Austin police chief knocks down 'rampant rumor' of serial killer in Texas capital

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Austin City Council approves second resolution to increase safety on Rainey Street

The City Council approved the resolution after hearing testimony of family of loved ones who had disappeared or were found dead in Lady Bird Lake.

A series of men found dead in downtown Austin who were roughly the same age and found in the same body of water are likely not the victims of a serial killer, according to the Texas capital's chief of police.

Austin Police Chief Joseph Chacon said detectives suspected accidents or suicides in the recent string of deaths — but he left open the door should additional information become known to investigators.

His statement comes as speculation that deaths in the city's Lady Bird Lake — four since February and double that over the past year — could have a connection.

Of those, three were discovered near the edge of Rainey Street, a popular downtown strip, and a fourth was located about two miles downriver near a dam.

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Wooden fencing lines the edge of the trail between Rainey Street in downtown Austin and the Lady Bird Lake waterfront, where men have been discovered dead this year. (Matteo Cina/Fox News Digital)

"I realize that there is a rampant rumor about a potential serial killer here in Austin," Chacon told FOX 7 Austin. "We've found no evidence of that."

"Nothing has come to light that would indicate that there is a serial killer in Austin," the chief said.

Police had a visible presence on Rainey Street over the weekend, out in force along the strip. City officials have also begun discussing ways to make the waterfront safer, including adding lights to the trails there and increasing Park Ranger patrols. They have also installed high temporary fencing.

This undated photo is of Jason John, whose body was found in Lady Bird Lake, Austin, TX on Feb. 13, 2023.

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Austin police for weeks have said publicly that they have not uncovered evidence of foul play in any of the deaths, as their investigations continue.

But many Austin residents, as well as independent investigators and web sleuths alike, have argued that the number of bodies found so close to one another is more than a coincidence, especially due to the distance between the strip of bars on Rainey Street and the waterfront itself.

This undated photo is of Jonathan Honey, whose body was found in Lady Bird Lake, Austin, TX on Saturday, April 1, 2023.

The edge of Lady Bird Lake is about a block and a half from the strip and requires climbing over a fence and down a trail.

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Austin police identified the latest victim last week as John Christopher Hays-Clark, 30. He was pronounced dead at the scene near a dam about two miles down river from where the others were found, closer to Rainey Street.

This undated photo is of Clifton Axtell, whose body was found in Lady Bird Lake, Austin, TX on in 2023.?

Police found Jason John, 30, dead in Lady Bird Lake in February, a week after he was last been seen on Rainey Street, which has a popular row of bars near the water.

Clifton Axtell, 40, was identified as the man found dead on March 5. Jonathan Honey, 33, was found on April 1, a day after he was last seen at a food truck on Rainey Street.

This undated photo is of Jonathan Clark, whose body was found in Lady Bird Lake, Austin, TX on Saturday, April 15, 2023.

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Police in New York City last month announced multiple indictments and arrests in connection with a series of robberies that involved drugging victims at bars and using facial recognition technology to unlock their phones and drain their accounts. 

Several victims died as a result of overdosing on the drugs used to incapacitate them, according to police.

The approximate locations of the four recent bodies found in Austin's Lady Bird Lake, based on estimations from local reports and ACTEMS. (Google Maps)

Separately, the Austin deaths share eerie similarities to claims of a potential group of "Smiley Face Killers" who some investigators believe may have been responsible for dozens of drownings of young men in the Midwest beginning in the late 1990s.

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Residents were also monitoring the case of another missing man, Joel Derusha. Police told Fox News Digital Monday his remains were located on the 500 block of Thompson Lane Thursday morning.

He was located around nine miles away from Rainey Street not in or near the water, and police said they found no evidence of foul play based on evidence uncovered so far.