3 Deaths Believed Serial Killings; Total Up to 16

A woman found dead in a Corona alley last week and two 1986 deaths have been added to a list of 13 other slayings which are believed to be serial killings, officials said Tuesday.

A Riverside County Sheriff’s Department task force investigating the killings of prostitutes and drug users determined that the death of Kelly Marie Hammond, 27, of Rubidoux was linked to the series of slayings.

The task force also added two other victims, whose bodies were discovered in 1986, to the list Monday.

The connections were made after a computer search of unsolved killings in Riverside County over the past several years.

“We feel there’s enough evidence available to indicate that we’re looking at a serial killer-type incident,” Sheriff’s Capt. Bill Reynolds said of the pattern of deaths.

He declined to discuss the evidence supporting that belief, saying to do so might jeopardize the investigation. He also said it is uncertain if one or more killers is responsible, or if all 16 killings are definitely linked.

Reynolds expressed confidence the case would be solved, despite its complexity and the time elapsed.

“Every day we get closer, just based on the resources we’re committing,” Reynolds said. “Every day we make progress.”

The 1986 victims added to the list were Michelle Gutierrez, 26, whose body was found in an industrial area of Rubidoux on Oct. 29 of that year, and Charlotte Palmer, 25, whose body was found on Dec. 18, 1986, near California 74 near Perris.

Investigators previously had found similarities in the cases of nine women whose bodies were found in and around Lake Elsinore, three women whose bodies were found in Riverside and one woman whose body was found in Highgrove, outside Riverside city limits.

An autopsy was conducted on Hammond over the weekend but the cause of death will not be released, Reynolds said.

Hammond had a history of drug and prostitution arrests dating to at least 1981.