US police said Tuesday that a serial killer may have blindsided five men in Stockton, central California, separately in recent months, shooting them to death in isolation overnight.
None of the victims were robbed or beaten before the killings, which occurred over a few square miles, and none of them appear to know each other, Stockton police officer Joseph Silva said.
The shootings also do not appear to be related to gangs or drug trafficking.
On Friday, law enforcement authorities announced a reward of US$85,000 (about 86,400 euros) for information on the suspect in the July 8 murders. The killer appeared in videos from various crime scenes, according to police.
The latest crime occurred shortly before 02:00 (09:00, in Lisbon) last Tuesday, when a 54-year-old man was shot in a residential area north of the city center.
None of the shootings were captured on surveillance cameras and no firearms were recovered.
“We do not have images of anyone who has a weapon or who has committed a crime,” Silva said, according to the Associated Press (AP) news agency.
Still, the available images, as well as ballistic evidence, link the five murders, he said.
All five men were shot with revolvers, although it is not yet clear if the same weapon was used in all the crimes.
“It definitely meets the definition of ‘serial killer.’ What makes it different is that the shooter is just looking for an opportunity, and unfortunately our victims were alone in a dark area,” Silva said.
According to the police, there may also be several people involved in the criminal actions.
“To be honest, we just don’t know. This person or people who are doing this are definitely very bold and brazen,” he said.
Police said the victims were walking alone or in parked cars when they were killed overnight or early in the morning in Stockton, a city of 320,000 about 50 miles from the California state capital, Sacramento.
The ages of the victims range between 21 and 54 years. Four of the men were Hispanic and one was white.
Source: TSF
