Serial killer fears after 43 murders in same area share chilling pattern as cops issue urgent warning

A STRING of recent unsolved murders that bear striking similarities has prompted fears of a potential serial killer.

A new surveillance photo released by the city of Stockton shows a person of interest - though California police remain unsure whether it's one individual or multiple committing the crimes.

A total of 43 murders have taken place in Stockton, California, this year - a 33 percent increase from the same time last year.

Yet police are most concerned with a string of unsolved cases from the summer that they say could be the work of a single murderer or group of killers working together.

The five homicides occurred on July 8, August 11, August 30, September 21, and September 27, cops said on Friday.

All five were shootings and involved male victims ranging in age from 21 to 54 years old.

In a press release posted to Facebook, the Stockton Police Department said that its detectives "have noticed the homicides are occurring during the night or early morning hours and our victims were alone."

The police are assembling a team of detectives, task force officers, camera room operators, and crime analysts to solve the crimes.

"At this time, we do not know if it is one suspect or multiple suspects committing these homicides," Stockton police said.

Police Chief Stanley McFadden said that he felt the pattern was significant enough to warn the public in a recent press conference.

According to Newsweek, McFadden elaborated further on the chilling overlaps between the cases, saying: "We do see some similarity where it's really areas of darkness.

"It's really areas where the person is by themselves, maybe not even knowing it's coming, and that's kind of what [we're] looking into in some of the most recent ones.

"People are by themselves, they don't have that situational awareness that we would like for folks to have."

None of the victims were robbed, and all the crimes occurred when the victims were alone in areas that lacked security cameras.

The age range of the victims varies, so it is unclear if there is a targeted demographic.

COMMUNITY SHAKEN

In the replies to the Stockton Police Department's recent post, commenters expressed concern that a serial killer may be active in the city.

"Do we have us a serial killer," one asked.

"There’s a serial killer on the loose at night be careful ladies & men," another added.

And local news site 209 Times reported on Wednesday that "several unrelated sources" had told them that "multiple recent homicides in Stockton, and out of town, may have been committed by the same shooter and are definitely connected."

At the press conference, McFadden tried to quiet fears of a serial killer on the loose, saying that his investigators "have no information that there's a serial killer."

'HAVEN'T RULED ANYTHING OUT'

But he also noted that they "haven't ruled anything out."

He also warned the public to avoid traveling alone in the dark and journeying through isolated places.

"I know that's put a lot of folks on edge, hearing that out there," McFadden said.

"And I'm just here to say that we have no evidence of that.

"We are seeing some patterns and similarities in some of our more recent homicides where we're taking a closer look at.

"We don't know if it's one person, or if it's five or six people. We just don't have that information right now," McFadden said.

The city of Stockton has announced a $75,000 reward for information leading to an arrest, along with $10,000 from Stockton Crime Stoppers, adding up to $85,000.

The U.S. Sun has reached out to the Stockton Police Department for more updates, but there is no further information.

A full list of recent unsolved cases was not immediately available.