Slasher: A vicious abduction and assault of three teens that stayed unsolved for decades

Marisa Kwiatkowski, USA TODAY
Updated ·1 min read
In 1975, three young girls were abducted in Indiana. The youngest, 11, was raped. All three had their throats slashed. The man responsible vanished into the night.
In 1975, three young girls were abducted in Indiana. The youngest, 11, was raped. All three had their throats slashed. The man responsible vanished into the night.

For nearly half a century, one man dominated Kathie Rottler’s nightmares. He turned the darkness into something she, her little sister and her childhood friend would forever fear. All three could picture the man’s face and the clothes he was wearing on Aug. 19, 1975, when he brutalized them. Rottler’s quest for answers to those questions would span decades – past her marriage, past the births of her children and grandchildren, past the loss of loved ones. She never gave up. This is her story.

Part 1 quicklink: Three girls hitched a ride to a teen hangout. They never got there.

Part 2 quicklink: Manhunt begins with a plea: ‘Please find my sister.’

Part 3 quicklink: ‘Your case is NOT forgotten.’ But it keeps turning up cold.

Part 4 quicklink: A crack in the case: Can DNA testing give the monster a name?

Documentary quicklink: How detectives worked a nearly 50-year Indianapolis cold case

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Slasher: Indiana cold case that took nearly 50 years to solve