Marcus Bryan Shrader

Serial Killer

Marcus Bryan Shrader III: The 1974 Onslow County Murders

Background

Marcus Bryan Shrader III was a United States Navy medical corpsman whose name became associated with a series of kidnappings and murders in and around Jacksonville and Onslow County, North Carolina, during 1974. He was approximately 33 years old and had served in the Navy for about 16 years when he was arrested. At the time, Shrader was stationed at Camp Lejeune and lived in the Cedar Point area. Authorities ultimately connected Shrader to four female victims whose deaths occurred between January and August 1974. The crimes involved abduction, restraint, sexual violence, bank robbery and the deliberate killing of witnesses. Although Shrader was accused of all four murders, he was tried and convicted only for the kidnapping and murder of 19-year-old Cheryl Potter Boyd. The evidence presented during that trial also revealed disturbing information about the deaths of two teenage girls and helped investigators strengthen their suspicions concerning an earlier bank robbery and murder.

Victims

• Tasca Virginia "Ginger" Rader, 23 January 25, 1974 Onslow County, North Carolina: Rader was kidnapped and forced to participate in a bank robbery. After the robbery, she was shot and killed. Shrader was identified by police as the leading suspect, but he was never brought to trial for her murder.
• Karen Beth Amabile, 15 August 2, 1974 Bear Creek area, Onslow County, North Carolina: Karen was abducted with her friend Cindy Howard after the girls encountered Shrader's 16-year-old stepdaughter, Debra Ann Brown. According to testimony and investigative accounts, the girls were taken to Shrader's van, restrained, sexually assaulted and strangled. Their bodies were abandoned in the Bear Creek area. Shrader was accused of Karen's murder but was not separately tried for it.
• Cindy Howard, 15 August 2, 1974 Bear Creek area, Onslow County, North Carolina: Cindy was kidnapped alongside Karen Amabile while the two teenagers were reportedly on their way to mail a letter. She was restrained, sexually assaulted and strangled before her body was left with Karen's in a remote area. Shrader was accused of Cindy's murder but was never tried on that charge.
• Cheryl Potter Boyd, 19 August 16, 1974 Jacksonville, Onslow County, North Carolina: Boyd was abducted from the parking lot of the post office on New Bridge Street in Jacksonville. Shrader forced her to accompany him during a robbery of a North Carolina National Bank branch. After the robbery, he made her drive away and then shot her in the face. Her body was found inside her blue Ford Mustang behind a shopping center. Shrader was convicted of her kidnapping and first-degree murder.

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Confirmed Victims: (4)

Tasca Ginger Rader Age: (23), Date of Death: 1974-01-25

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