On November 12, 1966, 18-year-old Robert Benjamin Smith walked into the Rose-Mar College of Beauty salon in Mesa, Arizona armed with a single-action 6-shot .22cal revolver and knife and fired a shot into the ceiling to alert people of his presence. He then ordered five people — three women and two children — to lay down on their bellies. He had them all arranged in a circle, so that they looked like wheel spokes before shooting each in the back of the head. 2 survived, 5 died.
Robert Smith was laughing when the first policeman walked into the Rose-Mar College of Beauty in Mesa, Arizona, on the crisp morning of November 12, 1966. "I shot some people," said the slight, handsome high-school senior, pointing toward the rear of the shop. "They're back there. The gun is in the brown bag."
Smith's big day had been a long time in the making. He'd been mulling the possibilities of murder since he was 13, and in the months preceding the killings he'd focused on a mass murder. Remarkably, however, his dark obsession stayed well hidden beneath a bland exterior.
In high school his grades improved, but his social skills didn’t. He was recognized as bright by enough peers to be elected to student council, but he didn’t have friends and he didn’t date.
Regarding the motivation for the massacre, Smith stated, “I wanted to kill about 40 people so I could make a name for myself. I wanted people to know who I was.” Another possible factor was his hostility toward women. He reportedly “entertained fantasies in which women were shot or stabbed.” This would explain his choice of the beauty salon as the location for his attack.
He most resembles Robert Poulin (St. Pius X), who was a quiet kid on the periphery of his peer group. Like Smith, Poulin did not date and was hostile toward women. In fact, on the morning of his attack, Poulin raped and stabbed to death a girl he had a crush on. Thus, both these marginalized perpetrators sought out women as victims; in addition, Eric Harris fantasized about rape.
Smith fits all of these categories. He was unathletic, clumsy, and couldn’t even tie his shoes. His father was a retired major in the air force. Whether or not he ever had military aspirations is unknown, but he had a fascination for military icons such as Caesar, Napoleon, and Hitler. It is possible that his father’s masculinity as demonstrated by his being a soldier contrasted sharply with Smith’s own sense of self as failing at manhood. Murder may have provided a sense of power for someone who otherwise felt powerless; this would explain his laughter and exhilaration. In addition, his apparent inability to engage with girls may have resulted in profound frustration and resentment, which may have fueled his fantasy — and the eventual reality — of killing women. This, too, may have served to elevate his sense of manliness.
Here’s the pictures.
Robert Smith was laughing when the first policeman walked into the Rose-Mar College of Beauty in Mesa, Arizona, on the crisp morning of November 12, 1966. "I shot some people," said the slight, handsome high-school senior, pointing toward the rear of the shop. "They're back there. The gun is in the brown bag."
Smith's big day had been a long time in the making. He'd been mulling the possibilities of murder since he was 13, and in the months preceding the killings he'd focused on a mass murder. Remarkably, however, his dark obsession stayed well hidden beneath a bland exterior.
In high school his grades improved, but his social skills didn’t. He was recognized as bright by enough peers to be elected to student council, but he didn’t have friends and he didn’t date.
Regarding the motivation for the massacre, Smith stated, “I wanted to kill about 40 people so I could make a name for myself. I wanted people to know who I was.” Another possible factor was his hostility toward women. He reportedly “entertained fantasies in which women were shot or stabbed.” This would explain his choice of the beauty salon as the location for his attack.
He most resembles Robert Poulin (St. Pius X), who was a quiet kid on the periphery of his peer group. Like Smith, Poulin did not date and was hostile toward women. In fact, on the morning of his attack, Poulin raped and stabbed to death a girl he had a crush on. Thus, both these marginalized perpetrators sought out women as victims; in addition, Eric Harris fantasized about rape.
Smith fits all of these categories. He was unathletic, clumsy, and couldn’t even tie his shoes. His father was a retired major in the air force. Whether or not he ever had military aspirations is unknown, but he had a fascination for military icons such as Caesar, Napoleon, and Hitler. It is possible that his father’s masculinity as demonstrated by his being a soldier contrasted sharply with Smith’s own sense of self as failing at manhood. Murder may have provided a sense of power for someone who otherwise felt powerless; this would explain his laughter and exhilaration. In addition, his apparent inability to engage with girls may have resulted in profound frustration and resentment, which may have fueled his fantasy — and the eventual reality — of killing women. This, too, may have served to elevate his sense of manliness.
Robert Benjamin Smith | Murderpedia, the encyclopedia of murderers
Murderpedia, the free online encyclopedic dictionary of murderers. The largest database about serial killers, mass murderers and spree killers around the world
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Here’s the pictures.
