A terrifying find unearthed by police a short distance from Taylor Swift’s estate in Rhode Island has increased public concerns that a serial killer might be active in New England.
Following reports of potential remains, police in Westerly, Rhode Island, were sent to Everett Avenue in the Watch Hill neighbourhood on Wednesday morning (May 14). This location is only 0.3 miles from Swift’s opulent mansion.
Officers discovered what looked to be a human leg bone when they arrived, according to Page Six.
The remains were gathered right away and taken to the Medical Examiner’s Office in Rhode Island for additional examination. The inquiry is presently being led by the Detective Division of the Westerly Police Department.
The disturbing discovery is only the most recent in a disturbing string of deaths and human remains discovered in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Connecticut in recent months, which has many worried that a serial killer who may target women is still at large.
Source: Wikipedia
As the cops came, Taylor Day, a resident of Westerly, just so happened to be passing by.
“It’s just something very out of the ordinary for Westerly,” she told NBC10. “I would never expect anything like that — especially not in Watch Hill.”
Though police have stated no foul play is suspected, Day was unconvinced. “Finding a leg is very suspicious,” she said, adding, “My mind immediately went to all the theories that are being thrown around. I’m more aware of my surroundings. I don’t go places that are kind of dim or where I could be alone. Just trying to stay out in public and be vigilant.”
Her worries are indicative of a general uneasiness throughout New England.
Since the body of 35-year-old Paige Aliehs Fannon was recovered from the Norwalk River on March 6, the leg bone is thought to be the thirteenth gruesome find. Two weeks later, on March 20, Denise Leary, 59, was discovered dead in a forested area behind Rock Creek Road. The 56-year-old Michele Romano was then found in a different forested location off Plainfield Pike on March 25.
The most recent was the discovery of 39-year-old Stephan Myers’ body on April 30 behind Bristol Plymouth High School in Taunton, Massachusetts. Myers died from a gunshot wound at a nearby construction site, according to the authorities. They attested to his lack of affiliation with the school.
Residents’ anxiety and conjecture have increased as more bodies have been found in Plymouth, Framingham, Killingly, New Haven, and Foster; some of them are decomposing, while others were found inside a suitcase.
Police continue to deny allegations of a serial killer in spite of the growing pattern.
“While online conversations around these incidents continue to grow, we urge the public to be mindful of the role that social media can play in spreading fear or misinformation,” Hampden District Attorney Anthony D. Gulluni said in a previous statement. “Unverified claims can compromise active investigations and contribute to a sense of chaos that does not reflect the full picture.”
And Connecticut State Police have maintained: “There is no information at this time suggesting any connection to similar remains discoveries, and there is also no known threat to the public.”
Former Washington D.C. homicide detective Ted Williams said investigators are still in the early stages of determining whether the cases are linked. “They are primarily at the preliminary stages of gathering evidence at each one of these death scenes to try to establish a nexus between those scenes and a single individual or individuals,” he explained to Fox News.
Peter Valentin, Chair of the Forensic Science Department at the University of New Haven, noted that the details remain “curious,” particularly in some of the more recent cases. “I am curious about what was recovered around the body,” he said. “There might have been paraphernalia suggestive of activity that is deemphasizing homicide (perhaps incorrectly) to the investigators.”
The worry has only increased due to social media. Google searches for “New England serial killer” increased in April, while a Facebook group called “New England Serial Killer” gained over 65,000 members before being renamed.
Still, law enforcement officials urge caution. “Internet rumors are just that,” said Springfield Police Department spokesperson Ryan Walsh. Former FBI instructor Scott Duffey echoed the sentiment: “Don’t let your guard down. Be aware of your surroundings… someone looking to take advantage of a vulnerable situation will do so.”
Even as the public struggles with anxiety and uncertainty, officials emphasise that each case should be treated carefully and impartially as autopsies and investigations proceed.
