An Indiana man suspected of murdering seven women, and possibly more, has been identified as Darren Deon Vann, a convicted sex offender from Gary, Indiana, authorities said Monday.
As of Monday Vann, 43, has only been charged with the death of 19-year-old Afrikka Hardy, a sex worker who was found strangled to death in a Motel 6 in Hammond, according to CNN.
Police were able to arrest Vann by tracking him down using a cellphone number provided by a woman who set up the meet between Vann and Hardy. From there, Vann led police on a grisly tour of where he left his other alleged victims.
"He admitted his involvement in the Hammond incident," and led police to several other bodies in Gary, Hammond Police Chief John Doughty told CNN.
The bodies of three women were found in three abandoned buildings in Gary on Saturday. The next day, police found three more bodies.
So far, the women have been identified as 28-year-old Teaira Batey, 36-year-old Christine Williams and 35-year-old Anith Jones, officials told CNN. The rest have not yet been identified.
It is not yet clear when the women died, and all of their deaths have been ruled as homicides, investigators told Fox News. Jones, of Merrillville, was the only one who had been reported missing. The coroner's office told the station Jones died from ligature strangulation.
As the coroner's office works on identifying the remaining bodies, police are bracing themselves for the possibility that Vann has killed more women.
"It is possible the investigation could lead to more victims," Doughty told Fox News.
In 2009, Vann was convicted for sexual assault in Texas and sentenced to five years in prison, court records say, according to CNN. He was scheduled for release in 2013.
Vann told investigators he has been committing crimes in Indiana for at least 20 years, Doughty said. The chief said he doesn't know why Vann chose to cooperate with investigators.
"It was just something he wanted to do. That's all that I can say," Doughty told CNN.
