A university psychologist has said that he believes there may be a serial killer on the loose in Manchester, after 61 bodies were pulled from a canal in just six years.
While some of the victims are believed to have drowned following nights out, a large number remain unidentified.
In 22 cases, police were unable to identify the gender of the deceased, but insist that there is nothing suspicious about the deaths.
Speaking to the Daily Star, Professor Craig Jackson, head of psychology at Birmingham City University, has said it is possible that a ‘gay slayer’ could be responsible for some of the deaths, describing the body count as ‘alarming’.
He said: ‘It is extremely unlikely that such an alarming number of bodies found in the canals is the result of accidents or suicides.
‘Canals are not popular suicide spots, especially for men. They are, however, popular dumping sites.
‘And water can be a sure way to erase DNA evidence.’
He continued: ‘I think the fact several of these discoveries were made in Manchester’s Gay Village could also be significant.
‘Do we have another “gay slayer” like Colin Ireland on the loose? You couldn’t rule it out’.
The unusually high death toll has sparked frenzied interest in Manchester, with Twitter users coining the hashtag #thepusher, to speculate on the possibility of a murderer plaguing the city’s canals.
The most high profile case of a body being pulled from the water is that of Chris Brahney, a 22-year old barman who went missing after a Stone Roses gig in the city’s Heaton Park.
At the inquest into his death, the coroner was unable to return a verdict about Mr Brahney’s cause of death.
In another mysterious case, Canadian tourist Anthony Muise, 53, was found in a canal in 2010, having suffered a puncture wound to the chest.
Last night, Greater Manchester Police rubbished the possibility of a serial killer.
A spokesman said: ‘GMP is committed to thoroughly investigating each and every unexplained death and approach each one as potentially suspicious in its initial stages.
‘None of our investigations are carried out in isolation and, as we have said publicly before, we have established no link between the various incidents recorded.’
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