By John Q. Hosedrinker A stolen digital memory card with gruesome recordings has led to a double murder trial in Alaska, and I must admit, criminals stumbling upon evidence of crimes and turning them into the police is one of my favorite things. In this case, a woman with a lengthy criminal history, including theft, assault, and prostitution, got into a truck with a man who had picked her up for a “date” near downtown Anchorage.
The discovery of the memory card was a strange twist of fate. The woman, likely shitting bricks after their encounter, checked the SD card she had stolen and was horrified by its contents. The voice on one video stated, “In my movies, everybody always dies. What are my followers going to think of me? People need to know when they are being serial-killed.” The fact that this man had followers is incredibly disturbing and raises the question of how many other victims he may have.
Alaska, notorious for its disproportionate number of serial killers, has been plagued by violence against Native women, a grossly under-reported issue. According to a study, more than four in five American Indian and Alaska Native women have experienced violence in their lifetime. This double murder trial is just one example of the staggering levels of violence this community faces.
Some may wonder how a man can murder someone in a Marriott hotel and carry the body back out to his truck without being caught on surveillance cameras. It seems like he should have been caught pretty quickly. Nonetheless, I am glad that law enforcement was able to apprehend at least one of the creeps lurking on the streets.
But it raises a lot of questions. Why was the memory card stolen in the first place? Did the woman suspect something weird about the man? Was she trying to find evidence against him? And why isn’t the news playing up the fact that he is an immigrant? Or how long he has been in the US? Or what type of visa he used? The media seems to miss these crucial details.
The court case has been going on for four long years, even with video evidence, GPS tracking matching his phone locations, and knowledge of the victims and the guy responsible. It’s frustrating that justice is taking so long to be served. One can’t help but wonder how many more victims this guy may have.
In cases like these, where the evidence is so graphic and disturbing, the death penalty should seriously be considered. It is cases like these that make me question whether rehabilitation and treatment are enough for some criminals. The brokenness or warped mindset of these individuals is beyond comprehension, and they will always be a dangerous threat to society.
I can’t help but be reminded of similar cases where criminals stumbled upon evidence of heinous crimes. One such case involved a thief breaking into the home of a famous entertainer only to find child pornography. The thief turned to a journalist, hoping to expose the crime, but it took over a decade before justice was served. These stories highlight the complexities and challenges of uncovering the truth.
It is disturbing to think that snuff films, videos of actual murders, might exist and are possibly distributed in the dark corners of the internet. While some believe that serial killers are born out of mediocrity, driven by narcissism or a delusion of grandeur, others argue that they are edgelords looking for the most visceral scare. Either way, the fact that there are individuals who find pleasure in the suffering of others is deeply unsettling.
As a child, I believed that monsters were in the closet or under the bed. But as I grew older, I realized that the true monsters are not supernatural beings, but ordinary people like you and me. We are capable of carrying out unspeakable acts that we can hardly comprehend. This realization is both unnerving and humbling.
In the end, the stolen memory card serves as a chilling reminder of the darkness that lurks within humanity. It reminds us to remain vigilant, to support the victims of violence, and to work towards a society that values compassion and empathy. Only then can we hope to combat the horrors that continue to haunt us.