'Person of interest' identified after bodies of four women discovered in woodland in Oregon
The development comes after police said the cases were unconnected when the bodies were discovered in wooded areas between February and May.
Tuesday 18 July 2023 20:29, UK
The deaths of four women whose bodies were found in northwest Oregon are believed to be linked, prosecutors have said.
The development comes after police said the cases were unconnected when the bodies were discovered in wooded areas between February and May.
The Portland Police Bureau had released a statement on 4 June saying six deaths in the state were not linked.
Prosecutors from Multnomah County District Attorney's Office in Portland have now said "at least one person of interest" has been identified as they believe four of the deaths are connected.
No charges have been filed against anyone in the case but the community is not in danger, the office added.
Local media reported a man is in custody.
The women, aged between 22 and 31, have been named by prosecutors as Kristin Smith, Charity Perry, Bridget Webster and Ashley Real.
The state medical examiner has not determined the cause or manner of death for any of the women, prosecutors said in a statement.
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The announcement that the deaths could be linked has led to online reports of a possible serial killer.
However, officials have not used those words themselves.
Ms Smith's body was the first to be found after she was discovered in a rural area of Portland on 19 February.
The 22-year-old's disappearance had been reported to police in suburban Gresham on 22 December 2022.
Her sister, Hailey Smith, told local television station KPTV during the search: "It's quite like a piece of you is missing, that's really the only way you can describe it."
Family members put up fliers and looked for Ms Smith near homeless shelters and other sites in downtown Portland.
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A private "Justice for Kristin Smith" Facebook page with over 600 members was created over four months ago.
Ms Perry's body was found on 24 April near a state park alongside the Columbia River, east of Portland.
The 24-year-old's mother Diana Allen said her daughter struggled with her mental health.
Ms Allen has shared a photo of her daughter, taken after she won spiciest chili in a contest several years ago.
"She was so proud of it," Ms Allen said. "She had an amazing personality when she had her mental health under control."
Ms Webster, who was 31, was found dead on 30 April near Mill Creek in rural northwest Polk County, around 45 miles southwest of Portland.
Ms Real, 22, was last seen at a fast-food restaurant near Portland on 27 March, police said.
She was reported missing on 4 April and her body was found on 7 May in a forest southeast of Portland.
Investigators from nine law enforcement agencies, including the prosecutor's offices in three Oregon counties and the Oregon State Police, have been collaborating on the cases, authorities said.