Timothy Wayne Krajcir: The Multi-State Serial Killer
Background and Early Criminal History
Timothy Wayne Krajcir was born Timothy Wayne McBride on November 28, 1944, in West Mahanoy Township, Pennsylvania. He later took the surname of his stepfather, Bernie Krajcir. Long before he was identified as a serial killer, Krajcir developed an extensive criminal record involving burglary, sexual assault, voyeurism and other offenses against women.
Krajcir entered the Illinois prison system as a young man after being convicted of rape. He spent much of his adult life incarcerated, but during periods of freedom between 1977 and 1982, he traveled through Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky and Pennsylvania. Investigators eventually determined that he used these years to stalk, sexually assault and murder women in several communities.
While on parole, Krajcir attended Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. He earned a degree in the administration of justice and studied psychology. Authorities later believed that his education, combined with his familiarity with police procedures, helped him understand how crimes were investigated and how offenders could avoid leaving obvious connections between cases.
Selection and Stalking of Victims
Krajcir often selected women after observing them in public places, including shopping-center and grocery-store parking lots. He generally preferred women he believed lived alone or could be attacked without interruption. After following a woman home, he memorized or recorded her address and sometimes returned days later.
His usual method was to enter a residence while the occupant was away and wait inside for her return. The victim would unknowingly enter her own home and find Krajcir already there. He frequently carried a firearm and materials that could be used to bind his victims. Several women were restrained, sexually assaulted and killed inside their homes.
Krajcir varied his methods sufficiently to prevent investigators from immediately recognizing a single offender. Victims were shot, stabbed, strangled or suffocated. Some were attacked in their homes, while others were abducted and transported to another location. The crimes occurred in multiple states and were handled by separate police agencies that did not initially know they were investigating the same man.
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