Michigan police are investigating five recent killings along the Lansing River Trail that may be connected, suggesting the possibility of a serial killer. The incidents occurred between October 14, 2025, and August 30, 2026, with four out of five victims showing signs of blunt force trauma to their faces. Police have arrested Edward Joseph Smith in connection with one stabbing but have not confirmed his involvement in the other cases. The victims are described as homeless white men who were likely sleeping at the time of attack; all deaths remain under active investigation.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-08,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Lansing Police Department is investigating a possible serial killer responsible for five deaths along the Lansing River Trail over the past year. On October 2, Police Chief Robert Backus told reporters that officers are examining whether these cases might be connected due to similarities such as the victims being homeless and attacks occurring in early morning hours. The identified victims range from age 22 to 70, and four out of five incidents involved "blunt force trauma" with no weapon recovered. Authorities have emphasized active investigations but not confirmed a serial killer, stressing the need for public cooperation.
Written for “Michigan Serial Killer Investigation” on 2026-10-08,
grounded in this article and the 2 other(s) covering the same event.
Authorities in Michigan are investigating a string of five killings that may be connected, police said.
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police → investigate → killings
The Lansing Police department announced in a news conference that the five deaths occurred over the last year with unnerving similarities linking all of them, FOX 2 reported.
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FOX → announce → them
Victims were discovered along the Lansing River Trail, which feeds directly into Michigan State University's campus.
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which → discover → campus
"One question that we’re being asked is, do we have a serial killer in Lansing?
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we → ask → Lansing
What we need the public to know, is we are investigating all of these cases.
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we → need → cases
They are all active investigations, and we are looking at the idea or the possibility that these may be related cases," Lansing Police Chief Rob Backus said at a news conference on Friday, FOX 2 reported.
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FOX → look → Friday
In each of these five cases, investigators said victims may have been attacked overnight.
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victims → say → cases
Four out of five incidents involved some sort of "blunt force trauma to the facial area," Backus said.
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Backus → involve → area
No weapon has been recovered.
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weapon → recover → ?
Timeline of killings
- Oct. 14, 2025 – Gino Chouinard, 54, was found unconscious along the trail.
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Chouinard → find → trail
He died Oct. 27, 2025 and police said his cause of death remains undetermined.
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cause → die → death
- July 9, 2026 – Denis Dunnebacke, 70, was found unresponsive under the Kalamazoo Street bridge.
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Dunnebacke → find → bridge
He died July 16, 2026 with his cause of death undetermined.
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cause → die → death
- July 13, 2026 – Robert Smith, 57, was found suffering from severe head trauma.
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Smith → find → trauma
He died July 17, 2026 and the medical examiner ruled it a blunt force homicide.
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it → die → ?
- Aug. 20, 2026 – Daniel Lusk, 22, was found fatally stabbed under the East Michigan Avenue bridge.
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Lusk → find → bridge
Police said they arrested suspect Edward Joseph Smith, 23, on Sept. 3, in connection to the stabbing.
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they → say → stabbing
- Aug. 30, 2026 – Louis Woodruff, 57, was found under the East Cesar Chavez Avenue bridge with severe facial trauma.
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Woodruff → find → trauma
He died Sept. 1, 2026 with police saying his death was ruled a blunt force homicide.
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death → die → ?
Backus said investigators are exploring whether all five trail deaths are connected to a single killer, possibly the person in custody – but did not confirm he is responsible for all the killings.
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he → say → killings
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Smith has not been named a suspect or charged in the other four cases.
All victims appear to be homeless, White men who were possibly sleeping, reports say.
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reports → send → cases
Police are actively investigating all deaths.
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Police → investigate → deaths
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