Lansing Police Probe 5 Trail Killings as Serial Killer Fears Grip Michigan Capital
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Oct 14
Lansing Police Probe 5 Trail Killings as Serial Killer Fears Grip Michigan Capital
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Oct 14
Summary
Five homeless men were found dead in less than a year along a one-mile stretch of Lansing’s River Trail, pushing police to publicly examine whether the killings are linked.
Four victims suffered head injuries while lying down, possibly asleep, and a fifth was stabbed; police have charged a suspect in the stabbing but say the other deaths remain under investigation.
September reporting by the Lansing State Journal highlighted similarities among four killings, and investigators later confirmed details of a fifth before Chief Robert Backus raised the possibility of a serial killer.
Nighttime patrols by police and community groups have followed, while the deaths have intensified criticism that Lansing failed to warn residents and has mishandled park safety and homeless encampments.