Is there a serial killer on the loose in Austin?

Four men have been found dead near Lake Austin since March, sparking fears a serial killer may be on the loose with experts calling it an “amazing coincidence”.

Jason John, 30, Clifton Axtell, 40, Jonathan Honey, 33, and John Christopher Hayes Clark, 30, were found dead in or near Lady Bird Lake since mid-February.

The deaths of four other men dating back to 2008 have been linked to the so-called Lady Bird Serial Killer or Rainey Street Ripper by online investigators.

The lake is about 2 miles from the popular nightlife area along Rainey Street. There are no surveillance cameras covering the area around the water body.

Facebook group spreading conspiracy theories about deaths, Lady Bird Lake – Serial Killer / Rainey Street Killerhas garnered over 70,000 followers while a local media outlet recently ran a headline: “Rainey Street Ripper Fears”.

Local police sought to pour cold water on these theories, issuing an official statement saying that no foul play was suspected in any of the deaths. The statement issued a reminder to the public of the responsibility of consuming alcohol and the dangers of being near water.

I realize there is a rumor circulating about a possible serial killer here in Austin. “We haven’t found any evidence of that,” Austin Police spokesman Joseph Chacon said FOX7 this week.

It’s an awful circumstance that we have these things, and we look at each of them to determine the circumstances under which they occurred. Some of them are accidental and, unfortunately, some of them are suicide, the president added.

Law enforcement says that while every incident occurred in the lake, “the exact circumstances, locations, and demographics surrounding these cases vary.”

The president stressed that his office will keep the public updated on the investigations.

Earlier this month, the city of Austin announced more safety measures including lighting and fencing around the lake. The city is also considering placing park rangers around the water as well as more security cameras.

Detectives haven’t released details regarding the whereabouts of all the men before their deaths – but they do reveal that both Jonathan Honey and Jason John were seen on Rainey Street prior to their separate disappearances.

Autopsies of the men who died this year were not available, but police said their bodies showed no signs of trauma.

In an interview with KXAN, Rumors about Lady Bird Lake’s death are similar to conspiracy theories circulating in cities across the country, said Dr. Carsten Andersen of St. Edward’s University.

Human nature has always looked at things and kind of looked for patterns that might or might not be there. But also, social media and being able to just kind of put these rumors online and have them go out like wildfire.

Anderson noted that Austin has a reputation as a city where people go drink and let loose.

I don’t think we’ve seen anything that would lead one to conclude that there is a serial killer out there. But we do know that people drink heavily in Austin, and that men often engage in risky behaviors.

While the executive director of the Texas Municipal Police Association, Kevin Lawrence, told the station that increased scrutiny on social media will not affect the police investigation.

In an interview with KXAN, Anderson also said that many on the Internet regard the evidence as mere “propaganda.”

“I think that makes it very difficult for someone to kind of get a message across if it’s all propaganda,” he said.

The former director of forensics for the Austin Police Department, Mark Gillespie, confirmed in an interview with KVUE This week the public must believe the police when they say there is no foul play.

They’re looking for foul play, and so when APD came out with a statement that at the moment they don’t suspect foul play, I promise you they’ve been looking for it, and they’ve been looking very hard for it,” Gillespie said, “so I respect that.”

On the flip side, said former NYPD detective Kevin Gannon Fox News In an interview that the number of deaths does not correspond to cases of accidental drowning.

“Just from the sheer number and the fact that there are so many in such a short period of time, I don’t think it’s accidental,” Gannon said.

Jason John’s family believes there is more to the story behind their son’s death and believe the four men are somehow connected. He was last seen walking home

Jason was thirty years old. Jonathan Honey was thirty-three years old. Rainey Street. So, there were some similarities to the case, Elsie John, Jason John’s mother, told Fox7.

Elsie added that she did not agree with the initial ruling that there was no foul play. She fears more men will end up dead.

“We certainly don’t agree with that,” she said. We don’t know how many Jasons, how many Martins, and how many Jonathans will lose their lives again. This is not acceptable.

Meanwhile, Cliff Axtell, 40, has been recognized by his sister on Facebook. Axtell, a married father of two, was found in the lake on March 5 after he went missing near Stubb in downtown on February 25.

Other bodies previously found in the lake included 22-year-old Julio Santos in 2015 and 25-year-old Martin Gutierrez in 2018.

Twenty-one-year-old Christian Pugh was found alive in the lake in 2019 but in ‘extreme’ condition. He was hit in the head and bruised his hands.

Gutierrez was found with multiple injuries after tumbling into the lake after a night out on Rainey Street — the same place where Honey was last seen — his brother Mitchell previously told the news outlet.

Austin residents have been left fearful of multiple accidents and warn others to stay safe.

He urged many others not to visit Rainey Street alone and to stay with one other person at all times.

Others have also taken their concerns to TikTok by creating videos warning of an alleged serial killer as questions about the men’s disappearance remain unanswered.

“Is there a serial killer among us?” one asked TikToker.

Some have indicated that the conditions in which the men were found were similar to those of the Smiley Face Killers.

These deaths began in 1997 and they all bore striking similarities. Most of the men were young, athletic, and of high academic achievement.

On the Lady Bird Lake Serial Killer / Rainey St Killer Facebook page, members of the group share their theories as well as their own stories about being drugged or assaulted while drinking on Rainey Street.

A popular theory about the group is that the “killer” is a bartender who was slipping rape drugs into the revelers’ drinks.

A spreadsheet created by a member of the group seeks to relate the death of a man named in 2008 Riyadh Hamad For the same “killer”.

Hamad, a government school teacher, was found dead on the south side of the lake with his hands and feet bound. His death was a suicide.