Social media rumors erupt after 3 bodies found in Houston Bayou, experts say rumors are false
Authorities recovered three bodies in local bayous this week, and in September, as ABC13 reported, police recovered five bodies in less than a week.
Today, the question is turning again on social networks: is there a serial killer? Experts say the answer is no.
However, some people tell ABC13 it’s hard to convince yourself otherwise.
“The calculations are not calculations, I think there is a serial killer,” said Juan Sandoval, visiting Houston. “I’m getting the Nevada ‘for you’ page now, and even in Nevada they’re talking about Buffalo Bayou, so it’s so bad that it’s reaching another state, across state lines.”
His friend, who lives in Houston, said he still thinks someone is responsible.
“There has to be someone there, right? Because it’s ridiculous that so many people are dying in the bayou, I think it’s a shame they didn’t find the person,” Erick Cortez said.
According to our partners at the Houston Chronicle, last year authorities recovered 35 bodies from the bayous, and so far this year that number is close to around 34.
“For us as an agency, rumors create fear and anxiety in our communities,” Houston Police Chief Noe Diaz said at a September news conference.
While experts understand the concern, they said earlier this year that people shouldn’t worry. There is no evidence that any one person is responsible for these deaths. Instead, each case, although tragic, has its own set of circumstances that point to other causes of death.
“Because a lot of times people think, ‘Oh, they’re in the bayou, they’re dumping the body to get rid of the evidence,’ because that’s what we see on these shows, that the water is going to wash away the evidence, people could have had an accident, people could have done this to each other, people could have been drunk,” said Krista Gehring, a criminal justice professor at the University of Houston.
Criminal justice professor Dr. Krista Gehring and retired HPD Capt. Greg Fremin say it’s important not to jump to conclusions and to be vigilant.
“I tell the citizens of Houston that we have a relatively safe city for the most part, but it’s like any other big city, there’s crime, you have to be vigilant, have situational awareness of what’s going on, but it’s nothing to worry about,” said retired Houston Police Capt. Greg Fremin.
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