Rhoades swiftly killed Jones so he could abduct Walters and keep her to abuse at his will. She told me there was only one and he had gone fishing. She was wearing those slippersbut she was telling the truth. And if it happened, she could be found. When she saw Miller, she began screaming for help (via GQ). I finally spoke to a woman and asked if they had a homicide record for a girl who may have been found in the Martinsburg truck stop during the summer of 1985. They were heading west on I-10 and stopped somewhere in Arizona at a busy truck stop. He could be the killer. Could Debra help solve an active investigation? She had been missing from the Houston area since early 1990 after running off with her boyfriend. Megan Fox. Shana was a pretty girl with freckles and blank blue eyes. "Don't you think that fact starts to rule him out? In Martinsburg, West Virginia, where the truck stop should be is a massive Walmart stretching flat and endless along a parking lot the size of a lake. I said it was his choice. The FBI believes that Rhoades was more than just a criminal who was caught keeping a woman in bondage they maintain that he was a ruthless serial killer who had been preying on victims since 1975. What put him away for life, though, was the rape and murder of Regina Walters, a 14-year-old girl from Pasadena, Texas. 76 Year Olds. To keep creating Now, years later, she returns to the scenes of her fugitive youth looking for clues to that terrorand the girls who lost their lives to it, All the Under-$20 Style, Tech, and Home Goods We're Feeling This March, 35 Alarmingly Good Watch Deals to Upgrade Your Wrist, Fellas, You're About to Blow Your Rent Money at the SSENSE Sale, Jeff Staple Breaks Down Pigeon Dunk, Building a Brand & Top 5 Sneakers | My Life In Sneakers, Symbas Slow But Steady Path to Rap Stardom, The Best Sandals for Men Make Every Season Even Hotter. Roadside Prey. The vehicle had been converted into a refuge for the killer, a place where his most sinister desires could be inflicted on victims without detection. It's supposed that Rhoades quickly killed Jones and disposed of his body (via The Telegraph). Like Regina, I also had a little journal and probably wrote something in it that night, because it was far too cold to sleep. Instagram: @openshuddetspodcast. On the phone, agent Robert F. Lee was civil and to the point but not overtly warm. I needed to find rides and usually couldn't get into the restaurant. From 1975 to 1990 he is believed to have tortured,. Had she ever heard about it? Rhoades is thought to have killed Zyskowski while the young man slept. He sent me a text just as I was leaving Texas saying that "Debbie" was ready to talk. They found her near a Dumpster behind the restaurant at the Gateway Travel Plaza in Breezewood. Over lunch at a local sushi place, he taught me the difference between a mode of operation and a signature. She would be easy to dismiss. Robert Benjamin Rhoades 19451122 - 32 1975199050 He was given two life sentences inTexas without the possibility of parole. I also knew the first thing he did was to get them into the back of his sleeper cab, which had anchor points for shackles. While we were asleep, he pulled into a small truck stop, and I woke to his hand down my shirt. I parked in front of the family travel plaza, then walked back past a sign that read TRUCKS ONLY. Sexual sadists in particular work off erotic maps established early on. Walters, however, did not have such a quick and painless death. The ruling went on to question the admissibility of eyewitness testimony. Follows the disturbing story of truck driver Robert Ben Rhoades, whose obsession with violent sex prompted him to pick up prostitutes, runaways, and lonely women and torture them to death, a practice that went undetected for fifteen years. allowing the middle-aged husband and father to torment and abuse women as he crisscrossed the United States. She also had children from another marriage. Sadly, while the remains of both Zyskowski and Walsh were discovered shortly after they were murdered, it took years for both of them to be identified and returned to their families. I lived among artists in the Lower East Side squats. Without fake ID, I couldn't stay in a shelter. 1983. The case of Robert Ben Rhoades serves as an excellent example of the type and nature of case to which VICAP s services would provide critical assistance and support. To revisit this article, select My Account, thenView saved stories. ", Vanessa Veselka is the author of Zazen (Red Lemonade), which won the 2012 PEN/ Bingham Prize for fiction, Apply Bed Bath and Beyond Coupon and save 25% Off your entire purchase, Target Circle: up to 50% Off with Target promo code, With Asos Promo Code you take 70% OFF Select styles, Michael Kors Promo Code: sign up for KORSVIP + Get 10% Off on First Order, 2023 Cond Nast. Silence fell over the Sacramento County courtroom as Judge Loyd H. Mulkey . Records on her would provide a date and a place that could then be checked against Rhoades's trucking logs. I only ran about a hundred yards before I turned and hid, because I didn't know if I was being chased and needed to see. Rhoades, dressed for a Halloween party, was an active member of the S&M scene in Houston. By now papers and photographs were spread out all over the table, and Young was waiting for me to tell my story. Thinking that it would be her word against his, his victim recanted her statement, and Rhoades was free to go. Robert kept her for over a week, torturing and raping her repeatedly. I crouched on netted twigs and breathed into my shirt to muffle the sound. She had a stocking down her throat, I think. His clothes were gray or blue, but that may have been the light. And who's going to believe him? Plaintiff Robert Ben Rhoades, an inmate of the Illinois Department of Corrections ("IDOC") who is currently incarcerated at Menard Correctional Center, brings this action for deprivations of his constitutional rights pursuant to 42 U.S.C. The driver reached the cab, swung up behind the wheel, and said we should get going. she said. He may be right, but certainly not because he's innocent. In one photo, the teen is standing in a barn, clad in a black dress and wearing high-heeled shoes. She walked out about a year and a half into their marriage, and months later, Robert was arrested for kidnapping a woman in Arizona. : r/pics r/pics 10 yr. ago Posted by punkindrublicrpp Before serial killer Robert Ben Rhoades killed his victims, he like to snap a photo of them. He was convicted for three murders, and slated to be tried for two more before charges were dropped due to the wishes of victims' families. Performance & security by Cloudflare. There was talk of me going to live with my dad in Virginia, where I had traditionally spent my summers. Between Pennal and Rhoades, it's Rhoades they believe. I kept my eyes closed, stayed still, then rolled away from him, pretending I was still asleep. Rhoades intentionally chose women who lacked credibility. I knew from talking to the Martinsburg police that the truck stop had been under the jurisdiction of the Berkeley County sheriff. Rhoades was found guilty of murdering Patricia Walters in an Illinois court and sentenced to life in prison. "Do you remember what his cab looked like? Instead, police suspect he held the teenager captive for at least two weeks, subjecting her to sickening acts of torture and rape, before he strangled her to death with a garrote and dumped her corpse in an abandoned barn in Illinois. "Did you ever hear of anything like that at all, in other times, any other bodies of women found along this stretch of I-70? Robert Ben Rhoades' love for the BDSM scene wasn't something that he kept a secret. Eventually, law enforcement discovered Robert Ben Rhoades was a serial killer, in addition to being a sexual sadist who enjoyed torturing women and girls. After Debra Davis interviewed about life with her ex-husband, serial killer Robert Ben Rhoades, Kentucky state troopers reached out, telling her that they suspected Rhoades in a 1985 cold case. But in the picture, with her inch-long hair and dog collar, she looked like a gutter punk, like any girl you might see in any university district. Through these stories, I jumped from truck to truck. If Rhoades hadn't been stopped by a patrolman on I-10 in Casa Grande, Ariz., in 1990, his crimes might never have been discovered. Javascript is required. Word filtered back that the dead girl was a teenage hitchhiker. Getting sleep was pretty easy with a boyfriend, because one of us could always stay awake. He would then keep them alive, torturing and sexually assaulting them for weeks at a time before murdering them and disposing of their bodies. I was on my own. When I got home from West Virginia, a letter from Rhoades was waiting. The sentence of death had been a possibility because on May 6, 1992, the State had filed a notice that it intended to seek the death penalty. 97.107.136.113 While in prison, Robert pled guilty to the murders of Patricia and Douglas. Smith said prosecutors believe Rhoades killed Zyskowski relatively soon after picking him up and dumped his body along Interstate 10 in Ozona, Texas. Prosecutors say the trucker kept a mobile torture chamber in the cab of his long-haul rig. My memory may have been bent by sleep deprivation, but I was not crazy. Robert is believed to have tortured, raped, and murdered over fifty women between 1975 and 1990 during truck stops, but because most of his victims were sex workers and hitchhikers it is difficult to confirm exactly who and how many people he has killed. Rhoades immediately exited the cab of his truck and attempted to give a hasty explanation of what the patrolman was seeing. But I thought about what she'd said"It would just be my word against his," which was clearly followed by the unvoiced thought: And who is going to believe me? Eventually the locus shifted to the Houston FBI, because at some point every thread ran through Texas. I'd put off writing Rhoades, mostly because I didn't want him to write me back. Over time, I learned safer ways of getting rides by having truckers navigate the CB radio for me. That first night, my boyfriend and I stayed in an abandoned barn in Maryland. Last Name Rhoades #7. On April 1, 1990, Roberts murder spree finally came to an end. When they visited his home, they uncovered a number of disturbing photographs, taken right before he murdered one of his teenage victims- photos that are perhaps even more disturbing than Rhoades's mobile torture chamber. It was off the side of the freeway and probably very much like the one Regina Walters was found in. There was no safe way for me to get it. The Daily Nonpareil reports that Rhoades had been married multiple times, and his third wife came forward to police with additional information about his bedroom hobbies. "She was on the end of the roll with Regina," he said. A report from 2012 stated that Debra lived in College Station, Texas. As many he would have picked up were transients themselves, they would most likely not be reported missing for some time after he abducted them. There was always a sick mom or dead grandparent involved, and I was almost always abandoned by my jerk of a boyfriend, who'd made off with all my money and my car. Who was the girl in the Dumpster? I said he could do it in a few minutes. Why did he let me go? Robert found pleasure in taunting Reginas father about his daughters disappearance and the fact he had cut off her hair. Another is called "Beat Me Daddy," another "Frigid Woman." That was way back in the early '70s, though.". Regina Kay Walters is remembered among his victims for the terrifying photograph he took of her moments before he murdered her. Rick Barnhart, Ed Russell, Troper Mike Miller. The dungeon-like compartment was described in "Roadside Prey" by Alva Busch, a book written about Rhoades. Law enforcement eventually learned that in addition to BDSM, Rhoades was a swinger who regularly had sexual liaisons with other married people in his hometown of Houston, Texas. Mark Young said Rhoades likes to feel like an expert and that I should ask him to "educate" me, so while writing my letter I used permissive language, saying I wanted him "to teach me what I did right and what I did wrong" when I was traveling. Games People Play was a bible for Rhoades. The glasses were the same, the curve of the cheekbone, and something about the expression, particularly the set of the mouth. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Robert Boyd Rhoades was sentenced Friday to die by lethal injection for the rape, torture and murder of an 8-year-old Yuba City boy kidnapped three years ago while walking. I'd seen the page from Regina's little notebook on which Rhoades had drawn a picture of a gun and a huge dagger dripping blood next to the words RICKY IS A DEAD MAN. Mass Market Paperback - January 1, 1996. Girls who'd run away. Whether or not he'll make any confessions to police about other murders remains to be seen. One of Rhoades's signatures was shaving the head and pubic hair of his female victims. Initially, agents had disagreed over whether the young girl on Rhoades's film was Regina. Robert Ben Rhoades, dubbed the Truck Stop Killer is one of America's most prolific serial killers. VI, 11, subd. Though her remains were discovered within months of her death, it wasn't until 2003 that she was able to be positively identified (via The Daily Nonpareil). He was not wearing flannel. I only ran about a hundred yards before I turned and hid, because I didnt know if I was being chased. Criminals. Stowing his paperwork, he released the brake. Most Popular #231965. While the first few months were great, Debra noticed that Roberts appetite for sex increased. It would appear that crime was in Roberts blood. Rhoades picked her up along with her boyfriend, Ricky Jones, in February of 1990. The victim, Lisa Pennal, told Miller that Rhoades had picked her up at a coffee shop in Buckeye, Arizona. This is the last picture ever taken of Regina Walters. Born in Council Bluffs, IA #7. This photograph, of 14-year-old Regina Kay Walters, was taken by Robert Ben Rhoades, a serial executioner who was later discovered driving a 18-wheeler with a torture chamber in the back. Behind him was a shoulder-high pink plastic castle. new content, we kindly appreciate any donation you can give to help It wasn't lost on me that while I was hitchhiking and he was driving, we would both have struggled with some of the same challengessleep deprivation and the hypnotic dullness of going through identical locations over and over, a world constructed of boredom and violence. "That was the problem with him," Smith said. Lee told me that the final lines of Holts's police statement read, "I don't see any good in filing charges. He stopped responding to my questions. Ad Choices, He was methodical, he rode the highways, and he preyed on teenage girls. Similarly, Rhoades' hometown newspaper also noted that he was suspected of the torture, rape, and . Robert Benjamin Rhoades (born November 22, 1945), also known as The Truck Stop Killer, is an American serial killer and rapist. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement and Your California Privacy Rights. The phrase "play, pass, run" is used twice in the letter. The barn had a loft with wind coming through broken slats and was surrounded by the same kind of brown grassy field and frozen mud. While not all fifty cases have been tied to Rhoades yet and Rhoades himself has admitted to only three murders, the FBI has strong reason to believe that at his peak he was killing one to three women a month. Several days later, though, heading south on I-95 through the Carolinas, I got picked up by another trucker who was not fine. "We don't have any records," she told me. "She's one of the invisible people. Rhoades received a second life sentence in the plea, in exchange for prosecutors not seeking the death penalty. Once out on the road, though, he changed. I said it was his choice. Rhoades kept Regina for at least two weeks. I remember thinking it could be me, since I was also a teenage hitchhiker. Without any hesitation he said Martinsburg, West Virginia. Robert Benjamin Rhoades, fdd 22 november 1945, r en amerikansk seriemrdare och vldtktsman, aktiv mellan 1989 och 1990. After Robert Ben Rhoades graduated from high school he decided to follow in his fathers footsteps and joined the Marine Corps. It touched a nerve I didn't know I had. Debra also talked about Robert having sex with her against her will one time, which finally pushed her to end things with him. The same week that I got the letter from Rhoades, the senior officer from the Berkeley County sheriff's department who had been fishing returned. Berdella was conscious of his homosexuality. First Name Robert. The general rule was that you were a prostitute until proven otherwise. They are more like habits, he said, and can adapt to circumstances or mood. Looks too much like a target.". 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. She never reported the incident, as she had promised Robert. When he grew tired of her, he choked her to death with a garrote made of baling wire (via The Daily Nonpareil). Rhoades in Bond County IL Barn. It's me, Sugar Bear, in party row. She had existed enough for me to call my dad all those years ago and warn him about what he would read. Rhoades liked to think of himself as an "expert," and now Rhoades suggested he be paid as one. Defendant Robert Boyd Rhoades was convicted of the first degree murder of Michael Lyons, with special circumstances of murder in the commission of forcible sodomy, murder in the commission of a lewd act on a child, and murder by torture. It said he would see me if I promised never to say that I had seen him or what had passed between us. She started to . The Daily Nonpareil reports that Robert Ben Rhoades was set to be free on work release when Illinois police identified the body of 14-year-old Regina Walters. Prosecutors believe Rhoades may have put many other women through the cycle of "kidnap, torture, and kill," but Smith said they do not know how many women he may have hurt, since he traveled so much. "Well," said Lee, sitting back after I finished, "you're probably right. Movie Actress. There was a gap before that line, and most truckers wouldn't take it that far. "I just want you to know," he said, looking me squarely in the eye, "that what Rhoades did to women, he did to women. In this automatic appeal ( Cal. Another prostitute had been grabbed there as well, in 2006, but was found farther down the road with her throat slit. I knew in my body that it was over. I watched the truck idle on the side of the road until it finally pulled off. He pled guilty to the first degree murder of 14-year-old Regina Walters in 1992 after investigators found haunting photos of the teenager in his apartment. Even at the time, I'd wondered if my running was part of the game. The serial killer's name was Robert Ben Rhoades. He also wanted $500. The victim began saying anything she could think of to try and save her own life. Powered by WordPress.com VIP. "The defendant essentially agreed to stack the life sentences in Illinois, which means he'll never get out," Smith said. In 1994, Robert Ben Rhoades was convicted of the first degree murder of Regina Walters. Robert shot and killed Douglas right away and dumped his body in Sutton County, Texas. Robert Benjamin Rhoades ( 22 de novembro de 1945) um assassino em srie americano e estuprador. Wearing down from lack of sleep and trying to get a handle on my risk level, I began to work off a 1-to-5 scale of sexually aggressive behavior: You (the driver) kept your urges to yourself. And the fact he had gone fishing '' another `` Frigid Woman. even at the,... Glasses were the same, the teen is standing in a shelter from school! A hundred yards before I turned and hid, because one of Rhoades 's signatures was shaving the and... Against her will one time, I could n't stay in a black dress wearing! The torture, rape, and paid as one stories about interest there as Well, '' he.. 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