Ipswitch Prostitute Strangler May Be Same Killer Who Terrorized Atlantic City

On the other hand -- serial killers tend to go after prostitutes, because they're well away from police and usually willing to go off to dark and deserted places with them.

But invesigators are eyeing the possible tie:

Police investigating the brutal "Ipswich Ripper" murders of five prostitutes in England...

Can I just say that while there are certain analogues to the Ripper, this guy is definitely not a ripper at all? He's a strangler.

Ah, well. Whatever.

... will examine possible links between those killings and the murders of four prostitutes in Atlantic City, N.J., last month, FOXNews.com has learned.

Ipswich Police spokeswoman Shelly Spratt said contact with authorities in Atlantic City "is an avenue we will go down." She said investigators already have discussed making that contact, but because more bodies turned up on Tuesday they had not opened discussion yet.

"We can use all the help we can get," Spratt said.

...

In Atlantic City, police continue their investigation into the seemingly ritualistic murders of four prostitutes whose bodies were found in a watery ditch behind a seedy motel outside the gambling mecca.

The bodies were found within a few hundred feet of each other, all face down in several inches of water, heads turned east — toward Atlantic City — wearing clothes, but no shoes or socks.

At least one of the victims died of strangulation; another, officials said, died by asphyxia "by unspecified means."

...

The known similarities of the Ipswich and Atlantic City cases are:

— The victims all are known prostitutes.

— They range in age from 19-42, with most being in their 20s.

— Autopsies have determined that three of the nine victims died of strangulation or asphyxiation. Official cause of death is pending on two of the Atlantic City victims, and four of the Ipswich women.

Here's the part where they note that prostitutes are one of the favorite prey of serial killers:

...

The U.S.'s most notorious prostitute killings were committed in the Pacific Northwest by a single attacker who came to be known as the Green River Killer. In pleading guilty in 2003 to the murders of 48 prostitutes, Gary Leon Ridgway told a judge he targeted streetwalkers "because I thought I could kill as many as I wanted to without getting caught."

"They were easy to pick up, without being noticed," he said in court. "I knew they would not be reported missing right away, and might never be reported missing."

I think there are some theories that say Jack the Ripper migrated to New York after the murders. Or the Carribbean. Or both. I forget the details.

posted by Ace at 06:18 PM

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