Police: No, there isn’t a serial killer in South Seattle
Oct 17, 2022, 11:24 AM
(Seattle Police Department)
(Seattle Police Department)
Social media posts about a potential serial killer in Seattle set off ripples of concern throughout the area this weekend, but several law enforcement agencies said it simply isn’t true.
The story appears to have started with an email from a manager of a Seattle bar to the staff, which circulated on the internet and was later publicized by @dubseatv, a Seattle-based news aggregator.
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According to screenshots of the email, numerous sources were saying someone is abducting and dismembering women in their 30s. The email added that all the women were out with their friends, getting drinks and were abducted between midnight and 7 a.m.
A second email provided additional details, including that three women in their 30s had been found murdered, their bodies discovered south of SODO, with the latest woman found at the end of State Route 509. The email said they were posed the exact same way.
According to the King County Sheriff’s Office, on Oct. 7, a woman was found dead along southbound SR 509. The sheriff’s office did not publicly provide details of the incident.
The social media posts from @dubseatv appeared on Saturday afternoon, saying King County detectives have been notifying locals about a serial killer in Seattle.
King County Detectives have been notifying locals about a serial killer in Seattle right now. Multiple women’s bodies have been discovered recently in the Burien and SODO area, apparently posed in the same way. pic.twitter.com/cHh5dxtWUd
— dubseatv (@dubseatv) October 15, 2022
By 9 p.m. that night, the Seattle Police Department publicly responded, saying there are no serial cases.
We’ve received a number of inquiries about this. Seattle PD does *not* have any serial cases. https://t.co/Hqz5RZQFG8
— Seattle Police Dept. (@SeattlePD) October 16, 2022
An hour later, the KCSO responded, saying there is no evidence substantiating the rumors, which was later shared by the Burien Police Department and the City of Burien.
We are aware of unverified online social media reports that select death investigations, in the vicinity of South Park/SR 509, may share similar characteristics.
At this time, the Sheriff’s Office has identified no evidence affirming this for any cases under our jurisdiction. pic.twitter.com/VbNNKdMlAI
— King County Sheriff’s Office PIO (@kingcosoPIO) October 16, 2022
The news of a possible serial killer in Seattle may have been inflated by the arrest of a suspected serial killer in Stockton on Saturday, where police said a man killed at least six men and wounded a woman in northern California.
This story will be updated if more information becomes available.
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