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Police Suspect Serial Killer is Responsible for Murders of 3 Homeless Men
Photo by carl ballou via Shutterstock
Police in Orange County suspect that a serial killer could be targeting homeless men Orange County.
Three homeless men have been stabbed to death since late December, and local police agencies and the sheriff's department announced today that are teaming up to investigate the murders, according to City News Service.
"We believe these murders are likely committed by the same suspect and we feel he is extremely dangerous to the public,'' Anaheim police Chief John Welter said at a news conference today.
The first murder occurred on December 20, when James Patrick McGillivray, 53, was found stabbed to death in a shopping center in Placentia. Last Wednesday Lloyd Middaugh, 42, was found stabbed to death when he was found near a bike trail. Just this Friday Paulus Cornelius Smit, 57, was found stabbed at the bottom of a stairwell outside a library in Yorba Linda.
Police have surveillance video of the man before he killed McGillivrary, although he is hard to identify because he was wearing all-black clothing. He is described as being thin,18-25 years old and as tall as 5 feet, 9 inches. He waited as long as an hour for his victim before stabbing him. He is believed to be driving a white Toyota Corrolla, according to the OC Register.
Police have also been passing out fliers at homeless camps and warning homeless people to be on alert.
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