Austin homicides: APD investigating 5 cases within 2 weeks

AUSTIN, Texas - Austin police are releasing new details about what they said is a disturbing killing from last week. 

It is one of five homicides that have happened in the past two weeks.

Police said the recent string of killings are not connected.

Timeline:

Austin's 29th homicide

A homicide from last week remains a mystery for investigators. Last Wednesday, officers found Francesca Ortiz dead outside a building at the Waters at Bluff Springs apartments in South Austin.

"The female was nude and suffering from obvious blunt force trauma," Austin Police Homicide Detective Israel Pina said.

Detective Pina called the case "disturbing."

"The manner in which the victim was located and the injuries that she received were devastating and kind of shocking to the conscience. It shocked the public's conscience," Det. Pina said.

Investigators said doorbell video showed Ortiz walking around the apartment complex the night before she was found.

"She's knocking on doors. It looks like she's either looking for someone but supposed to meet someone. The problem is we just don't know. We don't think she ever found the person she was looking for in building two," Detective Pina said.

He said it is unclear what happened overnight when she was found the next afternoon, after being attacked in broad daylight, outside building two.

They are looking for who did this.

"This person that did it is a monster, right? We need to get this person out of the street," Det. Pina said.

He is encouraging anyone with information to contact them and for everyone to be on the lookout.

"I could not sit up here and say, 'Hey, there's no threat to the public,' because we just don't know again. We know that the person that did this is a very violent individual. And we don't know if they've done this before. So we're going to keep that open. Just stay aware," Det. Pina said.

Austin's 30th homicide

"This seems to happen every year. There seems to be usually a week or two where there's just quite a few homicides all in the same time period. These are all very different cases," Austin Police Homicide Sgt. Nathan Sexton said.

One of the most recent homicides happened last Tuesday night on South Lamar Boulevard. Police said Roosevelt Hunter went up to a woman and made discriminatory statements to her, then pulled out a knife and threatened to stab her. The woman said she then pulled out her own knife and they stabbed each other.

"It seems to be a very isolated incident," Austin Police Officer Davis Lewis said.

It drew the attention of Congressman Chip Roy, who posted on X, "you should be able to walk on South Lamar without getting stabbed to death."

Austin's 31st homicide

Police said on June 24, just after 11 a.m., officers responded to the 5100 block of Lambs Lane, off Meadow Lake Boulevard and E. William Cannon Drive, in reference to a welfare call. The 911 caller said they hadn't heard from their friend in a week. 

When officers arrived, they found a man with obvious trauma to his body. He was pronounced dead on the scene.

Police said the man was in his 70s. 

Detectives are investigating.

Dig deeper:

Two other homicides during this two-week stretch have already been cleared.

Police arrested two men in connection with the deadly shooting of a mechanic on East Riverside Drive during an alleged robbery attempt.

Also, investigators determined a Southeast Austin couple died in a murder-suicide inside their home on Oltorf Street.

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