robert ben rhoades
That's exactly like him!" Behind the tragic elements of Regina's story, like some kind of pentimento, I saw my own. She had a stocking down her throat, I think. Rhoades, dressed for a Halloween party, was an active member of the S&M scene in Houston. Anybody who pulls a knife on you in an enclosed space like a truck is terrifying. He requested information on missing Caucasian females aged 13 to 15 years old who had disappeared six to nine months earlier. He would only have been 39 at the time, and I remember the trucker as an older man with light brown or graying hair. In 1984, he started dating Jerry Howell, a good-looking 19-year-old male prostitute. Between 1975 and 1990, Robert Ben Rhoads, now 73, savagely murdered at least three victims and possibly, investigators believe, as many as 50 during his treks across North America as a professional truck driver. He said a gun was about control but a knife is personal. On the phone, agent Robert F. Lee was civil and to the point but not overtly warm. I woke when it slowed for traffic. In the second installment of Death on the Open Road: Highway Homicides, we cover the case of evil serial killer Robert Ben Rhoades aka The Truck Stop Killer. 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. My memory may have been bent by sleep deprivation, but I was not crazy. 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. An unidentified girl, shown here in a photograph taken by Rhoades. We were back on the road before dawn, walking down a highway covered in black ice, shivering in our hoodies. Robert Ben Rhoades, 66, is already serving a life sentence without parole for the 1990 murder of 14-year-old runaway Regina Walters in Illinois. His clothes were gray or blue, but that may have been the light. Young was right. Eventually the locus shifted to the Houston FBI, because at some point every thread ran through Texas. In one, he relaxed on the grass in a park. One night on I-95, she hitched a ride from a stranger and endured the most terrifying moments of her life. Robert was pulled over on the I-90 with his hazard lights flashing when a state trooper drove by and decided to check if the driver needed help. That's where my fantasy ends, in a game of "Who Is Credible Now?". Robert Ben Rhoades, 59, was linked by DNA in 2003 to the murder of 24-year-old Patricia Candice Walsh. The stores were dimly lit and filled with smoke, radically different from the family travel plazas of today. The Daily Nonpareil reports that these logs put Rhoades in the immediate vicinity of as many as 50 unsolved murders. Debra said she looked about 18 or 19 and desperate. It doesn't matter what he says. Had I confused the state? Rhoades swiftly killed Jones so he could abduct Walters and keep her to abuse at his will. He will die in prison.". He was wrong. I could tell you the last three songs played on the radio if you asked, but only if you asked. Regina would end up being the main focal point in a photo that would later be deemed one of the most terrifying photographs in the world. The hitchhiker also told police that while Robert Ben Rhoades was subjecting her to horrific acts of abuse and torture, he told her his nickname was "Whips and Chains." A report from 2012 stated that Debra lived in College Station, Texas. The only thing they neglected to take down is a website with the words Martinsburg TravelCenter of America flashing like a beacon online. I ran my story past her. He said that no girls had ever been found in a Dumpster at the Martinsburg, West Virginia, truck stop, and I had no reason not to believe him. A chipper recorded voice told me to press 1 for tas, press 2 for guns"all other callers stay on the line!" Robert Benjamin Rhoades 19451122 - 32 1975199050 On April 1, 1990, Roberts murder spree finally came to an end. Robert Ben Rhoades, who is serving a life sentence in Illinois for killing a 14-year-old girl, pleaded guilty to two counts of capital murder when he appeared before a West Texas judge . "Bob was fascinated by secret societies.". Robert Ben Rhoades Is A Member Of . Walters, however, did not have such a quick and painless death. By now papers and photographs were spread out all over the table, and Young was waiting for me to tell my story. Her remains were found in September 1990. Just a few months after she left Robert, he was taken into custody for a kidnapping. Also like me, Regina became dependent upon the grace of truck drivers. Just a few months after she left Robert, he was taken into custody for a kidnapping. He would then keep them alive, torturing and sexually assaulting them for weeks at a time before murdering them and disposing of their bodies. Holes in the ozone layer. TV-14. Microchips in her brain. 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. The body was found in 1990, but not identified until 1992. Friend, 43, says she wants "California voters to know what kind of offenders are on death row," men like Robert Boyd Rhoades, who sodomized, tortured and killed 8-year-old Michael Lyons two . I remember thinking it could be me, since I was also a teenage hitchhiker. It was a raw moment. Watching the driver of my truck walk back across the wet asphalt, a second thought arose: It could be him. I parked in front of the family travel plaza, then walked back past a sign that read TRUCKS ONLY. To a teenager, though, someone pushing 40 is pretty old, and hair often looks darker in photos. He immediately killed Doug and dumped his body in Texas. De 1975 a 1990 acredita-se que tenha torturado, violado e matado mais de 50 mulheres, contudo foi condenado por apenas trs homicdios devido a ausncia de provas. Just a few months after she left Robert, he was taken into custody for a kidnapping. I stuck to trucks because they were safer than cars. When you get in a truck at a truck stop, everyone notices. People Also Viewed . The picture was given to Young by Regina's mom. Since 1957, GQ has inspired men to look sharper and live smarter with its unparalleled coverage of style, culture, and beyond. The FBI theorized Robert had killed at least three women per month. ", "Oh no, not at all!" Young then showed me some photos of Rhoades in the 1980s that had come from his wife. In 2009 the feds went public with a program called the Highway Serial Killings Initiative in response to a rising number of dead bodies found along the interstates. In 1994, Rhoades was convicted of the first degree murder of Regina Kay Walters and was slated to be tried for two more before charges were dropped due to the wishes of victims' families. However, she fell asleep shortly after climbing into the vehicle, and when she awoke, she found Rhoades had placed restraints around her wrists and ankles. It would appear that crime was in Roberts blood. A week before the girl was found in the Dumpster, though, I'd gone to see my dad in Virginia. He shows it and asks what they think is going on. Six weeks later, though, we parted ways. Even so, it still wasn't safe to sleep. I arrived at his door melting in the hundred-degree heat. The trucker bought us chicken-fried steak, chatted amiably, and let us nap in the cab while he drove. On Monday, Rhoades pleaded guilty and was charged with two counts of capital murder in Sutton County, Tex. At the time, she was out with friends when she came across Robert in a pilots uniform. When a state trooper founda nude woman chained up and terrified in the cab of Robert Ben Rhoades's vehicle, he inadvertently stumbled upon a sadistic serial killer who had been using his job as a long-haul truck driver to find vulnerable victims for years. I crouched on netted twigs and breathed into my shirt to muffle the sound. 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. Suspected of killing and raping 100+ women while on the road in the 1980s and early 1990s. And while I was getting more adept at survival, he was getting more adept at killing. My emotions were a planet around which I spun like a moon. He turned her slowly toward the girl and pointed. Rather, he would force them to accompany him all along his long-haul trucker route, killing them perhaps hundreds or thousands of miles from where they were last seen alive. This kit included numerous sex toys, chains, whips, fishhooks, pins, and other items used to inflict on his captives. creator of The Wicked Truth - a true crime blog https://ko-fi.com/fatim. Akin to the murders of Douglas and Patricia, Robert killed Ricky immediately and disposed of his body but held Regina captive for a long period of time, periodically calling her father from a payphone. The young girl ran out of Roberts truck and into the woods. Officers later discovered this was the name Rhoades, who had been involved in BDSM for years, went by when he used his CB radio to communicate with his fellow truckers. "I just want you to know," he said, looking me squarely in the eye, "that what Rhoades did to women, he did to women. Robert Benjamin Rhoades, fdd 22 november 1945, r en amerikansk seriemrdare och vldtktsman, aktiv mellan 1989 och 1990. That ride turned out to be fine. Appeal-Democrat. *Some of the victims names have been changed. With all her freckles, she looked very Irish. I'd always read that she got away because Rhoades forgot to chain her in, but I found out from Young that she'd not been shackled when she escaped. Robert kept her for over a week, torturing and raping her repeatedly. One game in the book is called "Courtroom." The newspapers were equally silent. Rhoades avtjnar ett livstidsstraff p Menard Correctional Center i Chester i Illinois . The true number of victims of Robert Ben Rhoades may never be fully known, for a variety of reasons. I asked. This obviously doesn't recommend the waitress's judgment, but at least some of the credit has to go to Rhoades. His eyes were greeted with a shocking scene. I don't think either of us knew what to do about it. Stowing his paperwork, he released the brake. We had $60 and a Smith Wesson five-shot with one bullet in it, which we accidentally fired off in a field in Maryland during a discussion about whether the safety was on. Robert shot and killed Douglas right away and dumped his body in Sutton County, Texas. Over lunch at a local sushi place, he taught me the difference between a mode of operation and a signature. Piercings around the breasts, bruising, and other signs of torture were also frequently found. Robert Ben Rhoades: From 1989 to 1990, Robert Ben Rhoades is believed to have tortured, raped and killed more than fifty women, although he has only three confirmed victims. Nothing came up, but that wasn't too surprising. . When investigators searched Roberts house they found several nude photos of Regina and Patricia. That forced me into asking for rides in the hallway by the showers. If what he said was true, the trail I was on had disappeared into a field. 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. Initially, agents had disagreed over whether the young girl on Rhoades's film was Regina. Rhoades looked like the guy who picked me up. I have no fascination with serial killers, so I didn't realize that Rhoades was famous. So, if youre curious about where Debra might be today, heres what we know. His favorite book was Games People Play, wherein each social encounter is treated as a transaction or "game." A month after Robert brutally murdered Douglas and Patricia, he picked up his next victim, an eighteen-year-old transient who lived in Houston. Rhoades was handcuffed and placed in the back of the patrol car while Miller questioned the woman in the truck. I looked at the picture on Young's computer. I stayed there until I saw the truck pull onto the interstate. It's me, Sugar Bear, in party row. Robert Ben Rhoades is considered to be one of the most notorious serial killers in the country. Getting sleep was pretty easy with a boyfriend, because one of us could always stay awake. She was a drifter." The action you just performed triggered the security solution. Regina Walters and Ricky Jones were from Texas. There was a gap before that line, and most truckers wouldn't take it that far. When we came back, the truck was gone and every reminder of home with itmy guitar, my knapsack, everything except the Smith Wesson, which we sold later in New Orleans. Over time, I learned safer ways of getting rides by having truckers navigate the CB radio for me. Debra met Robert at a bar in Houston, Texas, in the 1980s. Rhoades in Bond County IL Barn. 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. And I remember being in the woods off I-95. I remember sitting in the drizzle in a truck while the crime-scene tape was strung around a Dumpster. Lisa Pennal's full statement, it turned out, had been destroyed for file space. He said he didn't want to get caught up in anything time-consuming. She also had children from another marriage. Her facial expression could be described as a combination of desperation and abject fear. He was not wearing a T-shirt. Robert Ben Rhoades. 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. A sex worker went to the police in 1989, claiming that Rhoades had held her against her will. He was not wearing jeans. It's more like a set of still photos. 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. Being 16 and in college is an easier thing to talk about. 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. This gave me a screen behind which to observe drivers when they thought I was distracted. she said. Wikipedia External References "He liked people to think he was in uniform," she said. She was wearing those slippersbut she was telling the truth. The victim began saying anything she could think of to try and save her own life. In a letter to his wife on the subject of psychological games, he wrote: "I always told you there were three things you could do: play, pass, or run." Though his first confirmed murders didn't occur until 1990, one woman may have barely escaped with her life the year before. 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. The serial killer's name was Robert Ben Rhoades. Robert's first confirmed victims were in 1990. When the FBI extradited him to Illinois, he was able to get a phone number off a waitress while shackled hand and foot and wearing an orange prison suit. I knew in my body that it was over. That first night, my boyfriend and I stayed in an abandoned barn in Maryland. I found her in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette later that night. The couple were traveling from Georgia to Seattle when they allegedly crossed paths with Rhoades, a long-haul trucker suspected of a decade of rape . 76 Year Olds. Performance & security by Cloudflare. Who was the girl in the Dumpster? One library archivist explained that I was looking for the kind of news nobody wanted to read. She's tried to put the years with Rhoades behind her but still gets letters from him sporadically. 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. And endured the most notorious serial killers, so I did n't want to get caught in! Frequently found truck pull onto the interstate found in the woods off I-95 into a field that. No fascination with serial killers, so I did n't occur until 1990 Roberts. 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