The Butcher Baker: 5 Chilling Facts About Robert Hansen's Serial Hunting Spree And The Unidentified Victims

Robert Hansen, known infamously as "The Butcher Baker," remains one of the most chilling figures in American true crime history, a man whose seemingly ordinary life masked a horrific 12-year spree of abduction, rape, and murder in the Alaskan wilderness. For years, Hansen operated a successful bakery in Anchorage, maintaining the facade of a respected family man while secretly preying on vulnerable women, primarily exotic dancers and sex workers, during the city's oil boom in the 1970s and early 1980s. His case is not just a historical footnote; it continues to generate new interest, with recent true crime documentaries and breakthroughs in victim identification keeping the dark legacy of this serial killer in the public eye, even over a decade after his death.

As of December 13, 2025, the story of Robert Hansen is experiencing a resurgence in media, particularly through new docuseries like "The Hunter Killer" and "A Hunter's Game," which explore the FBI's behavioral profiling techniques used to finally catch him. Furthermore, the relentless work of investigators using modern genetic genealogy has provided long-awaited closure to some families, with the identification of a previously unknown victim years after Hansen’s 2014 death. This deep dive explores the man, his monstrous method, and the lasting impact of his crimes on the state of Alaska.

Robert Hansen: A Complete Serial Killer Biography

Robert Christian Boes Hansen was born on February 15, 1939, in Estherville, Iowa. His childhood was reportedly troubled, marked by severe acne and a stutter, which led to him being bullied and developing a withdrawn personality. This early trauma is often cited as a contributing factor to his profound feelings of inadequacy and subsequent aggression toward women.

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• Full Name: Robert Christian Boes Hansen
• Nickname: The Butcher Baker
• Born: February 15, 1939, in Estherville, Iowa, U.S.
• Died: August 21, 2014 (Age 75) at Alaska Regional Hospital, Anchorage, Alaska.
• Cause of Death: Natural causes related to lingering health conditions.
• Active Period: 1972–1983 (Anchorage, Alaska).
• Crimes: Abduction, Rape, and Murder.
• Victims: Confessed to killing 17 women and raping 30 others.
• Conviction: Convicted of four murders (Sherry Morrow, Joanna Messina, Eklutna Annie, and Paula Goulding) in 1984 as part of a plea deal.
• Sentence: 461 years in prison without the possibility of parole.
• Residence/Business: Owned a bakery in a downtown Anchorage mini-mall.
• Key Investigator: Alaska State Trooper Glenn Flothe and FBI Profiler John Douglas.
• Key Survivor: Cindy Paulson, whose escape led to his arrest.

Hansen moved to Anchorage, Alaska, in 1967 and quickly established a public image as a respectable, upstanding family man and local business owner. He lived across town from his bakery with his wife and children, who were completely unaware of his sinister double life. His ability to maintain this facade for over a decade allowed him to evade suspicion despite multiple earlier accusations of rape that were dismissed by police, often because his victims were deemed "unreliable witnesses," such as sex workers.

The Chilling Modus Operandi: Hunting Humans in the Alaskan Bush

What sets Robert Hansen apart from many other serial killers is the unique and terrifying nature of his method of killing. He earned the moniker "The Butcher Baker" not just for his profession, but for the barbaric way he treated his victims.

The Lure and the Hunt

Hansen primarily targeted vulnerable women—dancers, waitresses, and sex workers—who were often new to the booming, transient population of Anchorage during the Trans-Alaska Pipeline construction era. These women were less likely to be missed or intensely sought after by authorities, a fact Hansen was reportedly aware of.

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His method involved luring the women into his car with offers of money or a "photoshoot." He would then abduct and rape them, often in the basement of his family home. The most horrifying part of his M.O. was the final act: he would fly his victims in his private plane to remote areas of the Alaskan wilderness, often to his isolated cabin near the Knik River.

Once there, he would strip them naked, sometimes blindfold and bind them, and then release them into the vast, unforgiving woods. Hansen would then stalk and hunt them down like wild game, shooting them with his Ruger Mini-14 hunting rifle. This perverse ritual of hunting humans for sport made his crimes uniquely gruesome and difficult to investigate, as the bodies were scattered across hundreds of miles of remote terrain.

The Breakthrough: Cindy Paulson's Escape

Hansen's reign of terror came to an abrupt end in 1983, thanks to the courage of a 17-year-old survivor named Cindy Paulson. Paulson was kidnapped, handcuffed, and raped by Hansen, but she managed to escape from his car while he was distracted. Critically, she immediately reported the crime, providing a detailed description of Hansen and his vehicle. Although police were initially hesitant to believe her due to Hansen's respected standing in the community, the FBI, led by Alaska State Trooper Glenn Flothe, began to build a profile.

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The subsequent search of Hansen's home, authorized by a warrant based on the psychological profile, yielded a terrifying trove of evidence. Investigators found his weapons, including the Ruger Mini-14, jewelry and trinkets from his victims kept as "trophies," and, most damningly, an aviation map with small 'X' marks indicating the precise locations of the victims' shallow graves.

Faced with overwhelming evidence, Hansen confessed, leading investigators on a helicopter tour to point out the grave sites for 12 of the 17 women he admitted to killing. This confession was a key component of the plea deal that saw him convicted of four murders and sentenced to 461 years, sparing the families the trauma of 17 separate murder trials.

Post-2014 Updates: The Ongoing Search for Justice

Even though Robert Hansen died in prison in 2014, his case is far from closed. Modern forensic science, particularly the use of genetic genealogy, continues to bring justice and closure to the families of his victims.

The Identification of Robin Pelkey ('Horseshoe Harriet')

One of the most significant recent developments occurred in October 2021 when a previously unidentified victim, known for years only as "Horseshoe Harriet," was finally identified as Robin Pelkey. Pelkey's remains were discovered in 1984 near Horseshoe Lake, but she had remained a Jane Doe for 37 years. The Alaska Bureau of Investigation (ABI) used kinship DNA analysis to confirm her identity after obtaining a sample from a close relative, providing a crucial update to the cold case files.

This identification underscores the long-term commitment of law enforcement to the case, ensuring that every woman Hansen murdered is returned to her family.

The Last Unidentified Victim: 'Eklutna Annie'

The work continues to identify "Eklutna Annie," who is now the last known unidentified victim of Robert Hansen. Her remains were found in 1980 near Eklutna Lake, and she was one of the four murder victims Hansen was formally charged with. Despite being interred at Anchorage Memorial Park Cemetery under a marker reading "Jane Doe / Died 1980," investigators have not given up.

In September 2020, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children released a revised facial reconstruction of Eklutna Annie, utilizing advanced 3-D and 2-D technology in the hope that a member of the public might recognize her. The ongoing effort to name Eklutna Annie, along with the successful identification of Robin Pelkey, highlights the enduring nature of the investigation and the hope of providing closure to all the families affected by The Butcher Baker's horrific crimes.

The story of Robert Hansen remains a dark lesson in criminal history, a stark reminder of the danger that can lurk behind a respectable facade, and a testament to the perseverance of law enforcement and forensic science in giving names back to the missing.