Todd Kohlhepp, who had two degrees and a successful career as a graphic designer, gave the impression that everything was going well. The Florida-born entrepreneur had established a real estate company with a dozen employees in South Carolina, was learning to fly, and owned nearly 100 acres of land.

As the years went by, it became clear that he was a serial killer. Indeed, beneath Kohlhepp's professional mask was a man who had struggled with anger and cruelty since childhood. His father later claimed that the only emotion he knew was anger.

Left: Spartanburg County Jail; Right: Wikimedia Commons“Amazon Review Killer” Todd Kohlhepp's arrest in 2016 (left) and his appearance after spending a year in prison (right).

This anger erupted when Kohlhepp, at just 15 years old, kidnapped and raped a girl at gunpoint in Tempe, Arizona. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison and released in 2001 — but afterward, he killed seven people.

Experienced murder detectives were not unfamiliar with such sexual crimes, but Kohlhepp would emerge as an anomaly. Dubbed the “Amazon Review Killer” by the press, Kohlhepp had left disturbing reviews for products he used in his horrific crimes on the popular e-commerce site.

Todd Kohlhepp's Abusive Childhood

Todd Christopher Sampsell was born on March 7, 1971, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Kohlhepp’s parents divorced when he was just two years old. Shortly thereafter, his mother Regina Tague married Carl Kohlhepp, who would become his stepfather in 1976.

Investigation Discovery/YouTubeTodd Kohlhepp during his real estate years.

While living with his mother and stepfather in South Carolina and Georgia, Kohlhepp began to exhibit disturbing traits. A known bully, Kohlhepp frequently destroyed his classmates' school projects and was expelled from the Boy Scouts for his bad behavior. He even killed a goldfish with bleach and shot a local dog with a BB gun.

However, as later determined by FBI investigators, Kohlhepp was being bullied at home. “He was abused, abandoned, beaten with an electric fence by his grandfather,” said FBI Agent John Douglas. “He was a bully even in elementary school. By the time he was nine, he was committed to a mental hospital. He was very, very angry and aggressive. He really became a product of this very dysfunctional family.”

While he hated his stepfather, he longed to live with his biological father. This wish came true in 1983. His mother was busy with her second divorce, and it was decided that Kohlhepp would live with his father in Tempe, Arizona. Unfortunately, this turned out to be disappointing.

He enjoyed learning to “blow things up and make bombs” with his father, but Sampsell quickly began to hate him because he was often on dates. When his mother wanted him to return, they made excuses to keep him in Tempe.

Eventually, on November 25, 1986, Kohlhepp's rage truly exploded.

The Release of the ‘Amazon Review Killer’

Firstlook TVTodd Kohlhepp killed seven people before he was caught.

While his father was not home, Kohlhepp convinced a local girl to come out of her house, saying he wanted to talk to her. He forcibly took her to his home, bound her arms with a .22 caliber revolver, and taped her mouth shut. After raping her, he took her back home — warning her that he would kill her family if she spoke.

Kohlhepp was arrested within hours and was diagnosed with a personality disorder. His psychiatric evaluation showed signs of emotional disturbance but no signs of psychosis — and he had an IQ of 118. When asked why he raped an innocent girl, he said he was angry at his father. None of his three guardians visited him in jail.

When the youth probation officer recommended that he be tried as an adult, Kohlhepp accepted a plea deal on the condition that the sexual assault charges would be dropped. On January 19, 1987, he was sentenced to 15 years in prison without parole and faced harsh comments from the presiding judge:

“At under nine years old, this young man was impulsive, explosive, and engaged in sexual activities. He has not changed. He has been continuously aggressive towards others and destructive of property since kindergarten.”

10 Minute Murder/FacebookTodd Kohlhepp’s business card before his own company.

Released in August 2001, the 30-year-old inmate moved to Spartanburg, South Carolina. He got his first driver's license and found a job at Seven Sons & Co. sportswear business by filling his resume with fabricated work history.

On November 6, 2003, the Amazon Review Killer added to his list of murders. He was reportedly fired from Superbike Motorsports for trying to return a bicycle. He returned with a gun and killed 30-year-old owner Scott Ponder, 52-year-old mother Beverly, 29-year-old manager Brian Lucas, and 26-year-old mechanic Chris Sherbert.

He evaded justice for ten years, but soon began to reveal his inner thoughts online. Creating a profile named “me,” Kohlhepp made an Amazon wish list for review. This list included products like saws — and showed just how bloody his mindset was:

“Works perfectly... hard to stop the neighbor while chasing him without an easy-to-use saw...”

The End of Todd Kohlhepp's Murder Spree

Todd Kohlhepp obtained his real estate license in 2006 without disclosing his criminal history. His newly established TKA Real Estate company quickly grew. Kohlhepp managed the business from the home he purchased in Moore, South Carolina for $137,500.

Now a successful businessman, Kohlhepp bought 95 acres of land in the Woodruff area of South Carolina for $305,632 and surrounded it with a chain-link fence. He continued to leave disturbing reviews on Amazon for products like knives, locks, gun accessories, targets, emergency surgical books, and small shovels.

He wrote a review saying, “Keep it in the car because you forgot the big shovel at home when you had to hide the bodies.” “It doesn’t come with a dwarf, that would be nice.”

Eventually, in 2016, the killer's rage returned.

In late August, 30-year-old Kala Brown and her 32-year-old boyfriend Charles Carver were hired to clean Kohlhepp’s property. They were reported missing on the 31st. Spartanburg County police discovered that Brown and Carver's cell phones had last pinged in the area of Kohlhepp’s home.

During a search of Kohlhepp’s property, sounds were heard coming from a shipping container on his land, and Brown was found trapped inside. By that time, she had been raped, chained, and terrified for over two months.

Brown later testified that Kohlhepp chained her after shooting Carver in front of her.

Hugh Presnal/FlickrTodd Kohlhepp’s home in South Carolina.

While in custody, Todd Kohlhepp revealed the locations of two bodies on his property. These individuals, identified as 29-year-old Johnny Joe Coxie and 26-year-old Meagan Leigh McCraw-Coxie, had been missing since December 2015 after being hired to clean Kohlhepp’s home. Both had been shot.

Facing seven counts of murder, two counts of kidnapping, and one count of sexual assault, Todd Kohlhepp accepted a plea deal for seven consecutive life sentences without parole on May 26, 2017.

When his mother asked him how many more people he had killed, he reportedly said, “You don’t have enough fingers.”