Some killers don’t just take lives; they crave the spotlight. They write letters, drop cryptic clues, and dare police to catch them. It’s not just murder; it’s performance. And to them, law enforcement isn’t a threat, it’s an audience.
These are 10 chilling cases of serial killers who taunted the police, each turning their crime spree into a twisted psychological game.
1. Dennis Rader – The BTK Killer
Bind. Torture. Kill. That’s how Dennis Rader signed off literally. He murdered 10 people between 1974 and 1991, then mailed taunting letters to police describing every brutal detail.
And here’s the creepiest part:
He installed home alarm systems for a living, while being the reason people needed them. His downfall? He sent a floppy disk in 2005… and police traced it back to his church computer. Yep, the BTK killer was finally caught because he didn’t know how metadata works.
2. The Zodiac Killer: The Original Puzzle Master
Still unidentified to this day, the Zodiac Killer terrorized Northern California in the late 1960s. His hobby?
Sending coded letters to newspapers that read like riddles from hell — complete with taunts, threats, and chilling admissions like:
I like killing people because it’s so much fun.
He even teased, “This is the Zodiac speaking… Have you cracked the last cipher I sent you?”
3. David Berkowitz: The Son of Sam
In 1976–77, New York City lived in fear of a man with a .44-caliber revolver. David Berkowitz, a.k.a. the Son of Sam, claimed a demon-possessed dog told him to kill. But what freaked people out even more were his letters, left at crime scenes or sent to police. He even threatened the investigating officer’s teenage daughter. Let that sink in. His reign ended not by psychic visions or high-tech tools, but thanks to a parking ticket.
4. Jack the Ripper: The Victorian Nightmare
In 1888, a faceless killer prowled London’s Whitechapel district, butchering women with surgical precision.
Jack didn’t just kill; he communicated. He sent the now-infamous “Dear Boss” letter, mocking police and promising more carnage. Three days later, another victim turned up, with an ear sliced off, just like he warned. Then came the “From Hell” letter, delivered with half a human kidney inside. The other half? Allegedly eaten.
5. William Heirens: The Lipstick Killer
In 1945-46, three women in Chicago were murdered. At one crime scene, a message scrawled in lipstick on the wall read:
For heaven’s sake, catch me before I kill more. I cannot control myself.
Seventeen-year-old William Heirens was arrested months later. Police said fingerprint and handwriting analysis linked him to the crime, but some still question the conviction. Lipstick, murder, and a confession on a wall? Straight out of a noir nightmare.
6. Keith Hunter Jesperson: The Happy Face Killer
Keith Jesperson was a long-haul trucker who murdered at least 8 women in the 1990s and got annoyed when someone else confessed to his crimes. So he started writing letters to media outlets. Each one signed with a smiley face 🙂 hence the name.
He bragged, gave details only the killer would know, and eventually admitted to everything. His girlfriend finally turned him in. He murdered across multiple states and yet still found time to write fan mail to himself.
7. The Axeman of New Orleans: The Jazz-Loving Killer
From 1918 to 1919, an axe-wielding killer terrorized New Orleans. But here’s where it gets weird:
He sent a letter to a local paper saying that on a specific night, he’d spare anyone playing jazz music in their home.
If everyone has a jazz band playing, then so much the better for you people… those who do not jazz it out will get the ax.
On the appointed night, the entire city played jazz. No one died. The Axeman vanished after that forever.
8. Ted Bundy: The Charmer Who Mocked the System
Ted Bundy murdered at least 30 women and escaped police custody twice. But what truly stands out is how much he revelled in the spectacle. During his trial, Bundy acted as his lawyer, cross-examining witnesses and throwing smirks at the jury. He knew people were watching, and he played to the crowd. If narcissism were a crime, he’d still be serving time.
Read more: The Decline of Serial Killers: Why Are There Fewer Today?
9. Todd Kohlhepp: Killer With a Storage Unit
Todd Kohlhepp murdered 7 people in South Carolina between 2003 and 2016. When police arrested him, they found a woman chained in a storage container, and the body of her boyfriend buried nearby. But the chills didn’t stop there. Kohlhepp sent an 8-page letter to a newspaper, saying:
Yes, there is more than seven… I see no reason to give numbers or locations.
Translation: You’ll never know the full story, and I like it that way.
10. Joseph DeAngelo: The Golden State Killer
He committed 50+ rapes and 13 murders between 1974 and 1986 under multiple aliases, the East Area Rapist, the Night Stalker, the Original Night Stalker.
But long before DNA exposed him, Joseph DeAngelo was already playing games. He’d call his victims after attacks, whispering:
I’m going to kill you… going to kill you…
He even phoned the sheriff’s office to say:
I have my next victim already stalked. You can’t catch me.
Took decades, but he was wrong.
Final Thoughts
These aren’t just stories about murder. They’re stories about ego. About people so drunk on power they couldn’t help but broadcast it, daring police to stop them, betting they’d always be one step ahead. For some, the gamble paid off, for a while. But in the end? Time caught up with all of them.
