Fresh fears Texas serial killer could be on the loose as three more bodies pulled from bayous
SOURCE:Daily Mail
Speculation about a possible serial killer started in late September after officials announced that five dead bodies had been found in Houston bayous over a five-day period.
The latest discoveries bring the number of bodies found in the waterways in 2025 to at least 34, according to KTRK, just one less than last year's total.
Three more bodies were recovered from bayous across Houston this week, with two found Monday and one on Christmas Eve
Houston residents have speculated about a serial killer, which has been shot down by authorities, ever since five dead bodies were found over a five–day period in September
However, the social media rumors have been repeatedly shot down by the city's authorities.
Houston mayor John Whitmire said that 'we do not have any evidence that there is a serial killer loose', as he addressed the media following a string of recoveries in September.
He added that the drownings in the bayous were not a 'new phenomenon' and partially attributed the volume of deaths to homelessness, drugs and alcohol.
'What do you think happens when a homeless person dies from an illness, diabetes or cancer? What do you think his friends and associates do?' Whitmire said.
'They do not take him to a funeral home,' he added. 'Unfortunately, the homeless, when they pass, often end up in the bayou.'
However, some of the bodies found over the last months do not match that description.
Jade Elise McKissic, 20, and Kenneth Cutting Jr., 22, were among the bodies found near the bayous
Raymond Hatten, 30, and Anthony Curry, 35, were also discovered dead in Houston's waterways
Jade McKissic, 20, who studied at the University of Houston, was found in September and is among the unexplained deaths.
McKissic was seen leaving a local bar four days before her death, leaving her cellphone behind and going to a gas station next door to buy a drink, the Houston Police homicide division said.
She then walked towards Brays Bayou, where her body was found on September 15 around 10am.
Houston police said there were no signs of trauma or foul play.
Another high–profile case involves Kenneth Cutting Jr., 22, whose body was found in Buffalo Bayou after he disappeared following a night out in downtown Houston last June.
The cause and manner of the young man's death were undetermined by an autopsy, which found no traces of physical injury or drug use.
Cutting's father said he was not convinced by the Houston mayor's explanations for the possible deaths.
Nearly 200 bodies have been found in Houston's bayous since 2017, according to Harris County Medical Examiner's Office records. Pictured: Police at the scene of another discovery this week
Retired NYPD sergeant Joseph Giacalone told the Daily Mail that the deaths around Houston's bodies of water merited 'further investigation'
'All them people didn't commit suicide or fall into the bayou accidentally and drown,' Kenneth Cutting Sr told Fox News Digital. 'It's ridiculous. There's been so many of them in the last three years.'
Cutting's cousin, Lauren Freeman, pointed out the similarities between his death and McKissic's.
Both left a bar by themselves and did not have their cellphones on them when they were last seen alive.
In 2025, authorities have only publicly confirmed 24 fatalities, according to the Houston Chronicle.
Those bodies were: Douglas Swearingen, 44, found on January 11; Carl Newton, 24, on February 14; Rodolfo Salas Sosa, 56, on March 22; Anthony Azua, 33, on March 30; Juan Garcia Loredo, 69, on March 31; Kenneth Jones, 34, on May 7; George Grays, 54, on May 9; Culcois Racius, 39, on May 9; Anthony Curry, 35, on May 17; Shannon Davis, 14, on May 30; Ernest Armstrong, 62, on June 9; Brent Brown, 28, on June 12; Raymond Hatten, 30, on July 7; Latrecia Amos, 57, on August 21; Jamal Alexander, 31, on August 27; Jade McKissic, 20, on September 15; Rodney Chatman, 43, on September 15; and Michael Rice, 67, on September 20.
Houston authorities have repeatedly denied the possibility of a serial killer, but not everyone is convinced.
'Just the sheer number of cases, the fact that a few of them could be connected, I think that the percentage of something being connected – at least one or two of them – is pretty high,' Joseph Giacalone, a retired NYPD sergeant and criminal justice professor at Penn State Lehigh Valley, previously told the Daily Mail.
He said the bodies found in the bayous were 'worthy of further investigation', as he urged authorities to explore the possibility of 'companion cases, or dare I say, patterns.'
Houston mayor John Whitmire has denied 'evidence that there is a serial killer loose' in the city, as unfounded rumors swirl around social media
Among the deaths, 17 were categorized as murders, while 75 were marked as 'undetermined'.
People between the ages of 30 and 39 accounted for the largest share of bodies recovered, at a quarter of the total.
The leading cause of death was accidental drowning, with 45 cases recorded. Suicide, which accounted for 25 deaths, was the second most common.
About a quarter of the deceased were aged between 30 and 39 years old.
Locals have urged for greater safety measures around Houston's bayous to be enacted so that future deaths can be prevented.
In September, Whitmire pointed to the existing barricades as a strong precaution.
'I don't know of a fail–safe way when bayous are such a part of our lifestyle and our environment,' he said. 'Other than everyone should be smart [and] we should look out for each other.
'But I think when the facts are reported from these instances, you're going to see each one was very unique.'
The Daily Mail reached out to Houston police outside regular working hours for further comment and did not immediately hear back.