Who is Red John?

Theories of tiberiusfunk (3)

Before I begin, I should state that I've watched every episode up to episode 6 (Fire and Brimstone). 

I know that lot of people are thinking that Brett Partridge is still alive and that he is Red John. I did have a thought though. In all the best horror movies, unless you actually see the dead body then they're not really dead. Even though Partridge is reported as being dead, we never actually see a dead body. Could he still be alive? Read on.

In a previous theory I wrote, I stated that Tiger Tiger group (TT) is a separate thing from Red John (RJ). What I mean by this is, RJ may be aware of TT and what they do, but is not actually a member. 

Given his number of contacts and influence, RJ could definitely have come into contact with TT members, even if he himself wasn't a member or even in law enforcement. However, I think that RJ must at least have been in law enforcement at one point in order to learn the best ways to leave no evidence at his crime scenes. During this time, maybe TT tapped him up to become a member. But instead, he could have easily persuaded them to help his cause as Red John. He charmed them (in the way a charismatic enigmatic person like RJ could) to help cover up evidence at his murder scenes and maybe even becoming one of his disciples.

I think that Brett Partridge was part of TT. TT has figured out that RJ is using some of it's members to cover up his crimes and is trying to find RJ to weed out those in the organisation who are helping him. They used Partridge as bait, but RJ being one step ahead, called in the anonymous tip that went to Lisbon. That screwed up TT's plans to catch RJ. However they faked Partridge's death and have him locked up in a dungeon somewhere possibly torturing him for info on RJ's identity.

This would explain why Partridge said Tiger Tiger to Lisbon. He felt betrayed and wanted to expose the organisation. Also, if TT have Partridge captive and tortured him for RJ's identity, it would explain the abundance of swat team members outside the house in the promo for the episode The Great Red Dragon, currently available on youtube. They want RJ as much as jane does and are determined not to let him get away.

In addition, Sophie Miller (Jane's ex-therapist) stated on her dictophone the following about Jay Roth (ie Red John):

Mr. Roth came in complaining of a recent issue with severe acrophobia. He’s middle-aged, in good health, with no stated prior history of psychiatric issues. He has no living family, but many friends on whom he relies for company and emotional support. He’s well-spoken, good posture, self-possessed. In the waiting room, he sat calmly in one place, needing no distraction.Though I note, he is an excellent whistler. His self-presentation is pleasant, but there are hints in his behavior of a damaged and narcissistic personality. He says he deals with conflict and adversity easily, though. I’m not convinced he’s being truthful about this. In fact, much of what he said, though spoken convincingly, did not match what I can only call my instinctive response to his presence, though I cannot point to identifiable clinical behaviors that indicate this. I sense something deceptive and dark in his emotional makeup. However, there is every indication that his phobia issues are real whether acrophobia or some other issue remains to be seen.

We have seen that Haffner definitely suffers from arachnophobia. There would be no reason to put in a scene like that to highlight a phobia without very good reason. Haffner is ex FBI and CBI agent, so would have definitely have come into contact with TT members, even if he didn't actually become a member.

Haffner is an ex-football player, probably college as seen by the trophy in his office. The trophy is a heisman trophy, as far as I can tell. "Heisman" - He is ma. Coincidence? Could the victim have been trying to write "heisman" but died before he finished it? Or if the message was supposed to be "he is many" (as a lot people suspect) could this be yet anotherreference to Tiger Tiger?

According to Rosalind Harker (who had a relationship with RJ for a few months) Red John is: 
Just under 6 feet tall. Not muscular but not soft, either. Short straight hair... a gentle voice. Rough, strong hands. This description sums up Haffner quite well (apart from the hands as we can't feel them).

Red John is extremely intelligent, a match for Jane, as seen from his ability to outwit him time and again.   He has twice hacked into the CBI computers without being detected. He sets up phony companies and bank accounts to keep his identity a secret. This would well be within Haffner's abilities; formerly, he was an FBI agent in the Organized Crime Division, and is an expert in wiretaps and creative surveillance techniques.


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I have a feeling that it's Haffner. When Cho was speaking to the private detective who attempted to bug their office, it was never confirmed that she actually worked for Red John or Visualize. Even though she agreed with Cho, he mentioned it first and she could have just said yes to avoid being arrested. 



Why, after all this time, would Red John resort to such depths in order to get information about the team? The three dot tattoo is a symbol of the tiger tiger group, but not necessarily Red John. Tiger Tiger has an, as of yet, unspecified agenda, but one that is very different to Red John's. Red John is definitely aware of the group, and may be a member (or former member). He covered very easily have covered up his tattoo with make-up. 



With regards to the other suspects, Bertram is too tall and is bald (unless he wore a wig when he was with Rosalind Harker). Brett Stiles is too old, but definitely has some connection to Red John (maybe he inducted him into Visualize). McAllister is the right age, but unless he's a REALLY good actor, doesn't have the charm necessary to convert people into disciples. FBI Smith is a bit too rotund and even though he has a fear of heights, the therapists recording states that she wasn't sure if this was actually real or not. This could be a misdirect on behalf of the writers. 



Haffner is the right age, height, build and you can definitely see him being charming when he wanted to be. He is a member of Visualize and has been ever since he was a teenager when he was a maladjusted and distressed boy. He insists that the cult helped him. This could indicate that he was part of the Visualize farm project that had that barn. In addition, it's entirely possible that Jane's carnival came to town and that the two of them met, albeit very briefly, when they were kids.



He is formerly an FBI agent in the Organized Crime Division, and is an expert in wiretaps and creative surveillance techniques. So he could easily have used those skills to keep tabs on Jane and figure out the likeliest people Jane would create as a list of suspects.



It is clear that he has a soft spot for Lisbon, which would explain why RJ didn't kill Lisbon at the same time he killed Brett Partridge. Also, Haffner met PJ a long time before Jane met Lorilei. The definitely shook hands and you could see that, initially, Haffner wants to work with Jane and have a positive relationship with him.



Given his connections with CBI, FBI and whoever else his clients are in private security, he definitely would have become aware of the Tiger Tiger group. I'm trying to figure out why he would make Jane aware of this though. Maybe he knew that this group had Jane under surveillance and by helping Jane expose the group he was helping himself (as if the group became aware of RJ's identity through Jane he would be unable to continue killing).



The promo for The Great Red Dragon shows a mass of SWAT team officers surrounding a house and Jane stating that Red John is one of them. Whoever's house it is, obviously has dressed as a Swat team officer in order to hide in plain sight before making his escape. Haffner is the only one of the suspects who would have the knowledge to successfully act like a Swat team member without drawing attention to himself. 

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I think that Red John was once a prominent member of Visualise, hence why Brett Stiles knows him. I think he worked his way up through the ranks, but somewhere along the way corrupted the teachings of the cult. He uses his natural charm and influence along with Visualise teachings to create his own sub=group of followers. This is why he seems to have contacts all over the place including law enforcement and FBI. It's already been established that Visualise members are everywhere and don't always let their "faith" be known.

It is possible that Red John is an organisation of it's own, with the leader ordering hits on the various victims, while keeping his own hands clean at this stage. He could possibly teach his disciples his methods in order to keep the killings consistent. That would explain how his victims are killed so quickly when they are exposed as a lead (as in Red John's Friends when Jared Renfrew is already dead by the time the team reach him).

Also the message left behind "He is man" could indicate that Red John views himself as a higher power or even god-like figure, leading us back to Red John being a member of Visualise. It's possible that  Red John is bringing new members into the organisation, which is why Brett Stiles turns a blind eye to his other actions. Either that or he is Brett Stiles son, groomed from an early age to be the next leader of the organisation, and therefore been treated his whole life as a saviour.

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