About This Episode
What is this episode about?
The episode "BTK Part 3: The Final Mistake" from Post Mortem: CBS News' 48 Hours Podcast Companion covers the closing chapter of the BTK case, focusing on the decision that ended more than thirty years of evading capture. Listener discretion is advised, as the episode discusses torture, murder, and bondage. In this final installment, Dennis Rader returns to the spotlight, taunting investigators once again, and unknowingly hands law enforcement the evidence they need to identify him. The episode frames his downfall around a single, devastating lesson: ego can be fatal.
The case behind the episode
The underlying case, catalogued as The BTK Case: Dennis Rader Killed 10 in Kansas, 1974–1991 and cross-referenced as BTK-sagen: Dennis Rader dræbte 10 i Kansas 1974–1991, documents how Dennis Lynn Rader murdered ten people in Wichita and Park City, Kansas, between 1974 and 1991. In June 2005 he pleaded guilty to all ten counts of first-degree murder and was sentenced to ten consecutive life terms.
Hosts and release
Anne-Marie Green hosts Post Mortem: CBS News' 48 Hours Podcast Companion, where she talks each week with the correspondents and producers behind 48 Hours about the evidence, dead ends, and twists that didn't make the broadcast. This installment, episode 5, runs 31 minutes and was released on July 2, 2026.
