Lopez didn't learning anything

It is a good thing that Edgar Patino Lopez is arrested and now out of the military. His so called training in psychology operations (PSYOP) in the military obviously was a waste of time. He clearly did not learn anything about using subterfuges - at least not effective ones. Lopez’s attempt of using the Zodiac letter as a subterfuge was amateurish.

Staged Crime Scene - Touma Murder

I am the first to call the scene in Fairfield Inn Room 143 a ‘staged crime scene.'

Megan Touma’s Killer

The individual responsible for Ms. Megan Touma’s murder was a reader of true crime books. Based on the crime scene at Fairfield Inn and the letter written to the Fayetteville Observer the killer of Touma borrowed ideas from at least two different serial killers. The first killer is William George Heirens who had the moniker "Lipstick Killer." After one murder, Heirens left a note to the police, written on the wall with the victim's lipstick. Touma’s killer drew the infamous Zodiac symbol on the mirror in the motel room with lipstick.


The second serial killer who Touma’s killer appears to have been influenced by is dubbed the Zodiac serial killer. Besides using the Zodiac symbol the statement from Touma’s killer “It was a masterpiece” may have been gleaned from reading about the Zodiac’s murders. Although I am still researching, somehow I remember that the BTK killer may have used the term “Masterpiece” in describing one of his killings.

Staged Crime Scene

Although I was on the Anderson Cooper 360 show last night (6/30/2008) my comments on the psychological make of the person who wrote the ‘diversion letter’ was never aired.

Two possibilities exit about when the alleged Zodiac ‘symbol’ was drawn on the mirror in the Fairfield Inn. Plan one was put in play after the offender, realizing that he was in trouble originally left the Fairfield Inn and then returned later with the Zodiac plan. This plan would have been risky as the offender would have had to leave then return providing ample opportunities to be witnessed. Plan two is probably the most plausible. After the death, the offender realizing that he was in trouble set in motion the Zodiac plan. Plan two has the offender ‘staging’ the crime scene immediately following Ms. Touma’s death; he then flees the scene for good.

After scanning the various news articles related to this case I can find no mention of the term ‘staged crime scene,’ which is exactly what police are dealing with in this case. Considering the offender staged the scene to make it look like the copycat work of the infamous serial killer “Zodiac’ then is it likely that he staged aspects of the body and/or evidence to thwart the police investigation. Hence, we now know the manner of death (homicide) but not the mechanism of death. What true crime book did the offender borrow from to mask the mechanism of death?

Serial Killer Theory

Just to clarify – none of my comments on this case thus far have suggested that there’s a serial killer on the loose in Fayetteville, NC – at least as it relates to the Touma case. My comments in the Fayetteville Observer suggested that generally we should be cautious (unless there is compelling evidence otherwise) before any tunnel vision opinion is made about any suspicious case – or as it is defined in the criminal investigative field - Equivocal Deaths.

It should be noted, that between 1987 and 1999 in and around the Fayetteville/Cumberland County area there were 15 unsolved female murders that could be linked to one serial killer. Six of the victims were beaten and strangled to death.

Megan Touma Case

In an effort to bring to light the psychology behind the death of Megan Touma I have chosen to create this section on my blog. Over the past several days I presented in media interviews a different perspective on the Touma case; however, some of my interview comments resulted in split second sound bites, which were 'not' representive of my opinion. This blog will help in bringing my thoughts on this case to the general public.