American Predator – A Gripping and Well-Researched True-Crime Narrative

“The Bureau’s top criminal profilers were at a loss. The only thing they could tell the team was that Keyes was one of the most terrifying subjects that they had ever encountered. There was no precedent for a serial killer with this MO: no victim type; no fixed location for hunting, killing, and burying; putting thousands of miles between himself and his victims; caches buried all over the United States.”

Israel Keyes is described as one of the most calculating and terrifying serial-killers you’ve never heard of. The recent TV series Mindhunter (2017--), based on the bone-chilling true story of the man who pioneered the science of profiling serial killers, immersed us into the dark deeds of some of the most twisted minds. From the intimidating and unbelievably self-aware Ed Kemper to the intelligent and well-spoken Wayne Williams, the series introduced us to the deviant minds who have committed the most appalling crimes. Nevertheless, it is the early efforts (in 1970s) of FBI men to understand the serial-killers through methods of psychological profiling (BAU – Behavioral Analysis Unit) that's alleged to have helped identify and solve the serial-murders. Although serial-killing (and names like Jeffrey Dahmer and Ted Bundy) have strongly captured the public’s imagination, it is stated that less than 1 percent of annual homicides in USA are by serial-killers. And Israel Keyes is one of the truly rare serial-killer whose crimes have mostly gone overlooked – the one percent of the one percent, who if not for sheer luck would have gone undetected until his death.

Israel Keyes is an anomaly even among these darkest minds since his MO has baffled the practitioners of criminal profiling. Keyes (1978-2012) is believed to have spent at least fourteen years traveling in & around America robbing banks, kidnapping, raping, and murdering people. After serving in the US army between 1998 and 2001, Keyes was sought out for his handyman skills, and later started his own construction business in the small town of Anchorage, Alaska. When not working or spending time with his daughter, Keyes meticulously prepared himself for new hunts: studying maps (for the safest getaway routes), caching weapons (buried ‘kill kits’ all over the country), and even read the popular books of forensic specialists and FBI profilers. Keyes didn’t have a victim type. He killed indiscriminately and never chose a victim beforehand (his slaughtered victims only made the ‘mistake’ of being in his kill zone). Even though Keyes claimed, he never touched kids, the investigators have understood enough about him to treat this claim with skepticism (So, why did he do it? “Why Not?” was his answer).

Israel Keyes eventually came under the radar of FBI by making few careless mistakes. But until his death (by suicide) on December 1, 2012 there were lots of unanswered questions about the list of his victims. Keyes has confessed to 11 homicides, but he is hinted to be responsible for many more murders as he is supposed to have committed his first murder when he was only a teenager. Sadly, the incompetence of few officials while keeping him in the custody, and Keyes’ egotistical need to manipulate and control the interrogation never revealed the full monstrosity of his criminal behavior. Nevertheless, all the details unveiled so far about this lesser-known serial-killer are deftly presented in the investigative journalist Maureen Callahan’s true-crime book American Predator: The Hunt for the Most Meticulous Serial Killer of the 21^st century (published July 2019). Author Maureen Callahan does a fine job of distancing us from the killer, by telling the story backwards, i.e., from the bizarre kidnapping and brutal murder of 18-year-old Samantha Koening of Anchorage, Alaska (Keyes' last kill).

Maureen offers a thorough account of Samantha’s disappearance and the botched police investigation in the earlier phase. Yet group of dedicated professionals banded together, and thanks to few sloppy mistakes made by the suspect, their man was arrested in Texas, more than 3,000 miles from Alaska. In custody, Keyes confessed to the killing of Samantha. Only when he started to confess about the slaying of a middle-aged couple in New England, the investigators came to understand the truly diabolical nature of Keyes. Although details of certain crime scenes, especially the murder of Curriers, are luridly described, Maureen Callahan never commits the mistake of putting us in the killer’s perspective. Moreover, the author reports the peculiarity and deviancy of Keyes from the viewpoint of those closely involved in the case. The conversational tone maintained throughout the book, from digging up into the actual transcripts between Keyes and law enforcement officials, throws a lot of chilling details in a matter-of-fact manner. The abridged version of the transcripts also helps us comprehend the difficulties and challenges faced by the law enforcement officials in handling such smart, incredibly self-aware and ruthless serial-killers.

Overall, American Predator is a compelling account of a relatively unknown serial-killer who smoothly traveled all around post-9/11 America, casting an intricate web of murder and mayhem.