Roger Reece Kibbe (May 21, 1939 – February 28, 2021) was an American
serial killer
A serial killer (also called a serial murderer) is a person who murders three or more people,An offender can be anyone:
*
*
*
*
* (This source only requires two people) with the killings taking place over a significant period of time in separat ...
and rapist known as the "
I-5 Strangler".
Kibbe found all but one of his victims on freeways around
Sacramento, California
Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat, seat of Sacramento County, California, Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento Rive ...
. In 1991, he was sentenced to 25 years to life imprisonment for the death of Darcie Frackenpohl.
Criminal investigation and incarceration
Kibbe was first arrested for assault and battery in 1987 after attempting to handcuff prostitute Debra Ann Guffie. Guffie fought back and a police officer heard her screaming. With Guffie's testimony, Kibbe was convicted and sentenced to 8 months in jail, during which time police put together the murder case against him.
Kibbe was arrested in 1988 for murdering Darcie Frackenpohl the previous year. He was convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to 25 years to life in prison. In 2003, he accompanied prosecutors and detectives to a dry creek he remembered to try to find the body of Lou Ellen Burleigh, whom he had killed in 1977. In 2007 a detective searched the area again. In 2009, Kibbe again returned to the site with detectives. Burleigh's body was not found, and a grand jury was convened.
After a plea bargain to avoid the death penalty, on November 5, 2009, Kibbe pleaded guilty to the murders of six other women and was sentenced to six additional life sentences.
In 2011, a detective returned to the Burleigh dump site on his own and found a bone in the creek. DNA testing proved it to be Burleigh's.
Burleigh had left her
Walnut Creek, California
Walnut Creek is a city in Contra Costa County, California, United States, located in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, about east of the city of Oakland, California, Oakland. Walnut Creek has a total population of 70,127 per t ...
, home in 1977 for a job interview, but never returned.
Kibbe kidnapped his victims, tied them up with
parachute rigging cord and silenced them with
duct tape
Duct tape or duck tape is cloth- or scrim-backed pressure-sensitive tape, often coated with polyethylene. A variety of constructions exist using different backings and adhesives, and the term "duct tape" has been genericized to refer to all o ...
. He then proceeded to cut open their clothes in irregular shapes with scissors that had belonged to his mother. Sometimes he
garroted his victims with the parachute cord with which he skydived. Then, he raped them and strangled them to death. Kibbe also cut off most of the hair of his victims to remove the duct tape before leaving the scene of the crime.
Death
Kibbe died at approximately 12:40 a.m. on February 28, 2021, in
Mule Creek State Prison
Mule Creek State Prison (MCSP) is a California State Prison for men. It was opened in June 1987, and covers located in Ione, California. The prison has a staff of 1,242 and an annual operating budget of $157 million.
As of July 31, 2022, MCS ...
.
An officer made the discovery; Jason Budrow (cellmate), 40, was present at the scene. Budrow, a self-avowed Satanist who was serving a life sentence for the 2010 strangling death of 48-year-old Margaret Dalton, claimed he had murdered Kibbe to avenge his victims. He was charged with first degree murder with special circumstances for killing Kibbe, albeit prosecutors did not seek a death sentence against him. Budrow was given a second life sentence for Kibbe's murder and is currently charged with the August 2023 attack on Paul Flores, who was the murderer of
Kristin Smart
Kristin Denise Smart (February 20, 1977 disappeared May 25, 1996; declared legally dead May 25, 2002) was a 19-year-old American woman murdered by Paul Flores at the end of her first year on the campus of California Polytechnic State University, ...
.
On March 3, 2021, the
Amador County
Amador County () is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of California, in the Sierra Nevada. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 40,474. The county seat is Jackson, California, Jackson. Ama ...
Sheriff's Office released the results of Kibbe's autopsy report, showing that he had died from
manual strangulation.
Known victims
* Lou Ellen Burleigh, 21, met Kibbe for an interview on September 10, 1977. She met him again the next morning and never returned home. Kibbe eventually confessed to raping and murdering her, and after 34 years her body was found.
* Lora Rena Heedick, 21, was last seen getting into a car with a white, middle-aged man on April 20, 1986. Her body was found near
Sacramento
Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the seat of Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers in Northern California's Sacramento Valley, Sacramento's 2020 p ...
on September 6, 1986.
* Barbara Ann Scott, 29, was found strangled beneath a tree on a golf course in
Antioch
Antioch on the Orontes (; , ) "Antioch on Daphne"; or "Antioch the Great"; ; ; ; ; ; ; . was a Hellenistic Greek city founded by Seleucus I Nicator in 300 BC. One of the most important Greek cities of the Hellenistic period, it served as ...
on July 3, 1986.
* Stephanie Brown, 19, was found sexually assaulted and strangled to death in a drainage ditch in
San Joaquin County
San Joaquin County ( ; , meaning " St. Joachim"), officially the County of San Joaquin, is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 779,233. The county seat is Stockton.
San Jo ...
on July 15, 1986. A pair of unusual scissors were found near her body.
* Charmaine Sabrah, 26, was found strangled on November 9, 1986, in
Ione Ione may refer to:
Places
* Ione, California, a city
* Ione, Colorado, an unincorporated community
* Ione, Nevada, an unincorporated community
* Ione, Oregon, a city
* Ione, Washington, a town
* Ionopolis or Ione, an ancient town near Antioch
...
. She was last seen on August 17, 1986, accepting a ride from a stranger after the car she and her mother were in broke down on
I-5.
* Katherine Kelly Quinones, 25, was found strangled near the Pope Creek Bridge at
Lake Berryessa
Lake Berryessa is the largest lake in Napa County, California, United States. This reservoir in the Vaca Mountains was formed following the construction of the Monticello Dam on Putah Creek in the 1950s. Since the early 1960s, this reservoir h ...
on December 21, 1986. Her body was identified through fingerprints as Traci Lynn Gobel; one of the 17 aliases used by Quinones.
* Karen Louise Finch, 25, vanished on June 14, 1987. Seven days later, her body was found in a
Sloughhouse ditch. She had been sexually assaulted and her throat was slashed; duct tape was found in her hair.
Kibbe was not charged with Finch's death.
* Darcie Renée Frackenpohl, 17, a runaway from
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...
, living in
Sacramento
Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the seat of Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers in Northern California's Sacramento Valley, Sacramento's 2020 p ...
was found strangled on September 19, 1987, in
South Lake Tahoe
South Lake Tahoe is the most populous incorporated city in El Dorado County, California, United States, in the Sierra Nevada mountains. The city's population was 21,330 at the 2020 census, down from 21,403 at the 2010 census. The city, along the ...
. She was last seen around August 23, 1987.
In media
Kibbe's forensic evidence used in his conviction is reported on an episode of the series ''
Forensic Files
''Forensic Files'', originally known as ''Medical Detectives'', is an American documentary television program that reveals how forensic science is used to solve violent crimes, mysterious accidents, and outbreaks of illness. The show was origin ...
,'' "''Knot for Everyone''" (aired: October 1998).
Discovery channel TV show ''
The New Detectives
''The New Detectives: Case Studies in Forensic Science'' (or simply ''The New Detectives'', formally "Forensic Detectives") is a documentary true crime television show that aired two to three different cases in forensic science per episode from 1 ...
'' covered the murder of Darcie Frackenpohl in the episode titled ''Scattered Clues'' (aired on October 19, 1999).
In 2002 the television show
I, Detective aired an episode focusing on the murder of Stephanie Brown.
MSNBC
MSNBC is an American cable news channel owned by the NBCUniversal News Group division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. Launched on July 15, 1996, and headquartered at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in Manhattan, the channel primarily broadcasts r ...
released the documentary "Profiling Evil" where forensic psychiatrist
Park Dietz
Park Elliot Dietz (born August 13, 1948) is a forensic psychiatrist who has consulted or testified in many of the highest-profile US criminal cases, including those of spousal killer Betty Broderick, mass murderer Jared Lee Loughner, and serial ...
interviews Kibbe in prison (aired: November 18, 2012). The interview was part of Kibbe's plea deal to avoid a death penalty.
The series ''
On the Case with Paula Zahn
''On the Case with Paula Zahn'' is an American Television documentary, documentary and news program broadcast on Investigation Discovery since October 18, 2009. The program explores in-depth stories of crime mysteries and interviews with involve ...
'' dedicated an episode on Kibbe's crimes titled "''Deadly Offer''". The episode aired on May 8, 2016. Series host
Paula Zahn
Paula Ann Zahn (; born February 24, 1956) is an American journalist and newscaster who has been an anchor at ABC News, CBS News, Fox News, and CNN. She currently produces and hosts the true crime documentary series '' On the Case with Paula Zahn' ...
interviewed family members of the victims, detectives, criminalist, the prosecutor, and a forensic pathologist.
Australian TV program ''35 Serial Killers the World Wants to Forget'' also look into the case of Kibbe by the perspective of lead detective Ray Biondi (aired on March 6, 2020).
Oxygen Network
Oxygen (branded on air as Oxygen True Crime) is an American cable and digital multicast television network owned by the NBCUniversal Media Group unit of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast. The network primarily airs true crime television series ...
aired ''
The Mark of a Killer: Pattern of Murder'' about the Kibbe case on February 17, 2019.
Kibbe was profiled in an episode of ''Storm of Suspicion'' on
The Weather Channel
The Weather Channel (TWC) is an American pay television television channel, channel owned by Weather Group, LLC, a subsidiary of Allen Media Group. The channel's headquarters are located in Atlanta, Georgia. Launched on May 2, 1982, the channel ...
.
See also
*
List of serial killers in the United States
A serial killer is typically a person who kills three or more people, with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) defines serial murder a ...
References
Further reading
*
*
External links
* — Season 3, Episode 2: "Knot for Everyone", by
FilmRise
FilmRise is an American media company, headquartered in New York City, that operates a film and television studio and a free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) network. As of November 2024, the FilmRise app has reported more than 31.5 milli ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kibbe, Roger
1939 births
2021 deaths
People murdered in 2021
20th-century American murderers
American male criminals
American murderers of children
American people convicted of murder
American people who died in prison custody
American prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment
American rapists
Deaths by strangulation in the United States
Murdered American criminals
Murder convictions without a body
People convicted of murder by California
People murdered in California
Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by California
Prisoners who died in California detention
Serial killers from California
Serial killers from the San Francisco Bay Area
Serial killers murdered in prison custody
Vigilantism against sex offenders in the United States
Violence against women in California