinated effort, I could see a group of "incel" types aiming to kill "chads" with coordinated efforts through message boards, discord servers, that type of thing. I don't think this is the case though, as I could take one theme and point on a ton of cases with it. One, for instance, is a comparison of cases I made recently where victims where shot in their driveways. I did not cherry pick the 4 cases, but all of the solved cases involved a revolver and a woman who orchestrated the murder with a man that carried it out. Another set of cases (I lost count of how many) is the number of speculated suicides or homicides involving a gun inside a home where the wife was found deceased. One last example is a high amount of unsolved murders or suicide speculations involving male teens at parties. Those get convoluted and hard to identify what actually happened.