David Yarno

David Yarno is a serial killer and the leader of a two-person abductor and killer team who appeared in the Criminal Minds novel "Jump Cut".

Background
David Yarno was born in Liberal, Kansas and was raised in an abusive household, his father Donald being a violent alcoholic who would regularly beat him and his mother, Maggie. After Maggie divorced Donald and got a restraining order against him, she and David moved to Lawrence, Kansas, where David befriended Becker Chapin at his new school. The much larger Becker protected David from bullies and, as their friendship grew, they became more detached from their parents and began committing petty crimes together, eventually being arrested for arson. After high school, the two moved out of their parents' homes and into an RV, which was kept parked on a secluded patch of land owned by David's uncle. In October of 2004, the two, having gone to film school, passed in their term project, an exploitative horror film, early, expecting it to be judged a work of art. Written by David, with Becker directing, the film was deemed a disaster by their professor, being poorly directed, terribly acted and consisting almost entirely of scenes ripped straight from other horror films. The failing grade caused Becker to throw a fit in class, threatening to kill the professor before storming off and dropping out with David. Obsessed with proving themselves, David, when Becker suggested they create another film, decided to film real murders for use in it, recreating death scenes from some of their favorite giallo films. David wrote the film (entitled Final Cut) and acted as the director and cameraman, while Becker played the part of the killer, murdering homeless people the two drugged and abducted.

Jump Cut
The BAU is called in after four of David and Becker's victims are found; during the course of the investigation, the two abduct, film and kill another homeless person named Benjamin Gray (severely beating and torturing him beforehand) and also kidnap a former classmate, a girl named Kathy Bonders, who resembles the star of one of their favorite films, Il Morte Improvviso, or Sudden Death. David and Becker send a ransom note to Kathy's parents, demanding sixty-eight thousand dollars in exchange for Kathy's safe return. In actuality, the duo had no intentions to let Kathy live, and instead planned on simply murdering her, taking the money, and use the cash to help fund Final Cut. The day after dropping the ransom note off, David and Becker decide to taunt the authorities by uploading one of their murder videos onto the internet and leaving another ransom note near-identical to the one sent to Kathy's parents (attached to Kathy's cell phone) at their old school while Gideon, Prentiss and a local detective are there questioning Kathy's friends and teachers. Later, with the ransom drop deadline approaching, the BAU manage to deduce who the unsubs are, their questioning of the film school staff and students having lead them to David and Becker. Going to the boys' old homes, the BAU find a picture of their trailer and track it down, only to find it empty. Hearing screams emanating from the woods, Morgan follows the noise and discovers Becker attacking Kathy with a knife, with David filming and giving orders. When Becker refuses to surrender, Morgan shoots him twice, killing him instantly. Seeing his partner go down, David drops his camera and rushes to Becker's body, hysterically professing his love for him before being arrested.

Brought to a police station, David saw an opportunity to emerge from the BAU's suspicion unscathed. Once he is interviewed by detectives, he immediately denies any involvement in the murders, claiming Becker had forced him into helping him create Final Cut. After having Reid skim through the film script, Gideon talks to David, who tells him that Becker had intended to show Final Cut at festivals and other events, thinking it would make him famous. Playing off the fact that David was really the mastermind of the killings, Gideon tells him that Becker will indeed become famous - he will be a media sensation, having his face and name broadcast all over the news, with all the credit for creating Final Cut being attributed to him; David will just be another faceless victim. Realizing Gideon is right, David, unable to stand the thought of all the credit going to Becker, admits to his involvement in the murders, screaming "I wrote Final Cut! I directed it. Beck was just an actor-cattle, like Hitchcock said! I let the fucker act in my movie! He was Freddy Krueger, but I was Wes Craven!" After ranting, David states Becker always had trouble with executing his ideas, something which he has never had a problem with. This causes Gideon to state, before leaving, "Lucky for you. Because, David-execution is very likely where you're headed."

Modus Operandi
Wandering through downtown Lawrence, the two, after spotting a vagrant who they found suitable for use in their film, would take a few pictures of them, approach them, and offer cash in exchange for doing a job they claimed they needed help with. If the victim accepted, David and Becker would take them to a restaurant or diner, where they would drug the food they bought with Rohypnol, to make the victim more pliable. The victim would then be taken to the boys' RV, where they would be groomed and clothed.

The victim would then be taken to a secluded area, where David and Becker would then commence filming the scene. David's role in creating the scene was as the filmer and director, providing Becker with instructions on how he should chase or terrorize the victim. After some time, the victim would be finished off by having his or her throat slashed (with the exceptions of Frank Webster, who was stabbed in the heart, likely by accident, and his throat slashed post-mortem; and Roger Rondell, whose thigh was slashed). The body would be left at the scene and the footage they shot would be edited to resemble a murder scene from an obscure giallo film.

Known Victims

 * Unspecified date: A victimless arson
 * 2006:
 * October 29: Elizabeth Hawkins
 * November 14: Frank Webster
 * 2007:
 * March 9: Paula Creston
 * March 14: Roger Rondell
 * March 18: Benjamin Gray
 * March 19: Kathy Bonders

Appearances

 * Novels
 * "Jump Cut"