Mar 19, 2008, 3:46 GMT
Hong Kong - Police in Hong Kong on Wednesday were seeking a second killer in the deaths of four prostitutes in the space of 72 hours, a day after arresting a suspect in the first three killings.
A solo serial killer was initially believed to be responsible for the four killings between Saturday and Monday, which sparked panic among the city's prostitutes.
However, a police spokesman said Wednesday that the fourth murder could not have been carried out by the 24-year-old Pakistani man arrested Tuesday in connection with the first three killings. Inquiries revealed he was outside Hong Kong when the fourth victim died.
The Pakistani suspect was arrested as he arrived back in Hong Kong by ferry early Tuesday from the neighboring gambling resort of Macau, a police spokesman said.
Two mobile phones believed to have belonged to two of the victims were found on the suspect when he was arrested, said police, who believe the motive for the killings might have been simple robbery.
A manhunt was launched across the city after the bodies of four prostitutes were found in the flats where they entertained their clients.
The first victim, a 35-year-old prostitute, was found Saturday strangled with a shower hose in the bathroom of her home in the city's Yuen Long district near its border with mainland China.
On Sunday morning, a 30-year-old prostitute died in hospital after being found unconscious in her flat in nearby Tai Po. A third victim, 35, was found in her flat Monday morning, also in Tai Po.
The fourth victim, a 27-year-old prostitute, was found dead in the city's North Point district hours later on Monday afternoon. She is believed to have been died on Sunday when the suspect was in Macau.
Prostitutes in the city of 6.9 million said they now believe a copycat killer might be at large and have called for greater police protection in case the killer strikes again.
The Hong Kong killings are strikingly similar to the 2006 British case of the 'Suffolk Strangler' when the bodies of five prostitutes were found in the space of 10 days.
Forklift driver Steve Wright, 49, described at the time as one of the fastest serial killers of all time, was found guilty of the murders and jailed for life last month.
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