Stockton Police Chief Stanley McFadden speaks during a news conference at the Stockton Police Department headquarters about the arrest of suspect Wesley Brownlee in a series of killings in Stockton, Calif. , Saturday, Oct. 15, 2022.
Clifford Oto/The Record via Associated Press Stockton police arrested a man suspected of a killing spree that left six dead and one injured. Authorities arrested 43-year-old Wesley Brownlee at 2 a. m.
Saturday. Stockton’s police chief said authorities stopped Brownlee while he was “on a mission to kill. ” Police in Stockton, California, said they arrested a serial killing suspect early Saturday morning while he was “on a mission to kill.
“Wesley Brownlee, 43, was stopped by police around 2 a. m. and arrested on a homicide charge, Stockton Police Chief Stanley McFadden told reporters at a press conference later that day.
“He was out hunting,” McFadden said, adding that Brownlee had been wearing dark clothing, had a mask around his neck, and was armed when officers approached him. “We are sure we stopped another killing,” McFadden said. McFadden said numerous tips from the public in recent weeks helped authorities zero in on a suspect.
Police then began surveilling Brownlee while he drove, deducing his patterns, McFadden said. He added that a SWAT team also conducted a search of Brownlee’s home on Saturday. Stockton Police Chief Stanley McFadden speaks during a press conference at the Stockton Police Department headquarters in Stockton, Calif.
, on the arrest of suspect Wesley Brownlee in the Stockton serial killings on Saturday, Oct. 15, 2022. Clifford Oto/The Record via Associated PressStockton police announced earlier this month they believed a serial killer was linked to six shooting deaths and a seventh injury in Northern California.
Five of the killings took place between July 8 and September 27, and all were men — most of them ambushed while walking alone. Stockton police told the Associated Press the Northern California killings had no apparent connection to drugs or gangs, and none of the victims were robbed. Rather, the suspect tended to choose his victims at random, typically ones who were alone in dark areas.
The FBI defines serial killings as the murders of two or more people by the same person or persons during separate events (as opposed to mass murder, in which multiple victims are killed during the same event). Authorities said one of the linked killings occurred on April 10, 2021, in Oakland, and another linked shooting injured a Stockton woman on April 16, 2021, but did not kill her. Authorities said they were able to link each of the killings by using ballistics tests and reviewing surveillance footage.
Last month, they released a grainy photo and video showing the suspect from behind, walking through what appeared to be an apartment complex. Authorities then issued a plea to the public for tips. On Saturday, McFadden said Stockton police are still eager for the public’s assistance and urged people to contact investigators if they have more information about Brownlee.
According to ABC10, authorities identified the six male victims as Paul Yaw, 35; Salvador Debudey Jr. , 43; Jonathan Hernandez Rodriguez, 21; Juan Cruz, 52; Lawrence Lopez Sr. , 54; and Juan Vasquez-Serrano, 39.
The woman who survived the April 16, 2021, shooting has not been identified. Read the original article on Insider.
From: insider
URL: https://www.insider.com/stockton-police-arrest-serial-killing-suspect-while-he-was-hunting-2022-10