The Pillowcase Rapist, a man convicted of terrorizing and sexually assaulting a woman more than 40 years ago and who’s facing accusations in a string of sexual assaults across South Florida, will once again be tried in Miami.
Robert Koehler, 66, is facing new charges in a case that dates to 1984. He is accused of breaking into a townhome in Miami-Dade and kidnapping and sexually assaulting a woman. Miami-Dade sheriff’s deputies recently solved the case after linking Koehler’s DNA to the victim, who is not identified in court records.
Jury selection will begin Monday in Miami-Dade Circuit Court. In 2023, Koehler was found guilty of sexually assaulting a 25-year-old woman in northwest Miami-Dade in 1983. He was sentenced to 17 years for armed kidnapping and 17 years for armed burglary with assault or battery.
For decades, Koehler evaded law-enforcement authorities. He was known only as the “Pillowcase Rapist” because he typically shielded his face with a pillowcase or shirt. The Pillowcase Rapist was one of the most notorious serial rapists in Florida history — with police in 2020 linking Koehler to dozens of rapes from years ago through DNA.
Koehler has several pending cases in Miami and Broward.
The hunt for the Pillowcase Rapist, which was the subject of a series of stories that led to then-Miami Herald police reporter Edna Buchanan winning the Pulitzer Prize in 1986, was cold until a DNA hit in 2020, following the arrest of Koehler’s son.
His son’s domestic battery arrest led police to Koehler, a registered sex offender who had settled in Palm Bay in Central Florida.
In a hearing Thursday, Koehler’s attorneys raised concerns about him having “irrational delusions.” Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge David Young found Koehler competent — and kept the lawyers on the case despite Koehler trying to get them removed.
“What the defense proved … today is that Mr. Koehler is a difficult personality,“ Young said.
Assistant Public Defender Alex Klayman said Koehler’s delusions “prohibit him from believing that his defense is doing [their jobs]” and have convinced him that the Public Defender’s Office is not on his side. The attorneys assigned to his previous case, Klayman added, said Koehler’s delusions have gotten worse.
“None of this is a delusion, Your Honor,” said Koehler, who was handcuffed to a wheelchair.
During the first trial, Koehler took the stand, telling jurors that he was the victim of a bizarre conspiracy in which rogue police officers kidnapped, sexually tortured and drugged him to frame him for the rapes.
Prosecutor Laura Adams argued that Koehler wasn’t delusional — but likely felt like everyone was against him because he was convicted and sentenced in one of the sexual assault cases.
“There is no legal basis to find him incompetent,” Adams said. “He may be at times insufferable, He may be at times difficult… but he’s not legally incompetent.”
By GRETHEL AGUILA/Miami Herald
