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| “ | Look, we hit enough of these houses, you ain't gotta live like animals no more. But if you give up now, you are exactly what they say you are: nothing. Nobody. And they win. You really want them to win? But you stay the course, I'll give you a future. | „ |
| ~ Daniels rallying the other members of his gang. |
Zeke Daniels is the secondary antagonist of the Criminal Minds episode "Seek and Destroy". Along with his lover Bea Adams, he leads a gang of thieves who break into people's houses, rob the occupants, and kill them.
He is portrayed by Jon-Michael Ecker.
Early life[]
Daniels was born in 1989 and raised in Carthage, Arkansas, into an abusive, deeply dysfunctional family; his mother, Linda, spent so much time stealing and prostituting herself to feed her opiate addiction that she essentially left him to raise himself, and did nothing to protect him from his abusive grandparents.
As an adult, he became a drifter and petty criminal, and by 2010 he was serving time in Texas for aggravated assault. In prison, he befriended fellow small-time criminal Michael "Germ" Sale. When they were released, they stole a van and drove around the country, breaking into wealthy people's houses and stealing everything they could find.
Along the way, they picked up three young women - Bea Adams, Kay, and Viv - and recruited them into the gang. While Daniels was the gang's nominal leader, however, it was Adams, just as sociopathic as Daniels but far more intelligent, who masterminded their robberies. Daniels was more charismatic, however, so the gang followed him, while Adams served as his lover and enforcer.
"Seek and Destroy"[]
The gang travels to San Diego, California, where they invade the home of Rick and Lenore Purcell, tying them up while they drink, party, and ransack the house. After Germ, Kay, and Viv have passed out, Daniels shoots and kills the Purcells at Adams' urging.
A few days later, they set their sights on Joe and Claire Vendl's house, conning their way inside and then tying up the couple. After the ensuing party, Daniels kills the Vendls in front of the entire group, horrifying everyone but Adams, who is excited by the violence. Afterwards, Germ, Kay, and Viv try to leave the gang, but Daniels persuades them to stay by promising to give them the lives they have always wanted in return for their loyalty. Soon afterward, however, Daniels kills Sale as punishment for his "disloyalty".
Meanwhile, the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU) investigate the murders, and profiles the leader as an "alpha male" with a history of violent petty crime who stays sober to maintain his control over the others, who are only along for the ride. After finding Germ's body, they research his criminal history and discover his connection to Daniels, who they now realize is the leader. Finally, they realize that the gang is targeting wealthy families because someone in the gang also comes from a wealthy family and lashed out as a child by repeatedly breaking the law. Technical analyst Penelope Garcia cross-references juvenile crime records with wealthy families in the area, and finds Bea, and with her the rest of the gang.
The gang attacks Adams' family's house, tying up and menacing her parents. When Adams starts torturing her parents, Daniels orders her to stop, but she ignores him, and shoots Kay and Viv when they try to escape. Angry at losing control of his disciple, he threatens to kill Adams, who taunts him that he doesn't have the guts to kill her. She then kisses him goodbye before shooting him twice in the stomach, killing him. Moments later, the BAU bursts in and arrests Adams and the rest of the gang.
Trivia[]
- Zeke is inspired by multiple real-life and fictional criminals:
- The late Charles Manson, with his gang being based on he Manson Family cult.
- The late Charles Schmid, a.k.a. "The Pied Piper of Tuscon" a serial killer and rapist with multiple accomplices, using a ruse at a front door to seduce one victim.
- James Marlow, a serial killer/rapist of women after escalating from home invasion with his accomplice and girlfriend Cynthia Coffman, before the two turned on each other once they were arrested.
- Jalmer Jansen, the overarching antagonist of the Dutch-Belgian film Because of the Cats, a sex cult leader responsible for instructing his followers to commit home burglaries, vandalism, one gang-rape of a wife of a couple at home when it was broken into, and a murder of one of the followers who was a liability.
- The episode’s plot involving a nomadic group of runaways is inspired by the book All God’s Children, which is a chronicle of the lives of street families.
External links[]
- Zeke Daniels on the Criminal Minds Wiki
