BTK Killer Escapes Charges in Kinney Disappearance Due to Insufficient Evidence

The district attorney for Pawnee and Osage counties, Mike Fisher, announced that there is not enough evidence to charge convicted serial killer Dennis Rader, also known as the BTK killer, in the 1976 disappearance case of 16-year-old Cynthia Kinney. Despite being named as a “prime suspect” in August and thorough investigations, the evidence was deemed insufficient to levy criminal charges against him at this time.

Kinney was last witnessed leaving the Osage Laundromat and entering a 1965 beige Plymouth car accompanied by two women. The Osage County sheriff had earlier affirmed his belief in Rader’s involvement in this case, after a tip was received regarding Kinney’s disappearance.

Rader, responsible for ten murders between 1974 and 1991, is currently serving a life sentence at the El Dorado Correctional Facility. Authorities had visited and inspected a property Rader previously owned in Park City as part of the recent investigation.

Fisher has urged the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation to further investigate the Kinney case. He emphasized his commitment to uncovering the truth behind Kinney’s disappearance, assuring that any sufficient evidence found would lead to appropriate charges being filed. Fisher encouraged the public to come forward with any information regarding this case by contacting the district attorney’s office.

In related news, the death of 22-year-old Shawna Beth Garber is also under investigation, with her remains identified only recently in 2021, three decades after her body was found in Missouri.