Convicted 'Riverside Prostitute Killer' accused of fatally stabbing, strangling teen mother in 1986
08/13/2024 3:36 pm PDT
PASADENA, Calif. (TCN) -- Investigators recently identified a convicted serial killer as the primary suspect in the fatal stabbing and strangulation of a 19-year-old prostitute whose remains were found on a road in 1986.
In a press conference held on Aug. 13 by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, Lt. Patricia Thomas said on Feb. 22, 1986, South Pasadena Police officers responded to a report of a woman lying on the street. When officers arrived, they found her wearing a nightgown and unresponsive with stab wounds The victim was pronounced dead at the scene and listed as a Jane Doe.
Homicide detectives processed the scene and collected evidence. An autopsy later revealed Jane Doe died from stab wounds and strangulation.
On Feb. 25, 1986, an individual reportedly called authorities after reading a story about a female killed in Pasadena, and he was worried it might have been his roommate. According to Thomas, the reporting party identified the victim as 19-year-old Cathy Small, an alleged prostitute and mother of two who had been living with the individual for a few months in Lake Elsinore.
Further investigation revealed the night before she was found, Small allegedly left her home after a man named Bill picked her up and offered to give her $50 to drive to Los Angeles. Small’s roommate never heard from her again, and the case remained unsolved for decades.
In October 2019, Thomas said investigators reached out regarding a natural death investigation in Pasadena. A 63-year-old man was reportedly discovered deceased on his living room couch. Authorities found photos of women who had been assaulted and held against their will inside his home. According to the sheriff’s department, officials also located a newspaper article regarding Small’s death. Investigators searched the residence, which was across from where Small was found dead, and they collected DNA for testing. However, the DNA did not match the DNA found on Small.
The natural death investigation led authorities to obtain the case file for Small. In August 2020, the sheriff’s department submitted DNA from Small for further testing, and it revealed the presence of two men, William Suff and an unknown male.
According to the sheriff’s department, Suff, who is also known as the "Riverside Prostitute Killer" and the "Lake Elsinore Killer," was convicted in 1995 for the slayings of 12 women in Riverside County and was sentenced to death. Suff was also convicted in 1974 for the murder of his 2-month-old daughter in Texas and sentenced to 70 years in prison. He had reportedly been paroled to California in 1984.
According to Thomas, Suff was transported to Los Angeles County, where investigators interviewed him for two days over seven hours. He reportedly said that in 1986, he was living in Riverside County and working at a computer repair shop. Small allegedly went into his place of work and gave Suff her phone number. Suff told investigators he called Small and asked her to go with him to pick up his boss. Suff allegedly picked her up and they got into an argument in Pasadena. Thomas reportedly said he became upset after Small knocked off his glasses, and he stabbed her multiple times before pushing her out of the car and driving away.
MORE:
