Six women have been found dead in less than three months in secluded, wooded areas in the Portland, Oregon, region, but law enforcement authorities said they have not found any evidence that the cases are linked.
The women’s bodies were found within 100 miles of each other, the Portland Police Bureau said in a news release over the weekend. Police have not determined whether they were all homicide victims. All the women were under age 40.
Although news of the deaths was widely circulated on social media, the Portland Police Bureau said there was no reason to believe the deaths were connected.
“These discussions have led to some anxiety and fear in our community, and we want to provide reassurance that the speculation is not supported by the facts available at this point,” the department said in the statement.
The body of Kristin Smith, 22, was discovered on Feb. 19 in southeast Portland. Police said her cause of death has not been determined.
JoAnna Speaks, 32, was found dead on April 8 at an abandoned property; she died of blunt-force trauma to her neck and head, authorities said. Oregon Live reported that police and firefighters in Clark County found her inside a barn in Ridgefield, Washington, about 22 miles north of Portland.
Charity Lynn Perry, 24, and an unidentified woman were found on April 24. The unknown woman found inside a tent in Portland may have been Indigenous, and there were no signs of foul play, police said.
Bridget Webster, 31, was discovered on a rural road on April 30, and Ashley Real, 22, was found in a wooded area on May 7.
Multiple police and sheriff’s departments are investigating the cases, and the Portland Police Bureau said it was also working with the county and state medical examiner’s offices.
“One of the main things that they are going to be looking at is the manner of death and the weapon,” Bryanna Fox, a former FBI special agent, told NBC Nightly News. “If that’s consistent across all of these victims, then that will be a huge point.”
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
