A potential serial killer who appears to be targeting homeless people is on the loose on the streets of New York City and Washington, D.C. So far, the suspect has killed two homeless people in a little over a week and has seriously injured three others.

At the moment, both New York and D.C. are conducting “urgent” manhunts in order to bring the killer into custody. 

The first shooting happened on March 4 in New York City, early in the morning. Authorities found a homeless man suffering from non-fatal gunshot wounds. The man was taken to the hospital, and he survived. 

The second shooting was similar to the first shooting, but it happened in Washington, D.C. A homeless man was shot in the early hours of the morning and the suspect fled. Police officers found the homeless man suffering from non-life-threatening injuries and they took him to the hospital. He also survived. 

The most gruesome crime came the following day, on March 9, when D.C. police officers came across the remains of a homeless man who had been lit on fire after being stabbed and shot. 

And just this past Sunday, once again in New York City, police officers responded to reports of a shooting early in the morning. When they arrived, one homeless man had been shot to death, and another was injured. The injured man survived. 

“This [suspect] approached the two men, one at a time, you see him looking around, making sure no one was around, kicking the homeless person to make sure they were not asleep and just assassinated him,” New York City Mayor Eric Adams said in a press conference on Sunday. “It was just something you would not imagine would take place in our city.”

Both mayors — Mayor Eric Adams of New York City and Mayor Muriel Bowser of Washington D.C. — have since joined forces to capture the suspect. 

“The work to get this individual off our streets before he hurts or murders another individual is urgent,” said both mayors in a statement. “The rise in gun violence has shaken all of us and it is particularly horrible to know that someone is out there deliberately doing harm to an already vulnerable population.”

Both NYC and D.C. authorities are working with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to offer a combined $55,000 to anyone who has any information about the suspect.

“Our homeless population is one of our most vulnerable and an individual preying on them as they sleep is an exceptionally heinous crime,” NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell said in a statement. “We will use every tool, every technique and every partner to bring the killer to justice.”

If you have any information, contact DC police at 202-727-9099 or the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-9099.

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