Officials concerned about possible Niagara Falls serial killer

On Tuesday, nearly 100 officers went door-to-door in Niagara Falls, New York, desperate for leads in the gruesome murders of two women. Although investigators are considering all options, Niagara Falls Police Capt. Kelly Rizzo said evidence suggests they are dealing with a serial killer.

“You can’t overlook that the two homicides share a lot of similarities,” Capt. Rizzo said on Tuesday, CNN reports. “It is hard not to make that connection.”

The first victim was 30-year-old Loretta Gates (pictured top left), whose dismembered remains were found in different areas of the city in 2012, including in the area just below the famous waterfall. No arrests were ever made.

Then, last month, people walking by a vacant home investigated when they smelled a foul odor in the basement. It was the decapitated, dismembered body of 46-year-old Terri Bills (pictured top right). Although the nature of their murders are shockingly similar enough, perhaps the biggest twist is that they were distantly related and Terri was “like an aunt” to the younger woman. Loretta’s father said he believes those signs point to one killer.

“If you know everything in detail, like the stuff we know, it’s almost identical,” said Arthur Gates told WKBW. “I do think it’s the same person… He knows what he’s doing. He’s playing games.”

More than one month after the discovery of Terri’s body, dozens of local, state and federal officers are on the case. Although they still haven’t announced any solid evidence, Capt. Rizzo believes they “are definitely closer to figuring out who did it based on the information” they got during Tuesday’s canvassing.