Serial Killer At Large In Atlanta? Authorities Rebuff Rumors Surrounding Piedmont Park Murder

Social media has been abuzz with rumors claiming that a serial killer may be at large in Atlanta after two women were killed in separate incidents inside different parks in the city. However, police authorities have rebuffed the speculations saying that the murders are not related to each other.

Law enforcement assured that there's no reason to believe that the murders are the works of a serial killer, according to 11Alive.

In the first murder case, the remains of a 40-year-old woman Katherine Janness' and her dog were discovered with multiple stab wounds all over their bodies at around 1 a.m. on July 28 in Piedmont Park in the city’s Midtown neighborhood.

Janness was reportedly taking her dog Bowie for a walk when they both were brutally stabbed to death by an unknown assailant. Their mangled bodies were found near the park entrance by Janness' wife who went to look for Janness as she wasn't attending her calls. Janness lived just a mile away from the park, according to Latin Times.

In the second murder case, an 18-year-old girl named Tori Lang was reportedly found shot to death in Yellow River Park, near Stone Mountain, around dawn on July 28, the same day Janness' body was discovered in Piedmont park. Piedmont Park and Yellow River Park are reportedly about 20 miles away from each other.

The FBI has been called in to assist with the Piedmont Park case along with another suspected murder where a body was found in a wooded area in Norcross, local police confirmed.

Various social media posts that attempt to tie all of the above incidents together, implying that a serial killer is on the loose in the city, have been shared across various platforms by thousands of netizens.

"We did find a body in the woods on Friday night which sparked the Facebook rumors," Norcross Police said in a statement. "The body is not a female and was not mutilated or dismembered in any way."

Meanwhile, Gwinnett County Police Sergeant J.R. Richter reportedly said that there is no common evidence to connect the cases. He added that there is also no reason to believe that a serial killer is operating in the area.

The investigators have not reportedly made any arrests or figured out the motive behind the killings in the cases as of Tuesday, August 3rd, according to Fox News.

The investigators are reportedly planning to conduct an autopsy on Janness’ dog to look for potential DNA evidence of the killer. They believe that the dog fought with the killer to protect her owner before getting stabbed.

A $10,000 reward is reportedly being offered by the investigators for information regarding Janness’ murder. In addition to this, an additional $10,000 reward has been offered by the animal rights group PETA on Tuesday, Aug. 3, to anyone who can help police identify the killer.