Daytona Beach killer - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Daytona Beach killer is a serial killer

Serial killer

A serial killer, as typically defined, is an individual who has murdered three or more people over a period of more than a month, with down time between the murders, and whose motivation for killing is usually based on psychological gratification...

responsible for the murders of four women in the Daytona Beach area from December 2005–December 2007. The killer has never been apprehended. The involvement of a serial killer was realized when police were able to connect the four deaths due to DNA

DNA

Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...

samples found at the crime scenes

Victims

The first known victim of the offender was 45-year-old Laquetta Gunther. She was found in an alley on December 26, 2005. She had been shot in the head. The offender's second victim was 34-year-old Julie Green, found January 14. She had also been shot to death. Just over a month later, on February 24, police found the body of Iwana Patton, 35, on a dirt road. Authorities received an anonymous telephone call describing the location of Patton's body, but the caller was eventually identified and questioned, and is not a suspect in the killings. All three women are believed to have worked as prostitutes in the Daytona Beach area. Police believe the victims voluntarily accompanied the offender, possibly in a vehicle, and were subsequently murdered and dumped in the same area of Daytona Beach. The offender did not attempt to conceal the bodies.

The remains of Stacey Charlene Gage, 30, were found on January 3, 2008. Police have not revealed a cause of death, however they have stated that they believe she was killed December 11, 2007. Police have further stated that the circumstances surrounding the case are eerily similar to the three previous unsolved homicides. Unlike the first three victims, Gage did not have a criminal record involving prostitution; however, she did have a history of drug problems.

Possible Connection

In October 2006, the body of known prostitute Lisa Marie French, 39, was found in Sanford, Florida

Sanford, Florida

Sanford is a city in, and the county seat of, Seminole County, Florida, United States. The population was 38,291 at the 2000 census. As of 2009, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau was 50,998...

. Police first reported that French had been strangled to death, but autopsy results were inconclusive in regards to the cause of her death. Daytona Beach Police Chief Mike Chitwood has since disclosed that French was probably not the victim of foul play.

Attempts to Solve

The Daytona Beach PD

Police

The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...

are taking DNA

DNA

samples from motorists fitting what the profiler

Offender profiling

Offender profiling, also known as criminal profiling, is a behavioral and investigative tool that is intended to help investigators to profile unknown criminal subjects or offenders. Offender profiling is also known as criminal profiling, criminal personality profiling, criminological profiling,...

says is a white male with a girlfriend with field DNA kits that will be taken to a lab to match with genetic material taken from the crime scenes.

External links

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