The Unsolved Flat-Tire Murders
The Flat-Tire Murders were a series of unsolved murders in Florida between February 1975 and January 1976. The name was due to the investigators' speculation that before committing the first two known murders the killer had deflated the tires of the victim's cars. Some experts have questioned whether all the deaths can be attributed to one offender while others claim the killer may have killed more than 35 women in multiple states.
The first known victim was thought to be Ronnie Sue Gorlin, who went missing on 22nd July 1975 after leaving her apartment to visit her mother. Her naked body was found in a canal, she had been sexually assaulted and stabbed. Her car was found in a shopping centre car park with a slashed tire. Eight days later, Elyse Rapp, a 21-year-old woman went missing after leaving her apartment to go shopping, her body was found in the same car park Ronnie's was discovered in. Her car was also found in a mall car park with a slashed tire.
After the discovery of the two bodies police suggested a serial killer may be active and linked the cases to 12 young women killed in South Florida. The suspected murderer was profiled as a white male, aged 20-25, well dressed, physically active, with above-average intelligence and was likely a sexual sadist.
After the killings stopped abruptly in 1973, nine similar murders were recorded in Washington the following year but stopped in September. After those, similar killings occurred in Idaho, Utah and Colorado. In most cases, the victims, who resembled each other physically, were beaten and raped before death and the bodies were thrown into canals or streams. A total of 35 murders were recorded although it was never definitively proven to be just one person responsible.
Some experts have suggested notorious serial killer Ted Bundy may have been responsible but there is no evidence placing him in Florida at the time of the killings. The murders remain unsolved.
