Texas authorities are searching for a suspected serial killer after linking DNA between two murder scenes six years apart.
The Austin Police Department said they had been investigating the recent murder of Alyssa Ann Rivera when they linked DNA to a previous unsolved case.
Rivera, 34, was found dead inside an abandoned home on June 21, and her death is now linked to the six-year-old case of Alba Jenisse Aviles, authorities said.
Aviles, 28, was found inside a silver Ford sedan in Bastrop County in 2018, just miles from where Rivera was found.
Authorities say it’s not just DNA at the scene that links the two, as both women were strangled and their murders were “sexual in nature.”
Rivera, pictured, was found dead inside an abandoned home on June 21 and investigators traced DNA at the scene to a cold case.
Aviles, 28, was found dead inside the silver Ford sedan in Bastrop County in 2018, seen here, just miles from where Rivera was found.
Investigators also said Aviles’ killer met her at an Austin bar called Club Caribe, just three miles from where Rivera was killed.
Police have also since released a video showing Rivera walking with a “man of interest” just before she was killed.
Austin Police Department Sgt. Nathan Sexton said: ‘A DNA link was found between this case and the April 14, 2018, unsolved murder of Alba Jenisse Aviles.
‘Both victims are believed to have been sexually assaulted; DNA was found at both scenes, as were multiple sources of DNA at both scenes.’
Even with the new DNA evidence, they have been unsuccessful in using a DNA index system to track the person, meaning he has likely not been arrested before.
Sexton added: “Unfortunately, that suspect does not go back into CODIS, what we call the national database, so he’s not in that system.”
According to Sexton, the department and the Bastrop County Sheriff’s Office are working closely to turn DNA into a suspect.
He added: “We’re trying to compare notes and see if there’s anyone who could be involved in both cases or who could have lived here, so it’s going to take quite a bit of research to sort through the data.”
Asked if there were other related killings, he replied: “There could be more.”
Police have also since released a video showing Rivera walking with a “man of interest” just before she was killed.
According to Sexton, the department and the Bastrop County Sheriff’s Office are working closely to turn DNA into a suspect.
Asked if there were other related killings, Sexton said: “There could be more.”
A GoFundMe campaign A fund has since been set up for Rivera’s family, who said in a fundraising post: ‘As many of you know, our daughter, Alyssa Rivera, was found murdered.
‘We still don’t have answers as to how or why. But in the meantime, we need to bury him and we’re asking for help to do that.’
‘Alyssa was a very kind and big-hearted person. And anyone who knew her knew that.
“Please help us give our daughter the burial she deserves. Every little bit helps and is greatly appreciated.”
An anonymous relative also said CBS Austin:We love her so much and we can’t even imagine that this has happened to her.
“If you ever met Alyssa, you would never forget her. She didn’t deserve this. Neither did she and neither did we.”