Murder In America - EP. 64 ALASKA - SERIAL KILLER: Israel Keyes & The Murder of Samantha Koenig (Part 1)

Episode Date: May 4, 2022

In Pt. 1 of our two part series exploring the gruesome life and crimes of notorious serial killer Israel Keyes, we explore the murder that got him caught, the upbringing that birthed a killer and the life and death of Samantha Koenig. This one is quite the ride. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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That's Q-U-I-N-C-E.com slash America for free shipping and 365-day returns. Quince.com slash America. The following podcast is not suitable for all audiences. We go into great detail with every case that we cover and do our best to bring viewers even deeper into the stories by utilizing disturbing audio and sound effects. Trigger warnings from the stories we cover may include violence, rape, murder, and offenses against children. This podcast is not for everyone. You have been warned. Alaska is a giant peninsula on the northwest corner of the United States.

Geographically speaking, it's the largest state in America. with over 650,000 miles of snow for as far as the ice can see. But despite its size, Alaska is one of the least populated states in America. The cold and frigid Iceland is not for everyone. Yes, it's beautiful, with fishing, mountain climbing, and exotic wildlife. But Alaska can be a cold and dark place. With its small population, it's easy to feel isolated. And it's also the perfect place for someone who's.

who wants to keep to themselves and stay in the shadows. The perfect place for a serial killer. In a lot of stories we tell here at Murder in America, we discuss serial killers that like to put themselves out there. Many want the world to know of their depravity. Go write letters to local newspapers, give themselves outlandish names like Son of Sam or BTK, and overall they love the sense of power they feel

from instilling fear into the cities in which they prowl. And yes, they love the kill, but they also like the recognition they get from killing. And don't get me wrong, those types of killers are scary. But to me, the scariest ones of all are the ones who don't want to be known. The ones who kill not because they want the notoriety, but because they love it. The serial killer we will be discussing today is one of the most terrifying people I've ever heard of, because he doesn't have a particular MO. He doesn't have a specific victim type.

And when he's in the mood to kill, anyone and everyone is up for game. This killer wasn't even on the FBI's radar until 2012 when an 18-year-old girl went missing out of Anchorage, Alaska. It's believed that her killer is one of the most prolific serial killers of our time. And many people don't even know his name. This is the story of Israel Keys. I'm Courtney Brown. And I'm Colin Brown. And you're listening to Murder in America.

In the summertime, Anchorage, Alaska is the perfect destination for a family vacation. It's breathtakingly beautiful and great for nature lovers and nomadic adrenaline junkies. But as the summer months pass and it slowly fades into winter, darkness falls upon the town. During the winter solstice, Anchorage only gets around five hours of sunlight a day. That, coupled with the freezing temperatures, make it to where only a select group of people can handle living there. One being an 18-year-old girl named Samantha Conig. Samantha was his senior at Anchorage West High School. Like many people her age, life wasn't the easiest.

She didn't have a great relationship with her mom, and she struggled with drug abuse. But despite everything, she was tough, hardworking, and motivated just like her father, James. After high school, she planned on becoming a nurse. Maybe she would join the Navy or work with animals. Samantha had a very nurturing side. She was the kind of girl who would talk to the people sitting alone. at lunch. She also had a boyfriend named Dwayne, who had been living with Samantha and her father for the past eight months. Samantha's father and Dwayne were the most important people in her life.

She and Dwayne argued pretty frequently, like many couples, but they loved each other and he helped her out a lot. He often drove Samantha to and from her new job at a coffee shop called Common Grounds. Common Grounds was a small teal-colored coffee shop off Tudor Road in Anchorage, Alaska. The tiny 9-5-foot building was bright and colorful and welcoming to the number of people that can see it off the main road. It's also the perfect job for a high school student wanting to make some extra money, which is exactly why Samantha had taken the job in early January of 2012. A month later, on February 1st, Samantha was scheduled for her regular evening shift. She preferred to work the closing shifts, and she often worked them all by herself.

That day, Dwayne had dropped her. off at common grounds and like always, he told her he would come back to pick her up at around 8.30 after her shift ended. And things were a little tense between the couple at the time. They had been arguing a lot because Samantha had suspicions that he was cheating. During her shift, the two had sent some pretty heated messages back and forth. Things were indeed rocky, but to Duane, it was nothing that they couldn't work through. And when 8.30 rolled around, like he had promised, Duane pulled his truck into the common grounds to pick up Samantha. But one thing he immediately noticed was that all of the lights were turned off inside. So he gets out of his truck

and peers inside the coffee shop's window looking for Samantha. But there was no side of her. The only thing he could see were some napkins on the floor in a wad of dirty towels lying on the counter, which he thought was strange because Samantha was known to be a neat freak. But again, considering the fight they just had, he figures she got a ride with someone else and needed some space. Duane then goes back to their house that they shared with Samantha's father, and he and James wait around for Samantha for hours without hearing from her. Now, they weren't completely alarmed because Samantha was 18, and she didn't have to come home if she didn't want to. And I'm sure there was a brief sense of relief. When Duane received a text message from her,

later that night at around 1130. Now, the text doesn't make a whole lot of sense, but it read, F you asshole, I know what you did. I'm going to spend a couple days with friends. Need time to think, plan, acting weird, let my dad know. The text message was strange and didn't make a lot of sense, but now that he knew Samantha was safe, he could rest easily that night, or so he thought. At around 3 a.m., Dwayne was awoken by something outside, and normally he would just go back to sleep, but he felt the urge to check it out, so he walks over to the front door and opens it. When he peers outside, he sees a man wearing a mask, standing about six feet in front of him going through his pickup truck. The two lock eyes and stand there for a moment before the man

shuts the truck's door and casually walks away. Afterward, Dwayne goes back inside to tell James about the strange interaction. Then he heads out to his truck to see if the man stole anything. As he took a look around, nothing really seemed out of place. The only thing noticeably missing was Samantha's driver's license and her ATM card, which she always kept in the visor pocket. But the ATM card had less than $1 on it, so he wasn't that worried. And Dwayne didn't really think much of it, and he went to bed thinking he and Samantha would talk again soon. The next morning, the opening shift started at the Common Ground's coffee shop.

When the barista pulled up to the small building, nothing seemed to stand out at first. But it was when she stepped inside when she noticed things were off. For one, the room was a mess. There were coffee and napkins laying on the counter and dirty dishes that hadn't been washed, which was strange to this barista because Samantha Koenig closed the shop the previous evening, and she was known to be a really great employee. Samantha always cleaned up after herself, making sure everything was in order for the next shift, and she never had any issues closing up the shop before.

I'm sure the barista felt a little annoyed that, Samantha had left the place such a mess. But that feeling quickly left when she opened up the cash register and saw that it was empty, Samantha would have never stolen from the job, leading her to believe that something went awry during last night's shift. So the barista called the Anchorage Police to notify them of the missing cash. When they arrived, however, they didn't notice any sign of a struggle inside of the shop besides a few napkins on the floor.

They also noticed that the shop's panic button hadn't been triggered, leading them to believe that Samantha could have taken the money and run off. But they knew that they would eventually get some answers, because Detective Monique Dahl, one of the first officers on scene, noticed two CCTV security cameras on the outside of the shack and another two mounted to the walls inside. They weren't sure exactly what would be found on these tapes,

but they figured it would be what they see all the time, an employee stealing from their place of work and skipping town. That was pretty common in Anchorage. Once investigators did their initial walkthrough of the coffee shop, they left, allowing the shop to reopen for the day. Little did they know, however, that in doing so, they would be contaminating one of Alaska's most infamous crime scenes, a regret that would come crashing down once investigators finally received the CCTV camera footage.

On the video, Samantha is seen starting some of the closing work around the shop, getting ready for the end of her shift. She's wearing a light green shirt with her pretty brown hair draped over her shoulders. Everything seemed to be completely normal. And just before 8 p.m., on the outside cameras, a dark figure approaches the coffee stand. There is no audio, but from what detectives can make out, Samantha greets the customer and appears to be relaxed as she makes them coffee. But when she turns to face them again, her demeanor changes.

Samantha suddenly takes a few steps backward while slightly lifting her hands up in the air. She quickly turns off the lights. It's hard to see what's in the video after this, but you can see a faint silhouette of a gun pointed through the window. Next, Samantha turns around and gets down on her knees. She's forced to stay in that position for over a minute until the figure orders her to walk over to the register and give them the cash. It's unclear exactly what he's saying to her,

but it is clear that Samantha is terrified. After she hands over the money, She goes back into the kneeling position, but then stands up, stumbles towards the window, and then turns around. It's here, five minutes in, when a large male figure leans his body through the shop's window and appears to be tying Samantha's hands behind her back. Two more excruciating minutes pass. No one knows what Samantha and the perpetrator were saying to one another, but you can guess that Samantha is pleading for her life.

Then, on one of the outside cameras, you can see a black SUV drive within feet of the coffee shop. Seeing this, the perpetrator quickly hurdles himself through the shop's window, closes it behind him, and peers outside to make sure the coast is clear. It was. The people in the SUV never saw the interaction. Inside of the coffee shop, Samantha is now on her knees, while the tall and skinny man searches the small room for other valuables. but he doesn't find anything. You can't see his face,

but investigators can tell that he's wearing a baseball hat and a black hoodie with white lettering. It's been a whole 17 minutes since the man first walked up to the coffee shop. 17 minutes of pure terror for Samantha Koenig. In the last seconds of the video, investigators watch as the man kneels beside her. He throws his right arm around her waist, then helps her up to her feet.

Next, the two exit out of the shop's back door. His arm is still tightly wrapped around her shoulder as they walk out into the snowy night. Investigators weren't able to do much with this video. During the 17-minute abduction, you could never see the kidnapper's face, so it didn't give them any big leads besides the fact that Samantha didn't just run off on her own. They also saw the two get into a white pickup truck, but they couldn't narrow anyone down with this either, because that type of pickup happened to be one of the most popular vehicles in Anchorage.

So at this point everyone was a suspect, including Samantha's father, James, and her boyfriend Dwayne. And they were particularly interested in Dwayne because during his interrogation, investigators discovered that he and Samantha had been fighting, but they soon found out that Dwayne couldn't be their guy because he was working a shift at his job during the abduction. But he does give investigators some information that would help their case. The text message he received from Samantha the night before, the one where she said she was leaving for a few days.

It didn't really sound like Samantha. Now how everyone has a specific way that they text? Well, Dwayne knew Samantha better than anyone, and that message just didn't sound like her. And now, knowing that she was abducted, he was sure it wasn't Samantha who sent the message. He also tells the detectives about the strange man who had stolen Samantha's ID and ATM card out of his truck. Dwayne didn't even think Samantha was in danger at the time, so he never thought that the thief was connected to her disappearance until now.

As for investigators, they had a little bit more to work with, but they still didn't have a lot. There was no physical evidence left behind aside from a fuzzy surveillance tape and a sloppily written text message. And the Anchorage Police Department wasn't used to dealing with cases like this. Realizing he needed to take action, James, Samantha's father, decided to take matters into his own hands. He set up a tip line and printed a five-foot-tall sign of Samantha's face that read, Kidnapped.

He also set up a volunteer site right outside of the Common Ground's coffee shop. Here is James speaking to the media about Samantha's disappearance. I want to ask for her captors if they please send my daughter home. I will give you anything in this world. Call me anonymously. You don't have to go through the police. I will meet you. I will give you whatever you want.

Just please bring my daughter back. If you guys have any questions for me, I'll take them. I don't have any new information. The police hasn't been able to give me with the ongoing investigation. I just need her home. Every day she's gone where the odds are against us. And I need the whole community to come together and find my daughter. Go door to door, every neighborhood.

And anything suspicious, no matter how small you think it is, call the police, call me, I will investigate it. Just please help find my daughter. By this point, Samantha's name was the topic of conversation in every house in Anchorage. People everywhere were making t-shirts and pens and hanging up flyers all over Alaska. On February 11th, 10 days after her disappearance, a candlelit vigil was held with hundreds of people in attendance. But again, we're here for Samantha. So again, I'd like to really thank you on behalf of the family and friends for your support and your love, your prayers, the singing, everything.

Again, we want to thank you so much for coming out and showing support and bringing some. Samantha home. What else can we do? Hand out flyers. Ask around. If you know somebody who knows something, get them to talk. We just need something. It's that one lead, that one tip that's going to bring our home. And soon enough, Samantha's case was international news. Every news station in America was covering her abduction. And like with any high profile case, there were a lot of rumors circulating in Anchorage. Some people were saying, that the Russian mafia was responsible because her father, James, didn't pay them back. There were also rumors that local drug dealers killed her because she had been stealing from them.

But detectives ran through each and every tip and none of them were promising. Here is James speaking about those rumors. I realize I have to be in the media spotlight as well to keep her in the media. and the brutal things that have been said towards my daughter are untrue and unsubstantiated by the people saying them. That's why I felt I had to put the letter out that I did and to let people know a little bit more about Samantha. The people making the statements do not know who my daughter is. They are mere acquaintance. I won't stand for her being slandered in any public.

for them or anywhere. But when she does return home, she will obtain an attorney and file suit against these people. I don't feel good. I'm more worried every day it drags on. I don't know what the people that have her want and whatever they want, they have it. Just bring her home. And after a few weeks, despite the massive coverage, the case was kind of at a standstill that was until February 24th, when Duane got a text message on his phone just before 8 p.m. It was from Samantha, the first time anyone had heard from her since the night of her disappearance three weeks earlier. The text message read, quote,

Connor Park sign, underpick of Albert. Ain't she pretty? End quote. Connor Park was a local park in town. Dwayne and James were hoping that that's where they would find Samantha, like the text had mentioned. So they quickly call authorities and make, their way over to the park and what they would find would blow the case wide open. In the park's

entrance there's a bulletin board with a flyer for a missing dog named Albert and underneath it was a zip-block baggy. When investigators opened the bag they found two Polaroid pictures of Samantha with the current newspaper. Upon seeing this the detectives were both relieved and horrified because at least the pictures proved that she's being kept alive somewhere, but she also looked to be in really rough shape. In one of the pictures, duct tape covered her mouth and her hair was braided, which was interesting because Samantha's hair was down in the footage on the day of her abduction. The photos were also given to her father so that he could properly identify it as Samantha. After looking at the photo, he came to the conclusion that it was indeed,

his daughter, but he found it strange because Samantha never wore her hair in braids, leading detectives to believe that whoever had her must have braided her hair themselves. In the second picture, there's no longer duct tape on her mouth, but she has pretty dark circles around her eyes and she looks exhausted, which makes sense considering she had been in captivity for weeks. Also in the Polaroid Pictures is a man holding the Anchorage newspaper from February 13th, 12 days after her abduction. You can't see anything of the man except for his hand, which doesn't give them any leads. So detectives move on to what's behind the Polaroid pictures. It's a ransom note. In it, the perpetrator demands $30,000 be deposited

into Samantha's ATM card. He goes on to write, quote, I may not use the card in Alaska due to small population, but as I will be leaving soon, I will be using it all over. End quote. The note went on to imply that he and Samantha were no longer in Alaska, that he had taken her to another state. And he promised that if the money was deposited,

he would let Samantha go free in six months. The man made sure, to add another disturbing fact about Samantha's disappearance, saying, quote, she did almost get away twice, once on Tudor Road and once in the desert, must be losing my touch, end quote. The case is now officially a kidnapping, which meant that local law enforcement now had the full force of the FBI and its resources at their disposal. The FBI talked with James about the ransom, and they recommended that he not put in the full

30,000 to the ATM card. This would likely frustrate the kidnapper into making contact with them again. So he takes their advice and on February 29th, just five days after finding the ransom letter, James deposits $5,000 into Samantha's account. Detective Joseph Barth was in charge of keeping tabs on Samantha's bank account. The first withdrawal attempt on her card was actually at 3 a.m. on the night she went missing. But since at the time there was less than $5 in her account, no withdrawal was made. The second attempt was just four hours after James deposited the $5,000 into Samantha's card. It was used at an ATM in Anchorage, where the abductor attempted to withdraw $600, but the transaction failed because the card's daily limit was $500.

Less than two hours later, a successful attempt came from an ATM at the Donali Federal Credit Union. Only six minutes away from the first ATM the abductor had tried that day. Once they get the notification that the card is being used, officers rush over, but they're always one step behind. So they continue to monitor the account activity and there are two more withdrawals at two different ATMs at 11.56 p.m. A half an hour later, another withdrawal was made from an ATM on Debar Road, which is a remote area that borders a thick, dense forest. Authorities determine the man using this card knows Anchorage very well, and he knows that ATMs have surveillance cameras. In every instance, he was covered from head to toe, wearing light-colored eyeglasses,

a gray masking gloves, dark pants, and light-colored shoes. They also noted that whoever this was was in very good shape, but unfortunately it's not enough to make a positive ID. Feeling discouraged, detectives think of other ways to track down Samantha and her kidnapper until their next big break comes. When detectives take another look at the ransom note, they see that the abductor mentioned that Samantha almost got away from him on Tudor Road, which is the road right along the coffee shop. So they decide to take a look at the surveillance tapes from the other stores along Tudor Road, one, because, the Home Depot right across the street from common grounds. And what do you know when they obtain the footage, they see that he was right? Samantha had tried to get away from him.

At 7.45 p.m., on the night Samantha went missing, a white Chevrolet truck without license plates can be seen pulling into the Home Depot parking lot. After waiting for roughly 10 minutes, a man can be seen exiting his vehicle before he crosses the street and disappears from view. After around 20 minutes, he re-emerges into frame with his arm wrapped around Samantha's shoulder as they wait for the traffic light to change. It's clear that while they're waiting, Samantha's running through her next move in her head because as soon as the light turns, she breaks free and starts to run away from her abductor, but her hands are still tied behind her back so she can't run very fast,

and within seconds he tackles her down to the ground. The man then lifts her back up to her feet and whispers something in her ear. And whatever he said to her must have really scared her because the two then walk over to his truck where several people are hanging out in the parking lot just feet away from them. But Samantha doesn't say a word. She gets inside of the truck and they drive away

without anyone realizing she was in danger. And this footage didn't really give any answers other than the fact that his truck was a white Chevy. the most popular vehicle in Alaska. They still didn't have any clue of their suspect's identity, or more importantly, where Samantha was. But their next clue would be pretty big. As luck would have it, on March 7th, Samantha's card was used again,

but this time it was at an ATM in Wilcox, Arizona, 4,000 miles away. When they obtained the CCTV footage from the ATM, they can see that it looks a lot like the man in the Anchorage footage, although they still can't see his face. This time, however, they're able to see. that he isn't driving his white truck anymore. He's now driving a white sedan.

About an hour later, they get another ping on her card. This one came from Lordsburg, New Mexico. They can now see their suspect is heading east on the I-10 interstate. Looking at a map, detectives predict he would continue to head east, but they don't know the exact make or model of the car that he's in. Assuming he's driving a rental, they put a bolo, be on the lookout,

to all law enforcement agencies in nearby cities. This is exactly what they needed him to keep doing, because as long as he kept using, using Samantha's card, they had eyes on the abductor. They had eyes on where he was and they knew where he was going. And based on the ATM pings, it seemed like their suspect was headed for Texas. Deep in the heart of Texas is a town called Lufkin, a city that means a lot to a man named Steve Rayburn. Steve was a Texas ranger and before that, he had been a Lufkin police officer and state trooper with 21 years of experience. He knows U.S. Highway 59 like the back of his hand.

And his job was to ensure safety along the 600-plus mile stretch linking Houston to Lufkin. And he took his job very seriously. On March 12th, while Steve was enjoying a cup of coffee, he saw the be on the lookout notice for the Alaskan kidnapper. Hours later, at 10.58 a.m., he received an email saying that the suspect had withdrawn money in Umbl, Texas, and then Shepard, Texas. And based on that route, they predicted he was head. heading in Steve's direction towards Lufkin. There was an attempt to locate flyer attached that read, Kidnapping suspect from Anchorage, Alaska.

Suspect used an ATM car twice, once in Humble, Texas, and again in Shepard, Texas. Please send this flyer and recent ATM info to all in-car computers. Ranger Steve Rayburn in Lufkin will be the main ranger, assisting the FBI in this matter. Rayburn then calls the FBI field office in my hometown of Conroe, Texas, where he learns that an officer saw one. White Ford Focus at one of the targeted ATMs at around 2.23 a.m., which is great because now they know the vehicle, but unfortunately, White Ford Focuses were one of the most commonly rented cars in America at the time, which is pretty telling of their suspect.

He really knew how to blend in. Rayburn didn't want to waste any time, so he decided to make his own be on the lookout flyer. The flyer read, On February 1st, 2012, the victim was kidnapped in the state of Alaska at her place of employment. Her family and boyfriend have since been cleared of suspects. On March 7, 2012, a debit card in the name of the victim was used at an ATM in Wilcox, Arizona. At approximately 10.15 a.m., the card was again used in Lordsburg, New Mexico, at approximately 11.30 a.m. The card was last used in Shepard, Texas, on March 12, 2012, at approximately 247 a.m. Shepard is located on U.S. 59. Officers are asked to check rest areas, truck stops, and motels.

Officers are asked to bowl over the vehicle with an occupant matching suspect or victim description. Suspects should be in possession of victims stolen ATM card. According to the B on the lookout notice, it's clear that investigators were still holding on to hope that Samantha could possibly still be with her kidnapper, even though they realized it wouldn't be likely. But nevertheless, investigators knew that they were right on their suspect's tail, An officer Rayburn was sure that their suspect would likely pass through Lufkin because a lot of highways connected there and he became determined to find the kidnapper. But after hours of driving along US 59, there was no sight of the White Ford Focus. The following day, March 13th, Detective Rayburn starts his search again.

He was sure that their suspect was nearby. And soon enough, he would get that confirmation. Around 11 a.m., Rayburn gets a call from a detective named Brian Henry. and he tells him that while he was driving by a local hotel, he spotted a white Ford focus in the parking lot of a Quality Inn, which was directly off US 59. At this point, Rayburn removed his cowboy hat and necktie so that he would look less like a Texas Ranger and more like a civilian. Then he quickly hops into his pickup truck and speeds over to the Quality Inn. Once there, he sees the white Ford Focus parked in front

of room 115. Before making a move, Rayburn knows he needs to be tactical in his approach. So he calls his friend Lieutenant Mickey Hadnott to come to the hotel as an undercover. And while Detective Brian Henry keeps an eye on room 115, Rayburn goes inside of the hotel lobby to collect the guest list from the hotel manager. But as he does, Detective Henry calls him, letting him know that a white male just exited the room and is placing his belongings in the White Ford Focus. Knowing that they could be seconds away from catching their suspect, Rayburn tells Henry,

I need you to set up on US 59. Once that car leaves, you need to find a reason to pull him over. Don't let go of that car. With adrenaline running high, Detective Henry parks his patrol car in the center median. Waiting for the Ford Focus to pull out of the parking lot, within minutes he sees the car turn left on US 59. Then it heads north. Henry slowly tails the suspect, making sure to keep two car lengths between them.

And he's looking for any traffic violation to give him probable cause to pull him over. But the driver uses all appropriate turn signals, and he stays within the speed limit. There was literally nothing he could pull him over for. Not yet, at least. After 10 minutes, the two vehicles approach a red light. The upcoming speed limit is 55 miles per hour, so as the light turns green, Detective Henry keeps a close eye on the car's acceleration speed. And luckily, as the light turns green, the Ford Focus takes off down the road,

and Detective Henry's speedometer red 57 miles per hour. Finally, he could pull him over. Henry quickly switches on his emergency lights and watches the driver calmly pull over into the Cotton Patch Cafe parking line. As Detective Henry approaches the white rental car, He notices that the driver is by himself. There's no sign of Samantha. He also notices that the man is in his mid-30s,

wearing a gray wife beater, blue jeans, and a pair of black wraparound sunglasses. Detective Henry then says, Texas Highway Patrol, where are you from? The driver looked confused, and he responds. Uh-huh, Alaska? Henry then asks the man to hand over his driver's license and step out of the car.

and he does as he's told. Then, the man offers up an explanation as to why he's in Texas. I'm in town for my sister's wedding. It's in Wells, 15 minutes from here. Henry notices the outline of a knife tucked into the man's front pocket, so he orders him to take it out and place it on the trunk. And again, he does as he's told. Henry begins running the suspect's information,

and the results surprise him. The suspect had no prior record, no warrants, no speeding tickets, nothing. And when Henry walked back over to speak to him, the man asks, Come on me, what's this about? We're looking into a kidnapping from Alaska. A look of anxiety runs over the suspect's face before he replies. I've been mostly staying in Wells, but I stayed at the quality inn last night with my brother.

I have two brothers in town for the wedding. They're both from me. And something they teach you in training is that if people are offering up a bunch of unsolicited, details, they're most likely guilty, which is exactly what their suspect was doing. Henry also noticed that the man was nervous and sweating profusely through his thin gray wife-beater. About how long have you been in Texas? Last Thursday, the same day as the big rain. The only plane ticket I could get from Anchorage

was to Las Vegas, so I flew to Vegas and then drove to Texas. Also, I flew into Vegas so I could take my daughter to see the Grand Canyon. She's in town with my brother in Wells. She's 10. here when Texas ranger Steve Rayburn approaches and starts to ask him some questions. Like, when did you rent this car? How many states have you stopped in? To which he responds. I rented the car a few days ago, the day after I flew in from Las Vegas last Thursday. I drove interstate 40 and stopped at the Hoover Dam, but I didn't really stay in any state because I only slept for an hour and a half a night. I drove the rest of the time. How'd you pay for gas? They asked him, and for a moment he's caught off guard by the question.

A few seconds pass before he responds. I don't know, probably cash. At this point, Rayburn is tired of wasting time, so we asked to see the man's wallet, to which he responds. You guys aren't searching anything. Am I under arrest? But they don't give him an answer. Instead, they begin searching his car. In the front seat, they find highlighted maps of Arizona, New Mexico, and California,

an opened amp energy can, a child's school photos, a pair of white sneakers, an ATM receipt reading, debit not available, a digital camera with over 200 photos from a wedding, some clothing, several Walmart bags, and rolls of cash all in $5 and $10 bills. In the back seat, they find a Walmart receipt timestamp from Lufkin, Texas, March 12, 2012, 4.10am. One sandwich, one energy drink, a pair of black sunglasses, a half-empty gallon of water, a pink backpack, and laundry detergent.

In the trunk, they found a green backpack, a gray DVD case. containing pornographic images, other pornographic DVDs including transgender pornography, and an Alaskan Airlines flight confirmation for him and his daughter for March 6, 2012. It shows they flew from Anchorage to Seattle, then from Seattle to Las Vegas, Nevada. They also find several bottles of chilled alcohol in Walmart bags, amber shooting glasses, a gray mask, a pair of gloves, a laptop, toiletry kit, one black slider cell phone with a battery and SIM card removed, a gun, a pair of binoculars, a black ski mask and one headlamp.

But out of everything they found that day, the most damning piece of evidence wasn't in the car. It was in his wallet. Inside, investigators found Samantha's driver's license and debit card, with the pin number scratched into her face. It was right then and there when they knew that they had found their guide. Rayburn gives Henry the honors of placing their suspect under arrest. Next, they place a call to the Anchorage Police Department,

And for the first time ever, investigators would hear the name of the man that they had been searching for for weeks. His name was Israel Keys. And detectives were just around the corner from learning that they had just arrested one of America's most prolific serial killers. Israel Keys was born on January 7, 1978 in the small town of Cove, Utah. His parents, Heidi Hackinson and John Keyes met as teenagers in Los Angeles, California. They got married in their early 20s and both wanted to. raise their future children somewhere with a lot of nature. So they decided to move to Utah. Another important part of their life was religion, and like many people in Utah, they converted to

Mormonism. Israel would be the second of 10 children, all of which were home births. And the Keys family was very different from most. They didn't believe in going to the doctor. They never had vaccines or any medication for that matter. In addition, none of the Keys children had social security numbers or birth certificates. And because of this, they weren't allowed to attend school. Eventually, people around Utah were beginning to grow concerned about the children. But before social workers could intervene, the family quit Mormonism and moved to Washington. There, they purchased 160 acres adjacent to a large national forest, which would become the children's playground. They built their lives around a one-room cabin without electricity, plumbing, or heating for the next

seven years. As John worked to earn money as an appliance repairman, The local church they belonged to in Washington was called the Ark. Its members were white supremacists that prided themselves for growing their own vegetables and hunting their own meat. None of the Ark's children were allowed to see a doctor, a dentist, or visit the emergency room, no matter what happened to them. They were very, very isolated. And because of this, the Keys children never had a lot of friends, just animals and each other.

They weren't even allowed to have radios, TVs, computers, telephones, or basically anything that would connect them with the outside world. For their education, they learned to read by memorizing scripture, and they spent most of their days outside farming, cleaning out slot buckets, and chopping firewood. And because Israel was one of the oldest of his siblings, he was often tasked with babysitting his younger brothers and sisters. While his father was often away working, Israel learned how to sew, cook, and braid all of his younger sister's hair. He loved his siblings, and they really looked up to him. But with a new baby arriving every two years, the one-room cabin became overcrowded, and the older kids were eventually forced to live outside and a tent during the warmer months.

In the winter, Heidi would take the older children to John's mom's trailer in California. The Keys family had a very interesting life separated from the outside world. But Israel did eventually make two friends growing up. They were brothers, Shaney and Chevy Kehoe, who, like Israel, Israel were homeschooled and members of the Ark. But even though they both came from religious families, they were always getting into trouble. Israel and the brothers would often spend their free time with guns, but not just shooting guns. They would steal them from around the area and sell them on the black market.

And when Israel wasn't causing trouble with the Kiho boys, Israel would get his younger sister charity to tag along in the mischief. The two would walk around the woods with their BB guns, and if they passed a house, they would shoot at it. If no one came outside to reprimand them, they would break in and steal things, or they would just simply move things around and wait outside to see the family's reaction. Israel also was known to start fires and harm animals, two of the three early signs of psychopathy. Now, trigger warning, this next part deals with horrific animal abuse, but Israel's behavior

getting significantly worse around the age of 14. During this time when Israel was hanging out with a neighbor, he took one of their cats and walked off into the woods. There he ties the cat to a tree. And this next part is a direct quote from Israel himself and just a warning it's horrible. He states, I shot the cat in the stomach and it ran around and around the tree and then crashed into the tree and started vomiting. And for me, I didn't really react. I actually kind of laughed a little because of the way it was running around the tree. But I looked at the kid who was my agent, he was throwing up, kind of traumatized, I think. And he told his dad about it, and of course his dad talked to my parents about it.

And that was pretty much the last time anyone went into the woods with me. In the book, American Predator by Marine Callahan, where we get most of the research from for this case. She talks about the psychology behind these behaviors, saying, quote, what Keyes was describing was the textbook progression from childhood of a sadist and a psychopath, Torturing and killing small animals, pets especially, is experimentation in controlling and killing another living thing for pure pleasure. It is practiced the last step before graduating to humans, end quote. Israel was well aware that he was different from most kids, and this event would mark

the beginning of his double life. When Israel was 16, he built his own cabin in the woods, about a mile away from his parents, which gave him even more time to practice his concerning behaviors. He started hunting any living thing he could find, apart from humans. But even then, he started to show warning signs there, too. According to Israel himself, he would sit in the woods for hours, stalking people and watching their every move as they hunted or hiked through the wilderness. And he was good at it, too. They never noticed him watching.

He would later recall that he did this for years, and while stalking them, he would fantasize about making them disappear. When Israel was 16, in 1994, he would have his first run-in with the law after getting caught shoplifting. Now, this would never go on his record, and he got off with a few hours of community service. But his parents were angry to say the least. After his arrest, they went through his cabin and found a plethora of stolen guns. So they made him move back home. But Heidi said that once Israel was back, he was different.

He wasn't the same helpful child. that she had kicked out of the house years earlier. And to their dismay, Israel eventually admitted to them that he didn't believe in God. His father disowned him, but Heidi couldn't bring herself to turn her back on her eldest son. When Israel turns 18, he starts working a construction job, which seems to be good for a while. He eventually begins dating his boss's daughter, but when his parents find out about their relationship, they forbid him from seeing her. And by 1996, Heidi and John decide it's time to pack up and move.

again. They would move a lot over the next few years. First to Oregon, where Israel writes secret letters to his girlfriend complaining about his family, he told her that his parents were very controlling and often used him for money and labor. Israel was really upset because his parents took the money he got from the construction job, claiming that the money was for the family, not just for him. The following year, they would pack up again and move to Malone, New York. Then a year after that, in 1998, to Smyrna, Maine, and it was here where the Keys family decided to make honey living among the Amish. But at this point, Israel was 20, and he didn't want anything to do with the Amish.

So he decided to move out and finally be off on his own. And for a while, it seemed like his life was starting to improve. He stays in New York and earns his GED. And eventually, he was recruited into the United States Army. Israel was stationed at Fort Hood, Texas, then Fort Lewis, Washington, before spending six months deployed in Egypt. He was never in combat, but he really loved the army. The only issue was that he struggled to make.

friends. Growing up so isolated, he didn't have great social skills and he didn't know a lot about the world. For instance, Marine Callahan mentions in her book that in 1999, Israel had no idea who Brad Pitt and Nirvana were, and he had never even heard of football. While still on base in America, Israel watches his first football game and attends his first concert where he saw the Red Hot Chili Peppers live. In the year 2000, Israel met a woman online named Tammy, and they immediately hit it off. They had a lot in common. She too grew up without plumbing or electricity,

and they both shared a love for alcohol, slasher films, and sex. And after just eight weeks together, Tammy becomes pregnant. Israel tries to convince her to have an abortion, but she is adamant on keeping it and tells Israel that he doesn't have to be in the child's life if he doesn't want to. But after some thought, Israel came around. He had always wanted children.

After all, he knew he would be good at it since he practically raised all of his siblings. And at first, the pregnancy was good for the couple, but after a few months, Israel begins drinking excessively nearly every night. And when he was drunk, he would tell Tammy things like, I'm a bad person, or I have a black heart. And soon after, he began to self-harm, carving satanic symbols all over his body. Now, this next part is interesting. One day, Tammy and Israel sit down to watch a true crime show. And there, on the TV, Israel sees his old childhood friends, Shaney and Chevy Kehoe.

They were fugitives on the run, and the TV program shows the brothers having a shootout with the police. Seeing this, Israel is shocked, and he tells Tammy, I know them, I grew up with them. But when Tammy starts to ask questions, Israel shuts it down, not wanting to talk about their past. Their daughter Sarah was born on Halloween 2002. Two weeks later, on November 13th, Israel's father John passes away,

so he catches a flight to Maine to attend the funeral. And to Tammy's surprise, when he comes back, Israel is completely focused on caring for their little girl. He would even let Tammy sleep in while he changed, fed, played, and took their daughter to daycare. But soon enough, their family started to struggle. Tammy is eventually diagnosed with uterine cancer, requiring her to get a hysterectomy. Post-surgery, she's given opiates for the pain, but she slowly becomes dependent on the drugs. And for a while, Israel has to take on the role of a single father,

but he enjoys it. He bonds with his new toddler. By brating her hair, making her lunches, and playing with her any chance that he could. By the summer of 2004, Tammy's addiction gets so bad, Israel leaves with his daughter and moves to a nearby reservation. Since Tammy is half Native American and half African American, that made his daughter a quarter Native American.

and she was eligible to receive on-reservation housing benefits. So Israel takes advantage of this. But by 2005, he's ready to start dating again and eventually meets another woman named Kimberly Anderson. She's 41, while Israel is only 27, but regardless, they hit it off. Shortly after they start dating, however, Kimberly tells Israel that she's moving to Anchorage Alaska for work, and she wants him to come with her.

Israel wants to more than anything, but Tammy wouldn't allow him to take their daughter. And ultimately, he decides to give Tammy full-cutting. custody and start a new life with Kimberly. The two make the move to Anchorage on March 9th, 2007. And although it was his new home, Israel spent the months after the move traveling along the west coast. For the next three months, he travels up and down the west coast, spending most of his time in Oakland, San Diego, Anaheim, Napa Valley, Los Angeles, and Washington. At times, he also visited Seattle and even parts of Mexico. But Israel Keys would never reveal exactly

what he did during those months of traveling. But one can assume what he was doing, after finding out what he did to Samantha Koenig in 2012. Back in Alaska, after learning of Israel Keese's arrest in Texas, the Anchorage Police Department's new main priority is finding Samantha Koenig. They figured that if she was still alive, she's likely tied up somewhere at his home being held against her will. So authorities make their way over to 2456 Spur Lane. Outside of the home is a white chef, pickup, just like the one seen in the surveillance tapes. Coincidentally, officers had checked out Israel's truck during their initial search, but they ultimately rolled it out. And now that

his house was surrounded, officers walk up to the front door and give it a knock. But there was no answer, and they were still waiting on their search warrant, so all they could do was peeked through the front and back windows, hoping to give them some type of clue as to where Samantha was. they didn't see her or any sign of a struggle. Officers also noticed that there were fresh tire tracks in the driveway, meaning someone had just recently driven off. And they soon discover that the house itself was owned by his girlfriend, Kimberly Anderson, who was a nurse at the Alaska Regional Hospital. Needing more information, they contact the hospital and discover that Kimberly is currently there working a shift. So detectives pick her up and take her to the

station for questioning. Once they brief Kimberly on what's happening, she's shocked. There's no way Israel could have done this. By that time, Sarah, his daughter, was living with the couple in Alaska, and Kimberly remembered that Israel was home with them the night Samantha was abducted. She also adds that Israel came into her bedroom several times that night, which was interesting to detectives. Was he checking in on his girlfriend to make sure she wasn't awake?

They weren't sure. Kimberly continues to defend her boyfriend, telling investigators that he couldn't have been responsible because that very next morning, after Samantha's disappearance, Israel and his daughter had to wake up at 5 a.m. to catch a flight to New Orleans for a cruise. Kimberly went with them on this cruise, but she joined them a few days after because of work obligations. But she swore up and down that it would have been impossible for Israel to have found time to do this. They had the wrong guy, she told them. When investigators finally got the chance to search their home, they came up and there was still no sign of Samantha Connick.

Back in Texas, Israel Keyes sits in a Lufkin police station interrogation room. Texas Ranger Steve Rayburn and FBI agent Deb Gonaway step inside of the room and sit across from him. Because Samantha was still missing, they were cautious when speaking to him. They were also keeping his arrest quiet after receiving a tip that Samantha was still alive in Wells, Texas, where Israel had been staying. Before the interrogation even started, Rayburn and Gonaway offer Israel a sandwich, hoping to start off on the right foot, but he declines. Next, they ask him if he knows why he's under arrest, to which he responds.

I don't think so. Rayburn goes on to tell him that they found Samantha's ATM card inside of his wallet and that the FBI has pictures of his truck at the crime scenes. Israel has a smug look on his face as he responds. If they had that, they already would have talked to me. And he was right. Investigators didn't have definitive proof that it was Israel's truck. But when they try and press him further, Israel says, I don't want to talk. He doesn't request a lawyer, which is good, but they can tell the conversation isn't going anywhere.

So they shut down the interrogation, shackle his hands and feet, and make the two-hour drive to the federal penitentiary. They'll try again tomorrow where hopefully he's more willing to talk. The next day, two detectives from the Anchorage Police Department come down to Texas to assist in the interrogation. Their names were Jeff Bell and Monique Dahl, who had been working on the case from the very beginning. The detectives start the second round of interrogation by showing Israel the ransom note that had been left in Connor Park. He stares at the note for a few moments before saying, There's nothing I can do to help you. The detectives pressed a little further and asked him,

Well, if you're innocent, then why did you have Samantha's ATM card? Israel pauses for a moment before telling them that this was all a big misunderstanding. He continues by saying that after Samantha's disappearance, someone had left a Ziploc bag in the front seat of his truck. The Ziploc contained a cell phone and ATM card with a pin number carved on the front. Israel said that a few people he worked with in the construction industry owed him some money and that he figured that they left that in his truck as a form of payment. Detectives tell him this story is ridiculous and that they know he's involved in Samantha's kidnapping.

But Israel continues to deny ever knowing her. or anything about her disappearance. Detectives try to get the truth out of him for another hour, but he refuses to budge. Soon after this, Israel Keys would have his arraignment, and outside of the courtroom, Detective Bell notices a tall, slender, older woman with long-braided white hair. She looked like she could be Amish from the way that she dressed. But he couldn't be certain. She also had a troubled look on her face. So Bell decides to approach her and introduces himself. She responds saying her name is Heidi. It was Israel's mother. Detective Bell cautiously tells her.

her that there's a missing 18-year-old in Alaska and that they believe her son knows where she is, but he won't tell them anything. The detective starts to ask if she knew anything, but much like her son, she responds coldly saying, I can't help you. If God wants that girl to be found, she'll be found. By Friday, March 30th, Israel is extradited back to Anchorage, and to the detective surprise, he's ready to talk, but he asks two demands. One, he wants the death penalty to be taken off the table. And two, he doesn't want any more information to be released to the media. He was aware that his name was in the news report since his arrest. But if he was going to confess, he wanted the details of his crime to be kept quiet for the sake of his daughter. So detectives vaguely agree to

his terms. They didn't want to, but at the end of the day, they don't have proof that Samantha was murdered. All they have on him right now is fraudulent ATM charges, which would only lock him away for about a year. So they agree to keep his confession from the media. But before they start, Israel says, I can give you the rest of the story like, you know, everything that happened. If I get a cigar. And with that, the DA Kevin Fieldess and deputy Frank Rousseau, get him a cigar and begin the interrogation. And for the first time ever, they start to hear the real story of what happened to Samantha This podcast is sponsored by Better Help. Now, people don't always realize that physical symptoms like headaches, teeth grinding,

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so he knew no one would be able to see him. February 1st was a very dark and cold day, so Israel figured it would be the perfect day to strike. Shortly after 7 p.m., he drives to the Home Depot across the street, but there are still people in the area so he decides to buy some time. He stops at a grocery store and buys a Snickers bar and a pack of wild and mild cigars. Then he heads back to the Home Depot parking lot. In his car is everything he will need for the attack, including a headlamp, plastic zip ties, a 22-caliber torus revolver, and a tiny police scanner

buzzing in his ear. And once the area slowly starts to empty, Israel exits his truck and crosses the street towards the common grounds coffee shop. At this point in the confession, investigators ask Israel, why he chose Samantha Koenig. Had he ever met her before? No, never met her, never even seen her before, he replies, which surprises them. So they ask, Why that night at that time? Because they're open late. Israel goes on to say that he paced around in the parking lot for a few minutes before finally approaching the Common Ground's coffee shop

five minutes before closing. Israel places his empty thermos on the counter and orders an Americano from the pretty young woman who is working by herself. Samantha shuffles around the kiosk making his drink. And when she hands it to him, he pulls out a gun and quietly tells us, her. This is a robbery. He then orders her to turn off the lights and give him all of the money in the cash register. Samantha does, as she's told, without screaming, Israel then orders Samantha on the

ground, and he recalls, quote, I was feeling a little invincible because she was scared and did everything I said, and I had an adrenaline rush, I guess, just decided to do it, and well, you guys have the video, so you know what happened. End quote. Israel continued. saying once he jumped inside of the shop, Samantha told him, my dad's coming to get me in half an hour. I mean, he's going to be here any minute. He moves on and asks her if she hit an alarm. He warns her, quote, don't lie to me. I have a police scanner in my ear. I'll know if I hear the police being dispatched here and I'll kill you. End quote. Samantha swears up and down that she never hit the panic button and he believes her. He then proceeds to ask her what her name was,

before shoving a lot of napkins in her mouth. He then grabs her and tells her, we're going to take a little walk. As he leads Samantha out of the parking lot, he finds a new cannon camera lying on the ground, which he takes as a good omen. And as he bent over to pick it up, Samantha broke away and ran. But like the surveillance tape shows,

he tackles her and is able to regain control by threatening to shoot her. Israel recalls the people standing nearby his truck in the parking lot, but Samantha doesn't say anything to them. And as she gets inside of his vehicle, he tells her, I don't want to hurt you, but this 22 is loaded with very quiet ammo. It will kill you, so don't make me do it. Along the drive, Israel tells Samantha that she's going to be held for ransom, but everything would be okay.

Samantha tries to tell him that her family doesn't have any money, but he doesn't listen. He then tells investigators. After that, it seemed like the more I talked to her, the more she, I mean, I wasn't being mean or anything. I wasn't scaring her at that point. I was trying, you know, to seem like a normal person. stopped at a red light, a police car with two officers inside pull up directly next to them. Israel was nervous that Samantha would try and get their attention, but she never did.

Israel and Samantha drive around for a little while afterwards. He didn't want to go home immediately because his girlfriend, Kimberly, is a night owl, and he knew that she would still be awake. It's now around 11 p.m., and Israel tells investigators, quote, that's when I kind of realized I had a lot to do and not very much time to do it." End quote. He needed to find a phone to send a ransom message without it getting traced back to him. He considers buying a burner phone at Walmart, but then he remembered that Walmart has

some of the best surveillance cameras in the country, so he decided against it. Then he remembered that Samantha's phone was still at common grounds, so he and Samantha drove back to go retrieve it. Surprisingly, he leaves Samantha in the truck by herself while he walks over. But he made sure to tell her, quote, I'm only going to be gone a couple of minutes. If I come back and it looks like you've been trying anything, you know, not going to be happy."

And Samantha must have been terrified because she doesn't try to escape while Israel leaves to go grab her phone. Once he's back inside common grounds for the second time that evening, he picks up her phone and keys. He also notices that he left a couple of zip ties. on the floor, so he picks them up and locks the door behind him. Now it will look just like Samantha left on her own. When he got back to the truck, Samantha was still there curled up in a piece of tarp for extra warmth. He immediately flips open her cell phone and checks her text messages. This

calls and bank account information. After several moments of silence, he throws the truck into drive and pulls away. A few minutes later, Samantha asks to use the bathroom. Knowing this could be a ruse to get him to pull over, he doesn't take any chances. But if she had an accident, he would be a accident, her DNA would get everywhere. So he turns into earthquake parks lot, ties a rope around Samantha's neck, and lets her use the bathroom. Now at this point, Israel notices that Samantha's dad and boyfriend are blowing up her phone. So that's when he sends the weird text message to Duane, saying, F you asshole, I know what you did, I'm going to spend a couple days with friends. Need time to think, plan, acting weird. Let my dad know. After he sends the message,

Israel removes the battery from her phone so it can't be traced. It's now around midnight when Israel finally decides to drive back home. But when they pull into the driveway, he notices that Kimberly is still awake. Israel tells Samantha to stay down in the truck and that he will come back for her in a little bit. And I have to imagine that he threatened her so intensely because Samantha stayed in his truck for an hour while Israel went inside and waited for his girlfriend to fall asleep. When he returns, he pulls Samantha out and leads her to a shed right next to the house he shared with his daughter and girlfriend.

Israel told investigators, I had two heaters going in there and I had a big tart, like nine by 12 tart, laid out on the floor and there was a radio in there and stuff. And so yeah, I guess it was probably between one and two then I finally got the nerve to get her on the truck and walk her over. I had her blindfolded then because, you know, I was telling her like, don't try to see anything because you've got to get this thing worked out. I'll make you comfortable.

You just sit here. But I'm going to have this police scanner on me. So if I hear reports of screaming from this neighborhood or anything, any disturbance from over here, I'm going to be back here before the cops get here. To make sure Samantha didn't make any noise, Israel blasts heavy music inside of the shed while he drinks and smoke cigars. He laughs while he tells investigators that Samantha knew no one could save her. and he brags about how cooperative and nice she was. He then says,

I gave her like a five-gallon bucket for her to pee in and then dumped that out onto the trailer and then stuck it back in the shed so she'd have something to sit on and then took a piece of rope and put it around her neck and screwed it to the wall on both sides and I think chained her. I moved her hands so that they were in front of her so she could smoke and stuff. And yeah, just told her to chill out.

Now that Samantha was secure, Israel's main concern was the money. Again, Samantha tells him that her family doesn't have any money, but she does have an ATM card in her boyfriend's truck. It doesn't have any money on it, but maybe they could arrange something and Samantha could be let free. Israel writes down her address, checks to make sure his girlfriend is still asleep, and then he makes his way over to Samantha's house. It was around 2.30 a.m. at this point, Israel and his daughter needed to leave Alaska in two and a half hours to make their flight, so he's running behind schedule.

Once he arrives at Samantha's neighborhood, he makes sure to park a few blocks away. Samantha had a spare key for Duane's truck, so once he spotted it in the driveway, he unlocked it. Inside, he finds the ATM card and begins to shut the door when suddenly Dwayne comes outside.

Israel began to panic inside thinking that the entire plan was about to come to an end, but to his surprise, once he starts walking away, no one follows him, and he quickly speeds away into the dark night. But before going home, Israel decided to try the ATM,

card to see if he could get any money. He soon realized, however, he had forgot to write down the pin number. So he goes back to the shed, gets the number, scratches it into the face of her ID, and goes back to the ATM, just to find out that the card only had 94 cents on it. But he wasn't too upset about this. Israel told investigators, that wasn't really the issue.

I wasn't after the card at that point. That was just a bonus to the whole thing. If I could eventually get some money out of the card, then that was the plan. Investigators knew that Israel called a cab for the airport at 5 a.m. that morning. And after he got back from the ATM, it was about 3 a.m. So they asked him what happened in between those two hours. He responds, some of the details, regardless of which version I tell you, are going to be very graphic.

And I don't want to hear about them being on the media. I don't imagine that you're going to want them on the media either. At least, I can't imagine why. So, you know, I'm assuming that this video is just for your review or someone else's review. Investigators promised to keep all of the details of his confession away from the press, and more importantly, they would do everything in their power to keep his daughter's name and location private. Satisfied, Israel continues. After trying her card at the ATM, he goes back home and enters the shed,

where Samantha is surprisingly calm. She even asks him if everything worked out, assuring her that everything was fine. Israel then releases her from her restraint, making her think that he was going to set her free. For the first time in hours, Samantha felt a small glimmer of hope, but that hope would quickly fade when Israel begins tying her up again. He tells investigators, quote, she knew at that point, end quote.

He didn't elaborate on what exactly she knew, but it's clear he meant Samantha knew she was going to die. It was hot inside of the shed. The heaters drove the temperatures upward of 90 degrees. and the blaring heavy metal music vibrated the walls. Next, Israel raped Samantha twice. He tells investigators, quote, It took a while, maybe two or three songs, end quote.

When he finishes, Samantha asks him if he's going to kill her, but he doesn't answer. In her last words, Samantha begs for him to let her go. Please don't kill me. I promise I won't tell anyone, she says. But Israel Keyes has already made up his mind. He stands above her, still naked, while he slowly puts leather gloves on his hands. Then he strangles Samantha to death.

When investigators ask how long it took to strangle her, he responds. It was taking, I mean, it's always, it's hard to tell when it was taking a while. I remember thinking, I still have to shower. Then I stabbed her once right below her right shoulder blade in her back, and it wasn't going very deep. I didn't really stab her to make her die faster or anything. It was something else. but I finished my wine and put my pants on, went back into the house and took a shower. After showering, Israel wakes up his daughter and tells her to start getting ready for their

crews. In the meantime, he goes back to the shed to conceal Samantha's body. He had a tarp laid out on the ground that he had placed there days before so that his victim wouldn't get any DNA in the shed. Israel then rolls Samantha's body up in the tarp and shoves her inside a cabinet before turning off the heaters and double-locking the shed. Then he calls a cab to take him and his daughter to the airport. For the next week, Israel had the time of his life on the cruise. He was getting drinks by the pool, laying out at the beach, and spending quality time with his girlfriend and daughter,

while the entire town of Anchorage was looking for Samantha Konig. No one had any idea that her body was in the bottom of a shed on his property. Israel told the detectives that he wasn't worried about anything. one finding her saying. I was thinking it was 20 degrees outside and I didn't have anything to worry about. Even if they had pictures of my truck, they wouldn't know whose truck it was. They wouldn't have tire tracks. They wouldn't have forensic evidence.

They wouldn't have shoe prints. They certainly wouldn't have fingerprints or DNA or anything. So I didn't worry about it. Then the detective's minds went to the ransom pictures. If Samantha was murdered just hours after her abduction, then how did Israel have pictures of her with a newspaper from two weeks later? and the answer to that question was horrifying. Samantha wasn't alive in those pictures.

In fact, she had been dead for three whole weeks. Because of the freezing temperatures in Alaska, Samantha's body had been preserved and was in near perfect condition when he took the photos weeks after her death. But even then, detectives were wondering how she looked so normal in the photo. Yes, she looked like she was in pretty rough shape,

but she still looked a lot. After Israel returned from his two-week vacation on February 18th, he immediately went back to check on her body. Paranoid that Samantha's DNA was inside. He decides to destroy everything in the shed, ripping it apart and burning everything in a fire pit. He made sure to walk around the cabinet where her body was being stored. Once it was cleaned out, he took her out of the cabinet and laid her on a plastic sheet. He then took the foam mat, sleeping bag, and tarped that she was rolled up in, and cut it up and put it in a double-layer contractor trash bag. He then tosses the clothing and shoes she wore on that night into a landfill, along with Samantha's purse.

It had been a long few days for Israel, covering all of his tracks and getting rid of the evidence. On February 22nd, his daughter would return home from school, and he decides to take a break and help her with her homework, make some dinner, and tuck her into bed before returning to the body outside. Luckily for him, his girlfriend Kimberly was out of town. So he had free reign to do whatever he wanted without the fear of getting caught. Later that night, at around 2 a.m., Israel goes back out to the shed and hangs up huge pieces of plastic sheeting to the walls and floors. He did that so her DNA wouldn't get inside of the shed, almost exactly like Dexter. And if you don't know what show I'm referencing, go watch Dexter immediately after you finish this podcast.

If you like this show, you will love it. But anyways, after hanging up the plastic, Israel now focuses. his attention on the ransom. But before he took any pictures, he knew he needed to thaw her out. So he ties ropes around Samantha's wrists and suspends her body up in the air. Then he turns the shed's heaters on as high as they can go. As detectives hear this, they can tell that Israel is embarrassed, and it takes him a while, but eventually he admits... Then I had sex with her, her corpse. And, you know, she... She was warm and I guess I lost track of time.

Israel raped Samantha's body for hours when suddenly he hears a knock on the shed. Daddy, he hears, it was his daughter looking for him. Luckily, the shed was locked so she didn't see any of the horrors going on inside. What are you doing in there? The 10-year-old asks, and Israel responds, I'll be out in a minute. Go back inside and eat your breakfast. While Israel is recalling this encounter to the detectives, he laughs.

Somehow, it's funny to him that his daughter almost walked in on him defiling a corpse. Afterwards, Israel cleans himself up and helps get his daughter ready for school. Once she's gone, he decides to then write up a rough draft of the ransom note. Later that afternoon, he picks up his daughter from school and tells her that they're going to take a trip to Target, which is every young girl's dream. But the trip had nothing to do with his daughter. Israel went to Target to purchase a Polaroid camera. Unfortunately, though, they didn't have any film.

So later that night, after he put his daughter to bed, he leaves the then 10-year-old alone at the house, and he drives about an hour away to another target in Wasilla. There, he buys tote bags, carbon ribbon, paper for a typewriter, a large foam sled, a sewing kit, and a 10-pound fishing line. And before he returns back home, he stops by a local dumpster and grabs a copy of the Anchorage Daily News, dated February 13th. Now, when detectives hear this, they're a bit confused because it was now February 22nd,

so they ask him why he didn't get a more current newspaper. But Israel is meticulous, and he picked that specific date because he wasn't in Alaska on the 13th. And if he was ever considered a person of interest based on his white pickup or something, the cops would have to rule him out because he was across the country on the day when the Polaroid photo had been taken. It took hours for Israel to gather everything he needed. I mean, I can imagine, digging through a dumpster for a two-week-old newspaper, took up a lot of time in and of itself. And after he got home, he returned to the shed to prepare her body for the pictures.

Now, because her body had been frozen, there was barely any decomposition. But Samantha definitely didn't look alive. Her skin was gray, and her lips and eyes showed that there were obviously no signs of life. So, Israel went to work. Before he had thrown her purse away, he had taken out her makeup. And for the next few hours, he did his best to add some color to her skin. He also braided her hair, just like he would braid his daughter's hair. Israel spent three to five hours doing his best to make Samantha look alive.

But he didn't have as much makeup as he had hoped, so disturbingly he had to go and borrow some of his girlfriends. Now, even with this, Israel was having trouble making Samantha look alive. for the pictures. She had been thawing out that entire day and Israel described her body as quote, floppy, so it was difficult to move her around. But as big a struggle was her face. While she was thawing, all of her muscles drooped and there was nothing he could do to change the blank expression on her face. When he lifted her upright, her mouth naturally open because there were no muscles working to keep it closed. So Israel decides to tape it shut. Next were the eyes, which were the most

difficult of all. In an attempt to keep them open, Israel tries to superglue her eyelids, but it doesn't work. So instead, he takes a long curved needle from the sewing kit he purchased from Target, and he sews them up with a fishing line. He tells the detectives, I took the needle and went down through her brow, like right between her eyebrows and down, up along her nose cartilage under the skin and came out and then went back up along the same path and did it again and then pulled it tight to make it look like she was squeezing her eyes shut. And then I took a picture just to kind of see what it was going to look like. And I think I put a little more makeup on her after that and I already had her hair braided at that point.

The detectives are horrified by these details, but they swallow their disgust and proceed. to ask him where exactly he put the makeup on Samantha. Israel responds. Everywhere. I had to put foundation. Like, every part you see in that picture has foundation on it, two or three different kinds. She didn't look good.

I mean, her skin, you could see it. You could start to see the blood under the skin. And, um, I mean, she was still in good shape, but, you know, she definitely didn't look alive. Israel also admits that it took him about six test shots before he got the perfect picture. After he got the one that he wanted, he actually cut the corner off of it. Because the picture showed one of his moles,

and he knew that that could be an identifying characteristic if he was ever considered for the crime. The investigators were shocked. He really did think through every single detail of the crime, and they were curious. Why go through all of this trouble? His response was, I did it.

The bottom line was to get money out of it, but at the same time, it's not like I didn't want to do it. After Israel took Samantha's ransom pictures, he called it a day. He'd spent the last five hours, trying to make her look alive and now that he got them he could get some rest in addition Kimberly was about to return home from out of town so he locked up the shed

until further notice for the next few days their house was busy Kimberly was home and she brought over a guest named Kevin to stay with them for a while meanwhile Israel was becoming a bit paranoid because the weather was warming up and soon enough Samantha would start to decay he then tells detectives I remember that there was a lot going on but there was one day that there was nobody around at the house and I brought the typewriter into the house and it didn't take me that long. I opened that pack of computer paper I got and put it in the typewriter and the thing worked fine and I typed up one draft of the ransom notes, stuck it in the printer feed tray, hit copy with the picture in there, I had latex

white gloves on the whole time I was typing it and I never touched the paper or anything. Now if you remember in the ransom note Israel wrote, she did almost get away twice, once on Tudor Road and once in the desert, must be losing my touch. But there wasn't a desert anywhere near them, so they ask him about it and he says he lied and was trying to make it seem like she had been sold into sex slavery somewhere in Mexico. Then Israel continues, telling detectives that after he typed up the letter, with his gloves still on, he places it in a Ziploc bag, takes Kimberly's car to Conner's Bog Park, and tax it to the bulletin board under the missing dog flyer. Later that day, he drives to a random parking line and sends Samantha's boyfriend the text message that read,

Connor Park sign, under Pick of Albert. Ain't she Purdy? Then he removes the battery from the phone, and heads back home. At this point, Samantha's body is starting to smell, and he realizes that it's time to dispose of her. So he puts her body into a rolling suitcase, which is about six inches deep. Then he begins to dismember her while she's inside of it. Once he's finished, he takes the battery out of his phone, and he makes the one-hour drive to Madanuska Lake.

It took three days and three separate trips to haul all of Samantha's remains, and he makes and he made sure to go during the day so it wouldn't raise suspicion. On the first day, he sets up an ice hut in the middle of the frozen lake, bringing along a chainsaw, a snow shovel, lead weights, and plywood. These items may seem suspicious to the average person, but when ice fishing, they're pretty common. Israel even brought his fishing gear so that he wouldn't stand out. Once his hut was up, concealing him from the outside world,

He begins to cut a hole into the 20-inch thick ice using his chainsaw. He says it takes him longer than expected because the chainsaw kept dying. Eventually, though, he makes the hole and he drops two lead weights down to the bottom of the lake. It's 40 feet deep, which to him was deep enough for dumping a body. The next day, Israel would return with Samantha's remains. He made his way back out to the hut, where he weighs down her body parts, and drops them down into the dark water. It only took him about 10 minutes to get most of Samantha's body down.

Then he had to leave to go to his daughter's parent-teacher conference. The following day, he brought the last of Samantha's remains and finished disposing of her body. Samantha was now in pieces at the bottom of Madanuska, and Israel rewarded himself by using the hole to catch some fish. Later that night, he served the fish to his girlfriend and daughter. As Israel is telling this story, investigators are simultaneously gathering resources so that they can retrieve Samantha's body and bring her back home.

But before word gets out, they make sure to call Samantha's father, who is still hoping his daughter will come back home alive. And while the local SWAT team is dispatched to the lake, he makes a Facebook post saying, Please, everyone, say a quick prayer. Once authorities locate the hole in Madanuska, a remotely operated vehicle equipped with video transmission is lowered into the cold black water, and it hits something on. almost immediately. It's a human foot.

And it was still in good condition because of the freezing water. The FBI then sent Bobby Chacon, a veteran FBI dive team member, and his team down into the dark cold water. Once they hit the bottom of the lake, they find Samantha's torso, which they bag and bring back up to the surface. Next they find her arms, which are wired together. Eventually they found her legs, then finally her head. The image of Samantha's head, with her eyes still sewed wide open, will forever be in the

diver's minds, then they all share a moment of silence once her entire body is recovered. It was a sad day in Anchorage, Alaska, as word got out that Samantha Koenig's remains were recovered. Her father and boyfriend had always tried to hold out hope that she would eventually make it back home alive. They never in a million years could have pictured this outcome. More than two months after her disappearance, Samantha's loved ones were finally able to lay her to rest and began their long journey of mourning. Anytime you lose a loved one, a piece of your heart dies with them.

But when they die in such a horrific manner, at the hands of someone evil, it makes it so much worse. Samantha's father wanted to know all of the details of what happened, but investigators were reluctant to tell him. After all, how do you look a father in the eyes and tell him that his 18-year-old daughter came face to face with one of the coldest and most

depraved people that they had ever encountered. Israel Keyes was unlike anyone the FBI had ever seen. He chose Samantha at random while she worked a shift at a coffee shop off a busy road. He planned out each and every detail of his crime and cover-up so that he wouldn't get caught. He was bold, and he took risks that most criminals wouldn't. After hearing his confession about the murder of Samantha Koenig, investigators feared that she wasn't his first kill and soon enough they would learn that their suspicions were correct. Across the table from the FBI agents was the person likely responsible for many disappearances across America. And Israel Keyes himself would confirm this by saying, quote, I've got lots more stories to tell.

Hey everybody, it's Colin here. And Courtney. Thank you for listening to another episode of murder in America. We couldn't be happier to have so many beautiful, amazing people out there listening. Now, Courtney, tell us about part two of this episode. Yeah, so part one was just the murder of Samantha Koenig, but next week we're going to take a deep dive into Israel's confession and the other murders that he confessed to. So get ready for that one. Yeah, this is such a crazy story.

It's hard to believe that it was so recent. But before we get into the rest of the story, I want to shout out our new page. patrons this week. Reismar, Olivia Pinkston, Joe Collins, Kennedy Hoosier, Tenea Bustos, Cherise Reed, Leslie Pooitt, Kathleen, Gannon, Stephanie Davis, Kelly Carey, Mandy Welch, Maria Ferreira, Robert Birdtail, Robert McAdam, Joshua Bragg, Sarah Lessig, Gracie Cardoza, Juan Pina, Erica Portillo, and David Oles. That is a lot of patrons.

Thank you all so much if you want to listen to these episodes ad-free. You can sign up to be a patron. on our Patreon at Murder in America. Follow us on Instagram at Murder in America or join our Facebook group. Yeah, we have a great community on Facebook too, so if you love the show, go join us on Facebook. But yeah, this is a, this is quite the story, isn't it?

It sure is. It's definitely one that keeps me up at night. Yeah, definitely some gruesome facts coming up in part two. But until then, everybody, we love y'all. Yes, we love you so much. and we can't wait for you to join us next week for part two of Israel Keys. See you next week, everybody. With fast funding up to $10,000 available through net credit,

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