A serial killer in Columbus? What police have to say about social media speculation

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – Police worked Tuesday to dispel social media speculation that a serial killer is on the loose in Columbus.

After three women were found dead Saturday with gunshot wounds in a South Side home, posts quickly started circulating on social media that a serial killer was at large.

A spokesperson with Columbus police told NBC4 Tuesday morning they could not provide an update on the triple homicide, but did say the division is not “investigating any active serial killers” in its jurisdiction.

During the afternoon, Deputy Chief Smith Weir held a news conference specifically to address the speculation.

"We've been made aware over the past several days that there had been some rumors circulating on social media that some of the incidents are connected to a serial killer," Weir said. "I can tell you definitively that that is not the case."

Another false post is also spreading in connection to serial killer speculation, featuring a photo of a bald man, stating he is going around the city, knocking on doors and claiming to be homeless then attacking people. This post is circulating in multiple states. 

The FBI defines a serial killer as someone who kills three or more people in separate events over a "significant" period of time.

Weir said police are investigating a possible connection between the triple homicide and a fatal shooting Tuesday on the South Side. Haikiem Graham, 39, has been arrested in that case, in which Darrell Hambrick, 45, was fatally shot. Records show that Hambrick was a former tenant of the home where the triple homicide took place.

On Monday, police identified the victims of the triple homicide as Sierra Muse, 34, Dawn Clover, 49, and Tiffany Parrish, 36. Parrish was registered at the address where the homicide took place. A nearby resident told NBC4 neighbors have had an issue with the house, located on the 1300 block of South Ohio Avenue, for years, due to a stream of people coming and going at the residence.

“I texted the owner and I told her what I threatened to do was to go down to city hall at one of the city council meetings and put it on blocks because somebody has the wherewithal to address the situation,” said Wendell Hancock, a neighbor of the victims.

A friend of the homicide victims discovered the women suffering from gunshot wounds after going to check on them, then called police.  All three women were pronounced dead at the scene at 4 p.m. on Saturday. Investigators have yet to publicly announce a suspect. 

“We want nothing more to find out who did this,” Parrish's aunt Kellie Argyle said. “They killed three people. Like, what kind of person could they be? They don't need to be out there because I mean, they could kill again."

NBC4's Anna Hoffman contributed to this story.