Serial killer may be responsible for recent string of deaths in Michigan, police say

Serial killer may be responsible for recent string of deaths in Michigan, police say A suspect has been arrested in connection with one of the deaths, and police are still working to determine if he is connected to the other killings - Bookmark Become an Independent member to bookmark this article Already a member? Log in Police are reportedly investigating a possible serial killer operating in Lansing, Michigan. Police Chief Robert Backus told the press during a briefing on October 2 that officers are investigating the possibility that five recent deaths along the Lansing River Trail may be connected. "One question that we are being asked is 'Do we have a serial killer in Lansing?'" Backus said during the briefing. "What we need the public to know is that we are investigating all of these cases. They are all active investigations, and we are looking at the idea or the possibility that these may be related cases." He said police are looking for information, trends, and patterns, and noted that "we have developed some." Backus told the press that one of the connective elements between each of the murders is that the victims were all individuals experiencing homelessness. He said investigators also believe the attacks happened in the dark, early morning hours, according to ABC News. "We believe that our victims in this case were lying down, potentially even sleeping. We don't know, but based on how we found our victims and their surroundings, it would lead us to believe that this could be a pattern," he said. The police chief said that the victims were ages ranging between 22 and 70 years old. One person has been charged in relation to one of the cases, which involved a stabbing, according to Backus. He said the other four cases "involve what appear to be blunt force trauma, traumatic injuries to the facial area," though a weapon has not been identified in those attacks. Police said the first incident occurred on October 14, 2025. Officers responded to a call concerning an injured man and found Gino Chouinard, 54, suffering from injuries to his face. Chouinard died on October 27, according to the department. Backus said the medical examiner's office could not determine a cause of death in Chouinard's case. On July 13, Robert Smith, 57, was found bleeding from his head near the trail. He was hospitalized and died on July 17. The medical examiner's office ruled his cause of death to be homicide. On July 29, 2026, police patrolling the trail found Denis Dunnebacke, 70, unresponsive. He was transported to a hospital in critical condition and died on July 16. No cause of death was determined in his case. On August 20, Daniel Lusk, 22, was found stabbed to death. Police say they have a suspect in that case, Edward Joseph Smith, who has since been arrested. He was arraigned on September 3. On August 30, Louis Woodruff, 57, was found with facial injuries under a bridge near the trail. He was hospitalized but died on September 1. That incident was ruled a homicide. "I've mentioned that we have a suspect in custody for one of these incidents. And so, the question that's been posed to us is, is this a suspect for all the incidents?" Backus said during the briefing. "I want to be very clear that that is a challenging question to answer, but one I have to be very cautious on." [Image text:] Google Maps