Detroit Man Charged in Spate of Killings That Police Dubbed Work of Serial Killer

A 34-year-old man has been charged with murder in the deaths of four women in Detroit, The Associated Press reports. Deangelo Martin was charged with four counts of first-degree murder and four counts of felony murder after the women were found dead in abandoned buildings, face-down with a used condom beside them. Two of the women died of blunt-force trauma, while the cause of the death of the other two could not be determined due to the advanced decomposition of the bodies, authorities said. Police Chief James Craig previously said officials saw similarities between three of the killings and the assaults of at least two other women who survived Martin's alleged attacks. Officials are also investigating two additional homicide cases that may be connected. “I think it’s pretty clear that we believe he is a serial killer,” Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said in a Wednesday press conference.

At the time of his arrest in June, Martin was already charged with stabbing and sexually assaulting a 26-year-old in May and the kidnapping and assault of a 51-year-old in June. He is expected to appear in court on Oct. 2.