A suspected serial killer left chilling clues -- sprinkled with Eagles lyrics -- in dozens of Amazon product reviews.
Todd Kohlhepp has been charged with kidnapping Kala Brown and is suspected of killing her boyfriend, Charlie Carver, and possibly six other people.
Investigators in Spartanburg County, South Carolina, are examining 140 product reviews that Kolhepp apparently posted on Amazon after purchasing 95 secluded acres near Woodruff nearly two and a half years ago, reported The Greenville News.
The reviews, which were posted under the name "me" but were linked to a wish list for Kohlhepp, covered a variety of items that may have been used to abduct and kill his victims.
“solid locks.. have 5 on a shipping container.. wont stop them.. but sure will slow them down til they are too old to care. (sic)” the reviewer posted.
Another review, posted in September 2014, praised a knife's quality: “havnet (sic) stabbed anyone yet...... yet.... but I am keeping the dream alive and when I do, it will be with a quality tool like this...”
The same user urged consumers to keep a folding shovel in their car "for when you have to hide the bodies and you left the full size shovel at home.... does not come with a midget, which would have been nice.”
The 30-year-old Brown, who went missing with her boyfriend in August, was found chained by the neck and ankles in a metal shed, and Carver's body was found shot to death and buried on Kohlhepp's property.
Kohlhepp pleaded guilty in 1987 to kidnapping and committing a dangerous crime against children in the first degree, and he served all 15 years of his sentence and was released in 2001.
According to court records, Kohlhepp, then 15, used his father's handgun to force a 14-year-old neighbor into his home, where he restrained her with duct tape and raped the girl.
Prosecutors were furious that Kohlhepp was allowed to plead guilty to a non-sexual crime.
“It would appear that his behavior has been progressively worsening and now, it has escalated to the point where he has sexually assaulted an innocent child,” wrote Kim Otto, a deputy adult probation officer. “One can only speculate as to where the defendant’s behavior will lead. It is this writer’s opinion that it is this type of individual, one with little or no conscience, who presents the greatest risk to the community.”
After his release from prison, Kohlhepp moved from Arizona to South Carolina, got a pilot's license, earned a degree at the University of South Carolina Upstate and pursued a real estate career.
The reviews linked to Kohlhepp's wish list occasionally refer to the Eagles song, "Hotel California," where guests "can check out any time you like, but you can never leave.”
“now my locks have locks... place is hotel california now..” the reviewer posted in January 2015.
Kohlhepp may have posted lyrics from "Hotel California" on Carver's Facebook page Oct. 1, more than a month after the couple went missing.
“Last thing I remember, I was running for the door," the post read. "I had to find the passage back to the place I was before. ‘Relax,’ said the night man. ‘We are programmed to receive. You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave.’”
