Vicki Lynn Wegerle's house
Murder House in Wichita, Kansas
This is the house where the BTK killer, Dennis Rader, murdered Vicki Wegerle.
It is situated at 2404 West 13th Street North in Wichita, Kansas.
At some point in August 1986, Rader selected the 28-year-old wife and mother as one of his "projects".
For three weeks, he stalked Wegerle and figured out her family's routine.
In his mind, she was known as Project Piano. According to his confession, he chose this nickname after he heard the sound of a piano emanating from the house while he was staking it out.
On the morning of September 16th, 1986, BTK put on a Southwestern Bell hard hat, knocked on Wegerle's door, and posed as a telephone repairman.
When she allowed him inside to check the phone lines, he walked over to her telephone and pretended to examine it with a fake instrument.
However, as soon as he spotted his chance, he pulled out a pistol and pointed it at Wegerle. At that point, he ushered the frightened young woman into a bedroom and told her that he was going to tie her up.
Although BTK tied Wegerle's hands together, she somehow managed to break free from her restraints and put up a fight.
Following a short struggle, he overpowered her and strangled her to death with a nylon stocking.
Afterwards, Rader rearranged her clothes and took a number of photographs of her body.
However, he did not stick around for long.
The fight with Wegerle had agitated the dogs at the back of the house, as all of the windows and doors were open. According to Rader, they were barking and causing a huge commotion.
His victim had also claimed that her husband was coming home at any minute.
Sensing that he didn't have a lot of time, he quickly cleaned up his tools, took a few "trophies", and then left the scene in Wegerle's car.
Vicki Wegerle murder location
The address and the GPS coordinates for this location are as follows:
Address
2404 West 13th Street North, Wichita, Kansas, KS 67203, USA
GPS coordinates
The latitude and longitude coordinates for the house are:
37.709084, -97.369739
Directions
The house is situated in a neighborhood called Indian Hills Riverbend. It is opposite the intersection between West 13th Street North and Arrowhead Street.
Private Property Warning
This is a private property. It is not a public place. Therefore, you should be respectful and not step foot on the property without permission.
Photos
Photos of the house and other related images.
Vicki Wegerle's house
This is an aerial image of Vicki Wegerle's former house at 2404 W 13th Street North.
Wegerle's husband, Bill, saw his wife's car traveling in the opposite direction while he was driving home for lunch. He also noticed that a stranger was behind the wheel.
After reaching the house, he went inside and discovered his wife's body in the bedroom.
The crime wasn't initially attributed to BTK. Consequently, many people (including police officers) suspected that Bill Wegerle had murdered his own wife. These suspicions were strengthened after he failed two lie detector tests.
Bill remained a suspect until Rader suddenly reestablished contact with the media in 2004.
In March 2004, following a decade of silence, BTK sent Wegerle's driving license and photographs of her body to the Wichita Eagle newspaper.
2404 W 13th Street
This Google Street View image of 2404 West 13th Street North was taken in July 2019.
The house was built in 1920. It has four bedrooms and is 1,239 square feet in size.
Wegerle's family sold the property in 1989, which was roughly three years after her murder.
The street where BTK parked her car
Following the murder, Rader drove Wegerle's gold Monte Carlo car to this location near Johnson's Garden Center—at the top of Edwards Court.
The area in question is just a one-minute drive away from the Wegerle residence.
Coordinates: 37.707970, -97.373688
Witness
One neighbor said that the dogs started barking at roughly 10.15 a.m. Fifteen minutes later, another witness saw the family's 1978 gold Monte Carlo pulling out of the driveway.
Aerial image
This aerial map shows the short distance that Rader drove after he stole the car.
Judging by his M.O. in other cases, it is likely that his own vehicle was parked within walking distance of Edwards Court.
Because Wegerle's husband, Bill, saw the family car driving in the opposite direction, it meant that he was just seconds away from arriving home.
If Rader had stayed at the crime scene any longer, it is likely that a confrontation would have ensued.
Map Viewer
There is more than one location associated with this entry. To view all of these places on the same map, you can use the following feature:
Closest Locations
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