Derek Bengtsson's Alleged MySpace Contained Rape and Murder "To Do" List

August 06, 2008

Bengtsson is being held on charges of attempted homicide, rape, and kidnapping

"When someone hears the name Scott Peterson, a few words probably come to mind -- monster, murderer, etc.  For me, however, two distinct words pop up -- Problem Solver."

What you just read was taken from the MySpace.com profile of 27-year-old Derek J. Bengtsson (photos here), a truck driver from East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, who is facing several charges, including attempted homicide, rape, and kidnapping, following a shootout with police at a hotel in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, on Tuesday.

According to the Stroud Area Regional Police, Bengtsson kidnapped a 14-year-old girl from her Monroe County residence around 1:20 a.m. Tuesday morning.

Armed with a handgun, Bengtsson allegedly went into the girl's bedroom and said, "If you don't come with me, bad things are going to happen." He then threatened to kill everyone in the house if she did not cooperate.

After kidnapping the girl, Bengtsson allegedly took her mother's car and drove roughly 10 miles to a Budget Host Inn hotel in Stroudsburg. Once there, Bengtsson took the girl to room 223, barricaded the door with chairs and told her, according to the arrest affidavit, "If you try and leave, bad things will happen.'' Bengtsson also showed the girl a note, which read:

''Yes, I took her and as long as you play by my rules, she will come back unharmed and breathing. 'However, failure to abide by the rules will result in a bullet in her head. My rules: Do Nothing! Sit there in silence and Suffer. Don't get anyone involved at all. By the time you read this I will be already long gone and out of the state.''

According to police, Bengtsson did not say who the note was intended for. Instead, he gave the girl two choices:  kill him or have sex with him. The girl refused and fell to the floor, crying. Bengtsson picked her up, put her on the bed, and bound her hands and legs with shackles. After ensuring she was immobilized, he violently raped her.

After his twisted desires were satisfied, Bengtsson fell asleep on the bed, at which time the victim managed to escape and call police.

Detective John Jakobsen, Cpl. Gregg Strunk, and Officers Dave Thomas, David Tonkay and Sarah Schrammer arrived on the scene at 7:49 a.m. The officers attempted to enter the room with a key card; however, the door was also latched with a security chain. Fearing how Bengtsson might react, Thomas kicked in the door and the four officers stormed into the room, at which time Bengtsson fired four shots from his handgun. Tonkay, Schrammer and Jakobsen were able to duck out of the room; however Thomas became trapped in the bathroom.

In response to the intrusion, Bengtsson yelled that he was "not going to jail" and that he was "armed with a 9mm pistol with several clips," according to the arrest affidavit.

Within 15 minutes, the entire area surrounding the hotel was cordoned off and the Stroud Area Regional Special Response Team was on the scene in full body armor, with snipers taking up positions on nearby roof tops.

"We actually had a response from the Pocono Mountain Regional Police, the state police at Swiftwater, the Monroe County Sherriff's office, the Monroe County District Attorney's office," Stroud Area Police Captain William Parish told Poconorecord.com, adding, "Domestic relations officers were here, the Stroudsburg Fire Department was on standby, MedEvac actually landed a helicopter close by and their team was stationed with the ambulance."

Officer Schrammer, along with Pennsylvania State Police Trooper Thomas O'Brien, headed up the negotiation team and spent the next hour talking with Bengtsson. Finally, at 9:15 a.m., Bengtsson surrendered to authorities without further incident and Thomas was able to come out of the bathroom, where he had remained during the entire standoff.

Following his arrest, Bengtsson was taken to the state police barracks in Swiftwater for formal booking.

As the investigation continued, police learned of a MySpace profile that was allegedly created by Bengtsson, which painted a very disturbing portrait. The page has since been deleted; however caches of it are still available on the Internet.

The entries that follow have not been edited for grammar or spelling; however profane words have been cut out.

The main headline on the page read:

"I know the date of my death...9/29/2030...how bout u? That kinda info is pretty useful when planning your next steps..."

In the "About Me" section, the following appeared:

"Abortions = Solutions. Religion = Hypocrisy. Mental Retardation = Comedic Fodder. Heres a card you can give to a retard - On the front, theres a picture of a dumpster in back of a planned parenthood and on the inside it says, 'Wish you were here!' my kinda joke. When someone hears the name Scott Peterson, a few words probably come to mind - monster, murderer, etc. For me however, two distinct words pop up - Problem Solver."

The author's interests included, "serial murder, rape, torture, etc," while he listed his "Heroes" as:

"Child molesters and dead-beat dads--I mean, really...how much of a stripper and prostitute shortage would there be without these guys?!? Jim Norton, Scott Peterson, Edmund Kemper, Mary Bell, Carl Panzram, Lawrence Bittaker, Roy Norris, Ted Bundy, Robert Hansen to name just a few."

Perhaps most disturbing entry was a single blog entry, which was titled "Some things I'd like to try be4 I die."This entry said:

"Kill some people [long list] ... [redacted] a virgin ... kill a freshly [redacted] virgin ... almost all drugs ... and a whole lot more tho it may be inappropriate to speak some of them aloud ... time to sleep now ... who is even gonna read this [redacted] anyways?"

Because of the profile, investigators have since confiscated Bengtsson's computer so it can be examined for potential evidence.

A search of the Internet also reveals that Bengtsson is a member of Classmates.com, where he is listed as a 1998 graduate of Granby High School in Granby, Massachusetts. No other details were provided within that profile.

Just hours after his arrest, Bengtsson appeared for his arraignment before Magisterial District Judge Kristina Anzini, on charges of attempted murder, aggravated assault, rape, involuntary deviant sexual intercourse, kidnapping, and unlawful restraint. During the proceeding, Bengtsson answered questions about his employment and denied any prior criminal history. Anzini then ordered Bengtsson held in the Monroe County Correctional Facility in lieu of $500,000 bail.

A preliminary hearing date has not yet been set.

Photo Credit: iStock

Comments

[Angie]

What happened to the little girl? Where was she when the standoff was going on? She escaped out of the room to call 911? And how, through the window?

[Ashley]

I'm a regular follower of crime stories, and it seems like more and more of them have to do with a Myspace. About two years ago when i was still in high school, I warned my teacher that a student was going to put rocks in his coffee in an attempt to make him choke on them. How did I find out? His Myspace blog. Not only that, but it saves search history on the computers at the school and since we shared an account, I could view his search history, and he was searching for things like guns and ammunition.
People think Myspace is a stupid kid's site, but it says alot more about a person than you'd think.