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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

2 Seattle Strangulations May Be Work Of Same Killer, Say Police

Associated Press

Two women found strangled five months apart might be victims of the same killer, Seattle police say.

Police are awaiting lab results from the King County medical examiner’s office on the remains of the most recent victim, identified only as a black woman in her mid-30s.

The woman’s decomposing body was found Sunday beneath a blanket and under a bush behind an industrial building in an isolated area between Beacon Hill and Judkins Park.

The body appeared to have gone undiscovered “for more than a few months,” said Seattle homicide Detective Mike Ciesynski.

That would place her death close to the time last fall when authorities found the body of 41-year-old Denise Marie Harris in the same general area.

Police say they won’t know whether the slayings are the work of the same killer until the latest victim is identified and the cause of her death is determined.

“We think they’re related, but we’re still not 100 percent sure,” Ciesynski said.

A homeless man discovered Harris’ body Sept. 12 near the intersection of Interstate 5 and eastbound Interstate 90. The area is known to residents and law enforcement as “the jungle.”

Harris had been strangled.

The recently discovered body also showed signs of strangulation, police said.

Both women were black and were believed to have been involved in so-called high-risk lifestyles - possibly including illegal drugs and prostitution.

Neither woman appeared to have been robbed, and police would not reveal whether they were sexually assaulted.