By M10News Crime Desk | July 27, 2025
Convicted serial killer Keith Jesperson, known as the “Happy Face Killer,” has expressed interest in becoming prison cellmates with Bryan Kohberger, who was recently sentenced to life without parole for the 2022 murders of four University of Idaho students.
Jesperson, who is serving a life sentence for at least eight killings committed between 1990 and 1995, made the offer in a letter addressed to podcaster and former prison minister Keith Rovere.
The letter, shared with Fox News Digital, suggested that Kohberger’s best chance of survival lies in being transferred to the Oregon State Penitentiary, where Jesperson is held.
“His best hope is to be transferred to here, the max prison in Oregon, to be away from those who want to make a name for themselves by killing him,” Jesperson wrote. “This prison gets inmates from other states in order to protect them from the drama.”
Kohberger, who was convicted of the brutal stabbing deaths of Madison Mogen, 21, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20, is currently slated to be housed at Idaho Maximum Security Institution in Kuna. He narrowly avoided the death penalty in a case that shocked the nation.
Jesperson warned that if Kohberger is placed in the general population, he could quickly become a target. “He will be singled out right away to be made a target for those who see him as weak for the crimes of that kind of murder,” the letter stated. “Most likely, Idaho will put him in protective custody like [Jeffrey] Dahmer. But we all know how that ended.”
Jeffrey Dahmer, a notorious serial killer and cannibal, was beaten to death by a fellow inmate in 1994 while serving his sentence in Wisconsin.
Jesperson, whose victims were discovered across multiple U.S. states including Oregon, California, and Wyoming, is infamous for signing letters with a smiling face symbol, leading to his media nickname.
Kohberger’s defense team cited his autism and social difficulties during trial, describing him as having “slow verbal processing and weaknesses in certain areas of executive functioning.”
He is currently undergoing a two-week Reception and Diagnostic Unit (RDU) assessment, which is standard for all incoming inmates, according to the Idaho Department of Correction (IDOC).
“The safety and security of staff and the population are a priority in everything IDOC does, including placement,” said Blake Lopez, IDOC spokesperson.
It remains unclear whether Oregon officials would consider housing the two convicted murderers together.
Editing by M10News Crime Desk | Contact: info@m10news.com
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