Mystery Unsolved Inc True Crime

The Interstate Killer

"Serial killers usually get their monikers from one of two places. Either the method they used to kill or the hunting grounds where they stalk their prey. It's pretty obvious where the Interstate Killer got theirs. Interstate-1 is a long freeway. Though this serial killer tended to operate in San Andreas during the months of April and May 2022 according to Weazel News. In total, the Interstate Killer is thought to have killed six victims during their short run using close, precise execution-like shots to the back of the head. No one knows whether the killer was imprisoned for a different crime, died, or mysteriously went quiet but they fell off the map as quickly as their murder spree began. A very atypical behavior among serial killers. Especially since no motive has ever been attributed to his crimes besides the obvious desire to end lives. Many killers of this nature tend to kill until some brave soul stops them. This case differs from other serial killer cases. For one thing, there's the speed at which it went cold. With authorities running out of leads nearly from the beginning. That is, until a key piece of information was identified, bringing new interest into the story surrounding his murders. Having to restructure her night after her co-worker had called off her shift, a twenty-six year old female went to a shoe store. It was an annoyance. A small stroke of bad luck she faced several times over the course of her job. The store had few part-time employees and only two full-timers in which she was one. With limited staff, it looked like she was on her own again that night. But what could possibly go wrong in a simple chainstore selling inexpensive shoes? The question was answered in the early afternoon when an unknown man ushered her in the back room and put a .22 caliber bullet in the back of her skull. Her body would lay there, dead. While some people helped themselves to free shoes, thinking the store was unattended until she was found later that day. Adding to the personal bad luck of this victim was the store's lack of security measures. The shoe store she worked at had practically nothing to prevent attacks or robberies. And even less that investigators could use to catch perpetrators after the fact. No security cameras, no alarm systems, nothing. The sole security measure, if indeed it could be considered that, was a buzzer that went off when the front door was opened letting workers know that someone had entered the store. As if working retail wasn't an awful enough experience when the conditions are perfect, the Interstate Killer made the job terrifying and deadly. Even if you weren't one of his victims, being within a fifteen minute drive from the Interstate Killer left you with a nagging paranoia that whispered how you might be next. Shops across the country were warned repeatedly of the danger of working near any major highway or interstate with this killer on the loose because they targeted women working behind the counter. She was only one of six killings take place along the road. According to the timeline laid out by Mystery Unsolved Inc, the others occured in strikingly similar situations. Two women were killed three days after the first victim in a bridal shop. Later that month, a man was gunned down in his ceramic store. In May, a woman was executed in a shoe store while another woman was murdered in her gift shop, both killings happened in different towns. When you see the killings mapped out, it's clear which road they follow, and the locations and nature of the victim's spell out a clear modus operandi. So why was there a man thrown into the mix? The murder of the man followed the killer's M.O to a T, minus the fact that this victim was of a different gender than the rest of the victims. The man, like the others, was going about a normal work day with no inclination that this would be his last. He'd been stocking the shelves, making sure everything was primed for any customers to walk through the door, when he too was shot in the back of the head and killed. He was forty years old. Being the only male victim of the Interstate Killer makes the man's murder read like a fluke. And as far as authorities are concerned, it probably was. This murder seems to be a case of mistaken identity. The man had long hair at the time of his death, and many investigators and news outlets believe the killer identified the victim as a woman from behind because of it. The man's sister adamantly disagrees. This killer's ability to keep their face off film isn't really surprising. What is surprising, however, is even though they committed murder in public stores, very few witnesses have come forward. The lack of useful witness testimony hasn't helped but there's been enough to give authorities the face they're looking forward. Directly following the killing at The Runaway Bride, the killer ran into an unforeseen bump in the road. The victims had kept the shop open late because a customer desperately needed to pick up a cumberbund afterhours. That customer walked up to the front doors as the killer was walking out. They exchanged some words as the killer attempted to lure the customer into the back rooms but the man knew something was off and fled the scene. This customer's testimony later allowed investigators to produce a composite sketch. Police believe the weapon used in the killings was a pistol firing a .22 caliber long rifle bullet. This ammo is cheap and available everywhere. Many gun enthusiasts use it to plink targets at the range but the firearm used in Interstate-1 murders was special. The Interstate Killer was described as being a white-furred cat between eighteen or thirty, five foot four inches to five foot nine inches tall, orange hair, blue eyes, and black fur on his left eye and ear, dressed in a red open jacket over a white T-shirt, light blue jeans, and blue shoes."