Possible link between three of six women in Portland deaths
- A source said three of the victims had similarities in their personal lives
- Six women were found dead within 100 miles of Portland recently
- Police said there is no concrete evidence linking the deaths
(NewsNation) — It’s possible that three of the six women found dead near Portland, Oregon, share similarities in their personal lives and may have visited the same places before their deaths.
Oregon Live reported a source close to the investigation revealed that three of the victims, Joanna Speaks, 32, Charity Lynn Perry, 24, and Bridget Leann Ramsey Webster, 31, had been known to visit areas near the Clackamas Town Center and one near Southeast 82nd Ave.
Although rumors of a serial killer have spread online, police in Oregon have said they don’t have any evidence to show the deaths of the women were connected. Authorities have urged caution and said they don’t believe there is any danger to the public at this time.
Over a period of three months, six women have been found dead in rural areas within 100 miles of Portland. Five of the victims were found in Oregon and one in Washington, and one victim remains unidentified.
Investigators have only released a cause of death for Speaks. Her death has been ruled a homicide, with her body showing signs of blunt force trauma. Perry and Webster’s deaths have been ruled suspicious, but not labeled a homicide.
The first victim, 22-year-old Kristen Smith, was found in February. Police have not released a cause of death for Smith. Speaks was found in early April, and two weeks later Perry’s body was discovered. That same day, an unidentified woman was found dead in a tent. Webster was found less than a week later and the body of Ashley Real, 22, was found in early May.
Real’s death has also been ruled suspicious. In the case of the unidentified victim, police have said they do not suspect foul play.
The source said Perry, Webster and Speaks had similarities in their personal lives, but did not specify what those similarities might be.