Hong Kong - A 24-year-old Pakistani man was charged
Wednesday with murdering three Hong Kong prostitutes over the space
of just three days.
Meanwhile, a hunt was continuing for a 'copycat killer' believed
to have taken advantage of the murdering spree to strangle to death a
fourth prostitute in another part of the city.
The Pakistani suspect, who has not been named, was due to appear
in a magistrates court in the city later Wednesday to be charged with
three of the four murders, a police spokesman said.
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, police said the fourth murder could not have been carried
out by the 24-year-old suspect who was outside Hong Kong when the
fourth victim died.
The Pakistani, a Hong Kong resident, was arrested as he arrived
back in Hong Kong by ferry early Tuesday from the neighboring
gambling resort of Macau.
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.
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 fear a copycat killer might
be at large - something police say they cannot rule out - and have
called for greater police protection.
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