50 Cases: #2 – Alaska – Robert Hansen

This post is part of our 50 Cases of America series. View more cases in this series here.

Quick Facts

Nicknames or Aliases: The Butcher Baker

Offender Status: Died in 2014 of natural causes due to lingering health conditions at age 75

MO: Stalking, rape, shooting and stabbing

Timespan of Crimes: 1971-1983

Date Apprehended: 1983

Date of Incarceration: 1983

Sentence: 461 years plus life in prison without parole in 1984

Case Status: Closed

Number of Victims: 17-21 killed; 31+ raped; 3+ victimless crimes; 1 attempted murder; 1 attempted rape

Victims: Ceilia “Beth” Van Zanten, Megan Siobhan Emerick, Mary Kathleen Thill, “Eklutna Annie” (Jane Doe), Joanna Messina, Roxane Easland, Lisa Futrell, Sherry Morrow, Andrea “Fish” Altiery, Sue Luna, Robin Pelkey, DeLynn “Sugar” Frey, Paula Goulding, Cindy Paulson, Malai Larsen, Teresa Watson, Angela Feddern, Tamera “Tami” Pederson

Location of Crimes: Anchorage, Alaska

Summary of Robert Hansen’s Crimes

Hansen is believed to have begun killing around 1972.

He would pick up sex workers and would fly them out into the wilderness and hunt them, using a Ruger Mini-14 and a knife.

Police were first informed of Hansen’s antics when one of his victims, Cindy Paulson, escaped and managed to flag down a truck driver who took her to a motel. Paulson was still handcuffed when police found her, and she described Hansen to police.

Hansen denied what happened, saying Paulson was trying to cause a scene because he wouldn’t pay extra for her services. According to Wikipedia, “although Hansen had several prior run-ins with the law, his meek demeanor and humble occupation as a baker, along with an alibi from his friend John Henning, kept him from being considered as a serious suspect.”

Alaska State Troopers contacted the FBI to create an offender profile. The FBI profile read “the killer would be an experienced hunter with low self-esteem, have a history of being rejected by women, and would feel compelled to keep “souvenirs” of his murders, such as a victim’s jewelry,” and that the killer may have a stutter. Alaska State Troopers used the profile and once again ended up looking into Hansen.

A search warrant was executed on October 27, 1983, where officials found jewelry in Hansen’s home along with an array of firearms matching the wounds made on multiple bodies found by officials.

Hansen denied his involvement as much as possible before inevitably confessing but blaming the victims for instigating things.