Travis Gaines

Criminal
Name	Travis Gaines
Gender	Male
Birth Date	June 11, 1964
Family	Dale Gaines (father; deceased) Martha Gaines (mother; deceased) Unnamed grandparents (both deceased)
Occupation	Janitor Former laborer
Pathology	Serial Killer (originally) Spree Killer (later) Serial Rapist Stalker Abductor (later)
Modus Operandi	Shooting (males and later victims) Stabbing (females)
No. of Victims	17 killed 12+ attempted 1 raped 1 assaulted
Status	Deceased
Portrayed By	Michael Chiklis

"I made you, Allison! And you made me."

Travis Gaines was a serial-turned-spree killer and serial rapist.

Background

Gaines was born to Dale and Martha Gaines, a poor working-class couple, in a rundown neighborhood in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Dale was a janitor and an alcoholic who physically and sexually abusive towards Martha, raping her almost every night while Gaines was forced to watch. Eventually, he stabbed Martha to death before committing suicide by shooting himself in the head, all while Gaines watched. Afterwards, he was raised by his grandparents in San Jose, California. Being raised in the booming Silicon Valley gave Gaines aspirations to start a successful corporation and move up in class. As an adult, he attended a total of five different community colleges, including one in Oregon, in the hopes of getting a business degree, but kept flunking out.

Resigning himself to his fate, Gaines became a janitor like his father and bounced around several Silicon Valley companies before landing at Greenify, a new environmental technology business. There, he became sexually obsessed with Allison Birch, a new employee who helped him pick up his supplies on her first day of work. Seeing her as another way to move up in class, Gaines started stalking her and sending her love letters, with the hopes of getting her affections. However, when he learned that Allison was engaged to one of her coworkers in 2017, he snapped and started serial killing the following year, targeting couples whose women reminded him of Allison.

Modus Operandi

Gaines initially operated during a long weekend and targeted couples in or near Klamath Falls, Oregon, whose women reminded him of Allison. He would ambush them in their vehicles late at night, tie them up, and rape the woman at gunpoint while the man was forced to watch. Then, he would stab the woman to death before shooting the man in the head with a .40-caliber SIG Sauer P226 pistol. However, when he devolved, Gaines started targeting random victims and shot them repeatedly with the SIG Sauer and a 9mm Beretta 92FS pistol.

Known Victims

• 2018:
  • Klamath Falls, Oregon:
    • January 14: Mike Lynch and Ramona Ballard:
      • Mike Lynch (shot three times in the head)
      • Ramona Ballard (raped and stabbed seven times in the chest)
    • May 27: Allan Becker and Roxanne Paul:
      • Allan Becker (shot twice in the head)
      • Roxanne Paul (raped and stabbed sixteen times in the chest and stomach)
    • July 14: Leon Brady and Genevieve Austin:
      • Leon Brady (shot in the head)
      • Genevieve Austin (raped and stabbed 23 times in the chest, stomach, and face)
  • San Jose, California:
    • August 19: The roadside mass shooting:
      • Eric Rhodes and Allison Birch:
        • Eric Rhodes (intended to shoot, but slashed his throat instead)
        • Allison Birch (raped and non-fatally stabbed twice in the stomach; she briefly escaped, but was then fatally shot in the back of the head)
      • Officers Dwight Nelson and Rhonda Wilkins:
        • Officer Dwight Nelson (shot twice in the chest)
        • Officer Rhonda Wilkins (shot five times in the chest and head)
      • The Ford Explorer SUV:
        • Manuel Hernandez (shot in the head)
        • Steven Wise (shot in the head)
        • Cynthia Green (abducted, raped, and later shot in the chest)
        • Jodi Huff (abducted and raped; was rescued the next day)
    • August 20:
      • The Greenify office shooting:
        • Darrell Cross (the manager; killed)
        • Three unnamed employees (all killed)
        • Seven unnamed employees (all injured)
      • The street shootout:
        • Emily Prentiss (attempted; shot at repeatedly, but missed)
        • David Rossi (attempted; shot at repeatedly, but missed)
        • Jennifer Jareau (attempted; shot at repeatedly, but missed)
        • Luke Alvez (attempted; shot at repeatedly, but missed)
        • Several unnamed police officers (attempted; shot at repeatedly, but missed)