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RIVERSIDE, Calif. -- A Texas parolee convicted of the beating death of his 2-month-old daughter was charged Tuesday with two of 19 slayings linked to a serial killer who has stalked prostitutes during the past five years.
The Riverside County District Attorney's Office charged William L. Suff, 41, of Colton, Calif., with two counts of murder. His arraignment was continued to Feb. 4.
Detectives said they have evidence linking Suff to two of the most recent slayings, those of Catherine McDonald, 30, and Eleanore Ojeda Casares, 39, both of Riverside. McDonald's body was discovered Sept. 13, 1991. Casares, the most recent victim, was found dead in a Riverside orange grove Dec. 23, 1991.
'There is strong evidence linking Mr. Suff to these two homicides,' said Sheriff Cois Byrd.
The arrest was announced at a packed news conference.Curious onlookers and family members of some of the slain women listened as authorities overseeing the 14-member task force investigating the homcides declined to discuss the case in detail, citing the on-going investigation.
Jose Zamora Jr., brother of victim No. 18, Delliah Zamora, sat with his mother, clutching a wood-framed photograph of his sister, as he listened to the sheriff announce charges in only two of the 19 cases.
'It's good news for some of the families,' he said.
'Now they can rest and get on with their lives. But until my sister's murderer is caught, I and my family cannot.'
Riverside police arrested Suff Thursday night following a routine traffic stop. Lt. Al Heard said Suff made an illegal U-turn after he allegedly failed to make contact with a prostitute.
Suff's driver's license had either been suspended or revoked, and officers found 'registration problems,' with his van.
The van was impounded, and police found several items 'of a suspicious nature,' Heard said. The detective would not elaborate on what those items were, but he did say officers were alarmed enough to immediately contact the task force.
On Friday, police obtained warrants for Suff's vehicle and home and spent 16 hours going through the suspect's apartment. Heard said more items were recovered from the apartment.
The detective would not comment on reports that Suff had confessed to some of the crimes, but he did say Suff was being 'cooperative.'
'They are feeling pretty good right now,' Heard said of the investigators.'They know there's a lot of work to be done, but now there's a light at the end of the tunnel where there wasn't before.'
The slayings have rattled the calm of the Riverside County area, where many families have fled to in an attempt to escape urban crime.
The bodies of the victims -- some stabbed, some strangled -- were dumped along freeways, on hillsides and in alleys. Many of the bodies were nude.
The victims have all been women who were prostitutes or drug users or both.
Seven victims were found in Lake Elsinore, four in Riverside. The rest were found scattered throughout the western reaches of Riverside County east of Los Angeles. Suff is a former resident of the area.
Detectives spent hundreds of hours investigating the killings since the first victim linked to the string of slayings, Michelle Gutierrez, 26, was found dead in October, 1986.
Suff was hired by Riverside County in 1986 as a stock clerk. He worked out of a county warehouse, storing supplies, filling orders for county departments and making occasional deliveries, said Mark Seiler, assistant county purchasing agent.
A former Air Force medic in Fort Worth, Texas, Suff was discharged after 15 months of service. He was convicted at age 23 of beating to death his 2-month-old daughter, Dijanet, in 1974. Suff's wife was also convicted and the two were sentenced to 70 years in prison.
Teryl Suff's sentence was later overturned, but the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals refused to do the same for Suff, saying the trial record showed 'an appalling history of abuse of the dead girl and her brother.'
During the trial, a Tarrant County medical examiner testified that Dijanet had 13 broken ribs and a broken wrist at the time of her death. Her body showed dozens of bruises and her foot had been burned, probably by a cigarette, he said.
Suff entered prison in June 1974 and was paroled nine years and nine months later.