Police in Lansing, Michigan, are investigating whether a serial killer is preying on the city’s unhoused community following a string of violent overnight attacks that have left five men dead along a popular greenway.
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that → investigate → greenway
The deaths, which occurred along a single one-mile stretch of the Lansing River Trail over the last year, have put residents on edge and drawn criticism over local safety measures and public notification policies.
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which → occur → measures
Police have already arrested 23-year-old Edward Joseph Smith, charging him with murder in the stabbing death of one victim, while four other men suffered severe head and facial trauma.
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men → arrest → trauma
Each victim was found lying down, and likely sleeping, between midnight and 6 a.m. when the attacks happened, police said.
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police → find → midnight
“Do we have a serial killer in Lansing?” Police Chief Robert Backus said during a recent news conference.
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Backus → have → conference
“We are looking at the idea — or the possibility — that these may be related cases.”
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these → look → idea
Backus said that police believed the crimes could represent a “pattern” targeting unhoused, white men, though officials were treading carefully.
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officials → say → men
“We are looking at every case with the idea of, is this a similar suspect or the same suspect?” Backus said.
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Backus → look → idea
“But we cannot move forward in an investigation thinking that these are all the same person.
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these → move → investigation
We have to look at these on a case-by-case scenario.”
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We → have → scenario
According to court records seen by The New York Times, surveillance footage captured a man leaving the scene, walking through downtown and stopping at a drinking fountain to wash his arm.
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man → accord → arm
Police discovered blood on the fountain, recognized Smith from the footage, and allegedly located a sweatshirt in his tent that matched the suspect's clothing.
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that → discover → clothing
Smith remains in custody without bond and has been referred for a competency evaluation, court records show.
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records → remain → evaluation
Backus highlighted that the stabbing involved a suspect and victim in their 20s, whereas the other four victims were over the age of 50, and pointed out that it was the only incident involving a known weapon.
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it → highlight → weapon
The violence along the trail began on October 14, 2025, when Gino Chouinard, 54, was discovered unconscious with severe facial injuries.
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Chouinard → begin → injuries
He died 13 days later.
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He → die → ?
His uncle, Robert Chouinard, told CNN that his nephew — a former state champion high school wrestler, elite athlete and National Guard veteran who served in Iraq — had been turned away from a shelter the night before after missing the intake window by minutes.
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who → tell → minutes
“They wouldn't let him into the shelter,” Robert Chouinard told CNN.
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Chouinard → let → CNN
“They’re pretty strict with the rules.
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They → ’re → rules
He called his girlfriend and told her he was going to sleep at the river trail.”
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he → call → trail
Robert Chouinard said that his nephew suffered a crushed skull and six broken ribs.
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nephew → say → skull
“Gino was a state champion high school wrestler, an elite athlete, and I checked his knuckles and his knees,” he said.
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he → check → knuckles
So apparently he was sleeping and got it in the back of the head.”
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he → sleep → head
He added: “There’s a serial killer on the loose in my estimation.
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He → add → estimation
Although the medical examiner initially listed the cause of death as undetermined, Backus said that finding was under review.
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finding → list → review
After a months-long gap, four more deaths occurred within two months over the summer.
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deaths → occur → summer
On July 9, 70-year-old Denis Dunnebacke was found unconscious near the Kalamazoo Street Bridge with facial trauma and died days later.
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Dunnebacke → find → trauma
Backus noted that hospital staff suggested the incident could have been medical in nature, though police treated it as suspicious.
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police → note → it
The medical examiner has not issued a ruling.
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examiner → issue → ruling
Four days later, on July 13, 57-year-old Robert Smith was found bleeding from the head on the trail.
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Smith → find → trail
He died at a hospital, and police said his death was declared a homicide.
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death → die → hospital
On August 20, 22-year-old Daniel Lusk was found stabbed to death under a bridge, leading to the murder charge against Edward Joseph Smith.
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Lusk → find → Smith
Ten days after that, on August 30, 57-year-old Louis Woodruff was found with severe facial injuries under another bridge.
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Woodruff → find → bridge
He died on September 1 in a case ruled a homicide by police.
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He → die → police
Public awareness grew in September after The Lansing State Journal reported similarities among four cases, leading police to confirm the fifth.
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Journal → grow → fifth
Community leaders and families criticized the delay, saying police moved too slowly to issue warnings.
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police → criticize → warnings
Dean Lusk, whose 22-year-old son Daniel was killed, told reporters police knew of earlier incidents and “refused to do anything about it.”
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police → kill → it
City Council member Ryan Kost said previous city sweeps of homeless encampments pushed people toward the river trail, leaving a population with “no way to fight back.”
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sweeps → say → way
Backus apologized for failing to release a news statement on one death, citing delayed medical findings and a desire not to cause unnecessary panic.
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Backus → apologize → panic
He said officers were taking the investigation seriously despite limited cameras, few witnesses and delayed autopsies.
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officers → say → cameras
…and 3 more, not listed.
The Aporia
