Serial killer could be operating in Niagara Falls area, police say

A serial killer could be responsible for murdering and dismembering two women nearly three years apart near Niagara Falls, police said.

A local resident found the torso of Terri Lynn Bills, 46, inside an abandoned home on Willow Avenue on June 16 — nearly three years after the dismembered remains of Loretta Jo Gates, 30, were found in September 2012 in both the Niagara River and Hyde Park, Fox News reported.

The two women were related through marriage and may have been killed by the same person, Niagara Falls police said.

Authorities said Tuesday that 90 law enforcement officers from local, state and federal agencies were dispatched in an extensive manhunt for the suspect in Bills’ killing.

Police collected items from DNA to surveillance video in their canvassing effort, which authorities described as “the largest mission of its kind in the history of Niagara Falls,” Fox News reported.

“In everyone’s estimation, today’s efforts were a great success,” said Niagara Falls Police Detective Capt. Kelly Rizzo, the Niagara Gazette reported. “A lot of very important information was gathered that will be instrumental in bringing this investigation to a successful conclusion.

“We are obviously pursuing the possibility of these heinous crimes being committed by the same person or people,” he added. “But we cannot overlook the fact that these two crimes may have been committed by separate individuals.”