New York police hunt ‘serial killer’ of bodies on beach
Three bodies are discovered on a New York beach – close to the spot where a serial killer is thought to have dumped the bodies of five other women.
The three bodies were found in undergrowth in an area of Long Island, just hundreds of metres away from a beach where the remains of four women were discovered in December last year.
All those women were in their twenties and had worked as prostitutes. A fifth body, which was found last week, has not yet been identified.
Police teams have been searching the area for the last week, in a search for clues.
Detectives said the women had all advertised their services on the information-sharing website Craigslist. At least two of them had recently stayed in budget hotels in the area.
“We could have a serial killer.” Commissioner Richard Dormer, Suffolk County Police
At the time, the Commissioner of Suffolk County police, Richard Dormer, said he believed it was the work of a serial killer, telling ABC news: “Four bodies found in the same location pretty much speaks for itself. It’s more than just a coincidence. We could have a serial killer.”
The latest bodies haven’t yet been formally linked – although they were discovered just a few hundred metres away, in dense undergrowth near a highway leading to the popular Jones Beach, about 45 miles from New York city.
The search was originally sparked by concern about 24 year old Shannen Gilbert, a prostitute from New Jersey who was last seen on 1 May last year at a beach nearby, after arranging to meet a client there.
A local resident has claimed a woman – believed to be Gilbert – came to his door at around 4.45am, pleading for help – but she ran away when he tried to call the police. The client she was due to meet is not thought to be a suspect.
None of the five bodies discovered before today were hers – and her disappearance still remains unsolved.