A Los Angeles serial killer who terrorized the city for four days by murdering four people, including three homeless men, has been arrested.
The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) held an urgent press conference on Friday urging the public's help after homicide detectives realized the same man shot and killed three homeless men as they slept between Sunday, November 26 and Wednesday, November 29.
The first murder occurred on November 26 around 3 a.m. in the southeast area of the city. The suspect walked up and killed 37-year-old Jose Bolanos, said Los Angeles Police Chief Michael Moore. On Monday, the suspect killed again, this time murdering 62-year-old Mark Diggs in central L.A. around 4:45 a.m. Finally, the suspect allegedly shot a 52-year-old man in the Lincoln Heights area on Wednesday.
Detectives noted that video captured the same car and a man with the same physical characteristics appeared at all three scenes.
The realization that a serial killer was on the loose and targeting a vulnerable population set off a mobilized effort with more than 400 city officials and social service organizations to alert homeless people of the possible danger. Shelters were opened. Police put together a task force of investigators to hunt down the suspect.
However, it turned out the suspect had already been arrested for a separate, unrelated murder. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Office was investigating a homicide that occurred on Tuesday where the suspect followed Nicholas Simbolon for more than 10 miles from an electric car charging station to his home in San Dimas where he robbed and shot Simbolon to death as he got out of his car, according to LA County Sheriff Robert Luna.
LA County Sheriff's detectives through surveillance video were able to identify a suspect vehicle which belonged to 33-year-old Jerrid Joseph Powell, authorities said. They put out an alert to other law enforcement agencies to be on the lookout for the car, and on Wednesday night, officers with the Beverly Hills Police Department spotted Powell's vehicle and arrested him after a traffic stop.
By Friday night, LAPD detectives realized Powell was driving the same car as the one they were looking for in the murders of the homeless men. A ballistics check of the gun in Powell's vehicle confirmed it was used in all four murders, Moore said.
Officials from LAPD and the sheriff's office announced the arrest at a press conference Saturday.
"I am grateful that this suspect in this case is in custody and will be held accountable for his actions," Moore said.
LA County District Attorney George Gascón credited cops for quickly apprehending the suspect, therefore stopping further violence.
"The actions of law enforcement undoubtedly saved lives this week," he said.
Authorities are investigating whether Powell, a convicted felon, may have been involved in other killings. He's at the Los Angeles County Jail on a $2.1 million bond.
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