Cops Release Suspected Homeless Killer

A San Diego man who was accused of killing three homeless people and critically injuring a fourth was released Monday after officials said they failed to find enough evidence to continue detaining him. “Everybody’s back to where we were last week,” an advocate for the homeless, Bob McElroy, told a local television station. “Everybody is living in fear, distrust, keeping an eye on everybody. We’re creeped out because somebody is targeting our population.” The murders, which have involved arson and stabbings, have left many in fear. Though detectives worked over the weekend to analyze evidence, officials ultimately decided to release the only known person of interest, Anthony Padgett. San Diego Homicide Capt. David Nisleit said at news conference: “As we continued Friday through Sunday... we discovered exculpatory evidence which does not give me confidence moving forward with Padgett still in custody.” He added, “With that said, in an hour or tomorrow, we could get new evidence that might point the finger back to Padgett, or someone new.” Padgett was reportedly convicted of setting a homeless man on fire in 2010 and closely resembled a man shown in surveillance footage of the violent crimes.