David Meirhofer
David Meirhofer | |
|---|---|
| Born | David Meirhofer |
| Cause of death | Suicide |
| Details | |
| Victims | four confirmed |
Span of crimes | 1966–1974 |
| Country | USA |
| State(s) | Montana |
Date apprehended | 1974 |
David Meirhofer (June 8, 1949 - September 1974) was an American serial killer who committed four murders in rural Montana between 1966 and 1974. At the time, the Federal Bureau of Investigation was developing a new method of tracking killers called offender profiling, and Meirhofer was the first serial killer to be caught using the technique[citation needed]. Offender profiling is a method used to learn clues about the characteristics of an unknown killer from evidence at the scene of the crime.[1]
Among his victims was seven-year-old Susan Jaeger, who was taken from her tent at night during a family camping trip. The kidnapper left no ransom request[2] and no physical evidence.[3] However, the psychological profiling technique, which was first used in this case, was employed about a year after the kidnapping. The technique led investigators to suspect that the kidnapper was a young, white male who killed for sexual gratification and may have kept body parts of victims as "souvenirs". Further, they believed that the killer may have been arrested for other crimes.[1] Meirhofer was 23 years old at the time and already suspected in another murder. He denied the charges.[1] Meirhofter placed a telephone call to Marietta Jaeger, the mother of Susan Jaeger, exactly a year after the kidnapping, and she obtained enough information to help the FBI track him down.[4] When police searched his house, they found body parts of victims.
Meirhofer had killed Suzie Jaeger, two boys, and a woman.[3] In September 1974, he confessed to having kidnapped the woman, Sandra Dykman Smallegan, in her sleep during February of that same year.[5] Smallegan had once dated Meirhofer but had ended the relationship.[5]
Meirhofer committed suicide in jail,[5] hours after confessing to the murders.
References
- ^ a b c Garrido Genoves, Vincente. 2007. http://www.uv.es/crim/cas/perfil.criminologico.pdf El perfil Criminologico como un tecnico forense (in Spanish). University of Valencia. Retrieved on June 30, 2007.
- ^ The History Channel Classroom Study Guides: Meirhofter Retrieved on June 28, 2007.
- ^ a b CourtTV Crime Library. 2007. Criminal profiling: Part 1: History and method. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. Retrieved on June 28, 2007.
- ^ Forgiving.org. 2005. An account of the experience of Marietta Jaeger, the mother of Susan Jaeger. Retrieved on June 30, 2007.
- ^ a b c Sullivan, Ted. Personal items belonging to 1974 murder victim found in Manhattan. Bozeman Daily Chronicle. Retrieved on June 28, 2007.
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