Mexico Tourist City Probes Possible Serial Killer

Authorities in Puerto Vallarta are weighing whether three recent killings of women in the resort city point to a single predator. The latest body was found Thursday on a dirt road near the Parque Las Palmas neighborhood, prompting investigators to compare it with two earlier cases: one woman discovered May 10 near the Rancho El Pirulí lookout and another found days later along the highway to Mismaloya, Mexico News Daily reports. All three victims are believed to be in their early 30s or younger, were left in remote or little-traveled areas, and were partially clothed with multiple tattoos.

The woman found Thursday bore several distinctive tattoos, including a horned female figure and a name on her right forearm; officials are probing whether she is a 22-year-old reported missing from the State of Mexico. Prosecutors have opened homicide and femicide investigations and are reviewing forensic evidence, surveillance footage, and police files to see if the similarities amount to a pattern. Authorities caution it is early in the inquiry and they have not formally labeled the case a serial killing, even as speculation grows among residents and tourists online. The speculation could further injure the city's reputation with tourists following recent cartel violence, per the New York Post.