True Crime Friday: Israel Keyes, the "Method to Murder" Serial Killer
Israel Keyes was born on January 7, 1978 in Utah. He was a prolific serial killer that most people have never heard of but you will hear about this monster today. Keyes was a serial killer, bank robber, burglar, arsonist, kidnapper and rapist. He murder people as he took trips and vacations throughout the United States. When Keyes was arrested it was for withdrawing money from one of his victims account. He was caught on camera at a bank in Arizona. The bank called the authorities. The police thought he was just a robber but quickly found out that he was a serial killer after he confessed. The Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) believes that although Keyes confessed to killing eleven people, he may have killed substantially more because he would plant his kill kits across the country. As he traveled he would spot a potential victim and surveil them before digging up his kill kits. He started his reign of terror sometime during the 1990s until February of 2012.
The Early Childhood of Israel Keyes
He was the second of 10 children born to Heidi and John Jeffrey Keyes. His parents were members of the Latter Day Saints (LDS) in which his father had been an LDS missionary in Germany. As with most serial killers there was abuse and neglect in the Keyes household. The Children were homeschooled. The father decided to move the family to a farm in Washington after leaving the church. Keyes was just five years old at the time of this move. The family lived in poverty, they stayed in a one-room cabin without electricity or running water. The family began going to a white supremacist church after moving to Washington. The name of the church was Ark. Keyes stated that he knew he was not normal by age of 14 years old. He shared his thoughts with his parents, siblings and friends who were all repulsed. Keyes stated that he stop sharing his thoughts and just started to do things by himself. He stated this during an FBI interview.It was stated that some of the Keyes children were forced to sleep in a tent due to their cabin's small size and made to hunt their food, chop firewood, and work on local farms to support the family. Keyes admitted to hunting anything with a heartbeat. He would shoot BB guns into the neighbors’ homes. He would set fires and steal guns from the neighbors. His mother stated that Keyes displayed anti-social behaviors. Keyes favor hunting spots were camp grounds.The Victims of Israel Keyes
- An Unknown Couple from Washington
- Debra Feldman, 49
- Bill Currier, 50
- Lorraine Currier, 55
- Samantha Koenig, 18
The Survivor of Israel Keyes
- An unknown victim from Maupin, Oregon
In this particular case the victim was able to persuade Keyes to let her live. The unknown survivor told Keyes she would not go to the authorities so he let her go. She did go to the authorities and Keyes vowed he would never let another victim live. He stood fast and firm on this promise.
Keyes downfall happen on February 1 2012, when he kidnapped Samantha Koenig at gunpoint from her job at Common Grounds Coffee in Anchorage, Alaska. He raped her in a shed on his property. He then took his daughter on a two week cruise. Keys was low on funds when he returned from his cruise. He then decided to do a ransom picture and note with the deceased body of the victim. He combed her hair and used fishing wire to keep her eyes open. It gave the appearance Samantha was alive as he also placed a copy of the daily newspaper near her corpse. Keyes then demanded $30,000 be paid in ransom into her joint bank account. He had access to the joint account because he stole the debit card from the victim’s boyfriend car. Afterwards, he dismembered her body and disposed of it in Matanuska Lake, north of Anchorage.
Keyes received the money from the victim’s family. The police for some reason had a picture of Keyes when he was withdrawing money from Koenig’s account but did not release the picture to the public. The FBI had to intervene to get justice for the Koenig family. After receiving the money Keyes then travelled to Arizona, through New Mexico, and into Texas, where he was apprehended after police tracked his movements from the withdrawals on Koenig’s ATM card. The authorities thought Keyes was just a bank robber but discovered during his interview that he was a prolific serial killer.
Keyes downfall happen on February 1 2012, when he kidnapped Samantha Koenig at gunpoint from her job at Common Grounds Coffee in Anchorage, Alaska. He raped her in a shed on his property. He then took his daughter on a two week cruise. Keys was low on funds when he returned from his cruise. He then decided to do a ransom picture and note with the deceased body of the victim. He combed her hair and used fishing wire to keep her eyes open. It gave the appearance Samantha was alive as he also placed a copy of the daily newspaper near her corpse. Keyes then demanded $30,000 be paid in ransom into her joint bank account. He had access to the joint account because he stole the debit card from the victim’s boyfriend car. Afterwards, he dismembered her body and disposed of it in Matanuska Lake, north of Anchorage.
Keyes received the money from the victim’s family. The police for some reason had a picture of Keyes when he was withdrawing money from Koenig’s account but did not release the picture to the public. The FBI had to intervene to get justice for the Koenig family. After receiving the money Keyes then travelled to Arizona, through New Mexico, and into Texas, where he was apprehended after police tracked his movements from the withdrawals on Koenig’s ATM card. The authorities thought Keyes was just a bank robber but discovered during his interview that he was a prolific serial killer.
Lady Justice
Israel Keyes was convicted for the murders of Bill and Lorraine Currier and Samantha Koenig. He committed suicide in prison on December 2, 2012, taking all of his deadly secrets to the grave. The FBI is still investigating this case because they fear that Keyes had more victims than he admitted.