A man with a previous conviction for sexual assault has been identified by police as a suspect in the murder of seven women whose bodies were found over the weekend in northwestern Indiana.
Darren Deon Vann was arrested in connection with a woman who was found strangled in Hammond, In. Local authorities have since discovered six other bodies in nearby Gary, In., according to the Chicago Tribune.
The suspect already has a criminal record. He was convicted of first degree assault in September 2009 for attacking a 25-year-old woman in Travis County, Texas.
Vann claimed during the investigation he had killed before, with murders “going back 20 years in the state of Indiana,” according to Hammond Police Chief John Doughty, although he added that Vann’s admission “has yet to be corroborated.”
Chicago law enforcement officials are interested in interviewing the suspect, a police source told the Chicago Tribune. However, it is so far unclear as to whether the suspect was actually connected to any unsolved murders in Chicago.
Vann’s motives remain unknown to investigators, with Doughty admitting that police have “no idea” why he might have committed the murders.
During interrogation, Vann admitted to murdering several women, leading detectives to three bodies in Gary late Saturday night and early Sunday. Three more bodies were found by Sunday night, all in the Gary area.