Rumor About ‘Slasher’ at Mall Called False

An electronic memo that reached at least 3,700 people via a computer bulletin board at Xerox in El Segundo has sent police and merchants scrambling to debunk a rumor that a “slasher” is stalking women shoppers in the Galleria at South Bay.

Galleria general manager Duane Bishop and Redondo Beach Police Lt. John Nelson said there have been no such incidents reported at the Redondo Beach mall, and a Xerox spokesman said a new memo has been issued on the in-house network to counter the report.

Steven Inouye, the employee who authorities said input the memo on the corporation’s computer bulletin board Thursday, did not respond to repeated requests for comment. Nelson said Inouye admitted to police that he issued the memo, explaining that he had heard third-hand about such an incident and felt duty-bound to warn co-workers.

The memo warned of a “sick-o” who “has been approaching women from behind and slashing their face with a knife.”