Suspected California serial killer Wesley Brownlee arrested by police while ‘out hunting’
A man suspected of killing six people in a string of murders in California has been arrested by police while “out hunting” for his next victim.
Wesley Brownlee was driving in the city of Stockton, where five of the murders took place, and was armed with a handgun, when he was stopped by police officers in the early hours of Sunday morning.
Investigators had been tracking the 43-year-old after receiving tips from members of the public.
“Based on tips coming into the department and Stockton Crime Stoppers, we were able to zero in on a possible suspect,” Police Chief Stanley McFadden said.
“Our surveillance team followed this person while he was driving. We watched his patterns and determined, early this morning, he was on a mission to kill.”
Mr McFadden added that Brownlee was detained after engaging in what appeared to be threatening behaviour, including going to parks and dark places, stopping and looking around before driving on.
He was dressed in black, had a mask around his neck, had a gun and “was out hunting”, the police chief said.
A police photo showed the weapon allegedly carried by the suspect, which appeared to be a semi-automatic handgun containing some non-metallic materials.
Brownlee is accused of shooting dead six men and wounding a woman in an 18-month killing spree in the Stockton and Oakland areas.
Stockton Police Chief Stanley McFadden speaks during a news conference
Who were the victims?
Juan Vasquez Serrano, 39, was the first victim to be killed in Oakland on 10 April 2021.
Just six days later, 46-year-old Natasha LaTour was shot in Stockton, but managed to survive after scaring off her attacker by walking towards them.
More than a year later, the killer struck again, shooting dead Paul Yaw, 35, on 8 July, then Salvador Debudey on 11 August, followed by 21-year-old Jonathan Hernandez Rodriguez on 30 August and 52-year-old Juan Cruz on 21 September.
Paul Yaw was the first of the Stockton victims to die. Pic: Greta Bogrow
The most recent victim was 54-year-old Lawrence Lopez, who died on 27 September.
Police believe the same person was responsible for all the shootings, with ballistics tests and video evidence linking the crimes together.
There was a $125,000 (£109,000) reward available for information leading to an arrest.
Lorenzo Lopez, the most recent victim, died on 27 September Pic: Jerry Lopez Family
Police said Brownlee has a criminal history and is believed to have also lived in several cities near Stockton, but they did not give further details.
Investigators have been trying to identify a motive for the attacks, with none of the victims appearing to have little in common.
Some of the victims were homeless, but not all. None were beaten or robbed, and the woman who survived said her attacker didn’t say anything.
Anti-Trump protests took place across America on Saturday, with demonstrators decrying the administration’s immigration crackdown and mass firings at government agencies.
Events ranged from small local marches to a rally in front of the White House and a demonstration at a Massachusetts commemoration of the start of the Revolutionary War 250 years ago.
Thomas Bassford, 80, was at the battle reenactment with his two grandsons, as well as his partner and daughter.
He said: “This is a very perilous time in America for liberty. I wanted the boys to learn about the origins of this country and that sometimes we have to fight for freedom.”
At events across the country, people carried banners with slogans including “Trump fascist regime must go now!”, “No fear, no hate, no ICE in our state,” and “Fight fiercely, Harvard, fight,” referencing the university’s recent refusal to hand over much of its control to the government.
Some signs name-checked Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadorian citizen living in Maryland, who the Justice Department admits was mistakenly deported to his home country.
Read more: Donald Trump’s deportations explained
Pic: AP
People waved US flags, some of them held upside down to signal distress. In San Francisco, hundreds of people spelt out “Impeach & Remove” on a beach, also with an inverted US flag.
People walked through downtown Anchorage in Alaska with handmade signs listing reasons why they were demonstrating, including one that read: “No sign is BIG enough to list ALL of the reasons I’m here!”
Pic: AP
Protests also took place outside Tesla car dealerships against the role Elon Musk ahas played in downsizing the federal government as de facto head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
The protests come just two weeks after similar nationwide demonstrations.
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Organisers are opposing what they call Mr Trump’s civil rights violations and constitutional violations, including efforts to deport scores of immigrants and to scale back the federal government by firing thousands of government workers and effectively shuttering entire agencies.
The Trump administration, among other things, has moved to shutter Social Security Administration field offices, cut funding for government health programs and scale back protections for transgender people.
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