The CraigsList Hotel Killer Investigation
The Murder of Julissa Brisman
Boston Mass
Julissa Brisman was a beautiful New York model and aspiring actress who fought for her life, in an upscale Marriott Copley Place hotel room, and lost after her attacker shot her to death and then fled the scene.
Brisman, 26, weighed about 100 pounds and was no match for the shooter, now dubbed The CraigsList Hotel Killer.
Brisman was found with multiple gunshot wounds to the torso. She was rushed to Boston Medical Center where she was pronounced dead.
Police are looking for a clean-cut blonde man, likely in his 20s, who was captured on multiple surveillance cameras near the time Brisman was murdered. He's approximately 6-feet tall and weighs about 200 pounds.
Police don't know if Brisman was selling sex or just rubdowns in the hotel room. Her massage table was in the room.
"What we know is that Miss Brisman was advertising masseuse services on CraigsList," said Boston police spokeswoman Elaine Driscoll.
Pals said Brisman was an aspiring actress who did a public service ad for cell phone safety. She also worked on music videos and other photo shoots, gave her mom part of her earnings and bought school books for her 14-year-old sister.
Photographer Mark Pines, who knew Brisman for six years, insisted she was offering "straight massage, that's all. It was all legit."
Another woman, who advertised massage services on CraigsList, may have been a crime victim of the suspect.
The 20-year-old woman, from Las Vegas, was staying at the Westin Copley Hotel when she was attacked by her client.
Police say a woman held at gunpoint in an attempted robbery at a Rhode Island hotel tipped them off to a possible link to the CraigsList killer in Boston by suggesting the crimes were similar.
The 26-year-old woman, who also advertised services on CraigsList, claims she was bound with a cord and held at gunpoint at the Holiday Inn Express in Warwick at about 11:15 p.m. Thursday.
"The victim did make some indication that this is like what happened in Boston," said Warwick police Col. Stephen McCartney. "So that raised our antennas."
The suspect ran off when the woman's husband returned to the room.
The husband briefly chased the man, but then returned to check on his wife, police said.
They think the same man robbed a woman at gunpoint at the Westin Hotel on Huntington Ave. April 10.
Read full Resource details and more research...
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2009/04/17/2009-04-
http://wbztv.com/local/craigslist.killer.holiday.2.987096.html
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,516695,00.html
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17852_3-10222415-71.html
http://www.bostonherald.com/news/regional/view.bg?articleid=1166270
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/story?id=7358206&page=1
http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/30262864/
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48 HOURS MYSTERY ON CRAIGSLITS KILLER
09-04-09
Possible June 1010 Trial Date
Pretrial procedures in the case of alleged “Craigslist killer” and former Boston University School of Medicine student Philip Markoff are in still in progress, the prosecution said.
“The investigation remains ongoing with the testing and discovery process continuing,” Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office Jake Wark spokesman said. “Our obligation is to provide defense council with discovery and evidence and we have every intention of following through that obligation.”
Markoff will not appear at the next pretrial hearing on Sept. 24 because his attorney waived his right to be present, Wark said.
Markoff was arrested on April 20 on suspicion of the murder of 25-year-old New York woman Julissa Brisman, a masseuse who advertised erotic services on Craigslist. Her body was found with multiple gunshot wounds on April 14 at the Boston Marriott Copley Place Hotel.
Suffolk County Grand Jury indicted Markoff in June on charges of the first-degree murder of Brisman and armed robbery and kidnapping of 29-year-old prostitute Trisha Leffler on April 10. Markoff is also being accused of unlawful possession of weapons and attempted robbery on April 16 of a prostitute in a Warwick, R.I. hotel.
He allegedly met all three women through Craigslist.
At his initial arraignment, Markoff pled not guilty to all charges.
Markoff’s next pretrial hearings are set to take place in December and May 2010. His trial is scheduled to begin in June 2010.
Read complete article details here...
http://www.dailyfreepress.com/markoff-case-progresses-toward-june-2010-trial-1.1864918
08-12-09
Pretrial Hearing
The period of discovery for the alleged “Craigslist killer” case is going well, the prosecution said in a pretrial hearing Tuesday at the Suffolk County Superior Court.
The forensic testing for the case in which Philip Markoff, 23, stands accused of the April 14 murder of 25-year-old Julissa Brisman and the April 10 armed robbery and kidnapping of 29-year-old Trisa Leffler, is mostly complete, Suffolk County Assistant District Attorney Edmond Zabin said.
“We’re in good shape in terms of discovery,” he said.
Markoff was not present at this hearing, nor will he be present at the next pretrial date on Sept. 24, at Judge Frank Gaziano’s request.
In addition to the charges against him for Brisman and Leffler, Markoff also has a warrant seeking assault and weapon charges against him in Rhode Island for holding up a prostitute at gunpoint in a Holiday Inn Express Hotel and Suites. Markoff allegedly met all three of these women through Criagslist.
Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office spokesman Jake Wark said there is usually a series of intermediary dates before a case is arraigned, and there will most likely be more for the Markoff case.
The hearing was one of several that took place Tuesday as part of the Homicide Session, a proceeding focusing purely on murder and manslaughter cases
Today's resource pick... Check it out!
by Vivian Ho
http://www.dailyfreepress.com/period-of-discovery-for-markoff-case-on-track-prosecution-says-1.1815270
05-29-09
New Charges For CraigsList Killer
Philip Markoff is now charged with pulling a gun on a woman in a Warwick hotel last month.
Police said an exotic dancer from Las Vegas claims she was bound with cord and held at gunpoint by a man she met on the website.
The woman told authorities the man fled when her husband came up to the room.
Markoff was arrested a few days later and charged with the killing at a Boston hotel of a massage therapist who also advertised on craigslist.
He's also been charged in the robbery of another massage therapist at another Boston hotel.
Read resource details...
http://www.14wfie.com/Global/story.asp?S=10302220&nav=3w6o
05-15-09
Craigslist Drops Erotic Ads
After pressure from Cook County Sheriff, Tom Dart, filed a lawsuit alleging Craigslist not only allows the solicitation of prostitution but had created what he called the "largest source of prostitution in America.". Craigslist, finally, caved and said they'd cooperate.
The old category will be replaced with one listing "adult services," and a fee will be charged, the company said. Employees will monitor every posting before it appears online, a precaution the site has been criticized for refusing to take in the past.
"Craigslist's erotic services section had become nothing more than an Internet brothel," Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan said. The erotic services ads will expire in seven days, the Web site and Madigan's office said.
Madigan said authorities will closely monitor the ads that go up on the new section.
The online advertising site has also been used as a place for pimps to tout their wares. Last November, a 24-year-old man was arrested for forcing young girls and women into prostitution in New York City and Long Island. Prosecutors said he advertised the services of women between the ages of 15 and 20.
"These measures are a solid next step, not a complete solution. Closing the erotic services section, a blatant Internet brothel, should lead to other blocking and screening measures, and set a model for other sites, if craigslist keeps its word," Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said.
Read resource details...
http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/us_world/Craigslist-Dropping-Erotic-Services-Ads.html
http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2009/05/craigslist_says_it_will_drop_e.html
04-28-09
Philip Markoff went after men too?
Listen to the rest of the story here...
04-26-09
Markoff Now Tied to RI Robbery
Philip Markoff's fingerprints have now been found on the wall of a room at the Holiday Inn Express in Warwick, Rhode Island, where an exotic dancer was assaulted by a man she met through Craigslist. This would confirm a third incident by Markoff, in less than a month.
Text messages have been reported coming from Markoff while he was at the hotel.
Markoff hasn't been charged in the RI robbery, yet, but Rhode Island Attorney General Patrick Lynch said in a statement Wednesday that Warwick police had developed "promising information" about the April 16 robbery.
Read resource details...
http://www.thebostonchannel.com/news/19273324/detail.html
'If there were any clues, he hid them well'
This is a great article from the Boston Globe. It details some of the information about Markoff's personality and gambling obsession.
They called him a "straight edge."
At the state university in Albany, Philip Markoff was known for the same discipline and intensity that had made him an academic star in high school. He logged long hours in labs and the library and carried a heavy course load that allowed him to graduate with honors a year early.
Amid the pressure, friends said, he had just one true release: Poker. All-night games, every weekend, that he took very seriously, indeed.
Read full article here...
http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2009/04/26/
04-25-09
Bullets and Fingerprints Match In Craigslist Murder
Parents Visit Suspect
There's been a preliminary match between the semiautomatic gun found hidden in a hollowed-out copy of the the textbook Gray's Anatomy, and the bullets that killed Julissa Brisman.
Fingerprints found on the plastic restraints and duct tape left at a crime scene matched Markoff's fingerprints.
Mr. Markoff’s family visited him in jail Friday for the first time. His parents, Richard Markoff and Susan Haynes, met with him for nearly two hours at the Nashua Street Jail, where officials said he was on suicide watch.
Soon after Mr. Markoff’s parents left, his brother, John, and his sister-in-law, Deanna, entered for a two-hour visit. The family did not comment.
John Salsberg, Mr. Markoff’s lawyer, told reporters that Mr. Markoff’s parents “remain very concerned about him, but they really ask all of you respect their privacy.”
Monday, Markoff pleaded not guilty to charges of murder, armed robbery and kidnapping. He is also charged with robbing another masseuse, at gunpoint, that he met on Craigslist.
Read resource details...
http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2009/04/24/gun_match_reported_in_markoff_case/
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/25/us/25boston.html?em
http://www.thebostonchannel.com/mostpopular/19268949/detail.html
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_crime/2009/04/24/2009-04
Craigslist founder denies site facilitates prostitution
http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2009/04/report_craigsli.html
04-24-09
Attempted Suicide by Markoff
Pantie Collection Found Craigslist Killer's Home
The accused murder suspect in the CraigsList killings, Philip Markoff, is now on suicide watch, Thursday, after he attempted to hang himself with his shoelaces.
He was quickly moved to a segregated unit at Boston's Nashua St. jail so officers can keep a closer watch on him.
The move was made because "shoelace marks were found on his neck," law enforcement sources said.
Investigators searching Markoff's home found panties belonging to the two victims, hidden in a hollowed-out copy of the the textbook Gray's Anatomy of the Human Body. Along with the panties found in the book was a handgun.
They also claim to have found plastic 'zip-tie' handcuffs, similar to those that are said to have been used during the assault and murder of the masseuse who had been contacted through Craigslist, Julissa Brisman.
Police are trying to find out if there have been other victims and are now fielding calls.
Read resource details...
http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=7398011&page=1
http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=7408505&page=1
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17852_3-10224699-71.html
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_crime/2009/04/23/2009-04-23_suspected_craigslist_killer_philip_markoff_tried_to_hang_himself_in_jail_cell_on.html
Here's an interesting article from one of Philip Markoff's College Classmates.
Morgan Houston describes an encounter with Markoff where he pushed her up against the wall as she struggled to get free of him. A male friend walked by and pulled Markoff away.
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_crime/2009/04/22/2009-04-22_morgan_houston_recalls_close_call_markoff.html
04-21-09
Suspect In Custody
A 22-year-old Boston University college student, Philip Markoff, has been taken into custody as the suspected CraigsList killer.
According to the New Daily News, Markoff, a Boston University student who lives in Quincy, a harbor-side town 10 miles south of Boston, will be arraigned on murder charges Tuesday.
Markoff is a wanna-be doctor without a rap sheet, they think he's preyed on sex workers for awhile. Police are looking for other victims.
Markoff, who was arrested after cops tailed him for several days, will be charged in Boston Municipal Court with the murder of Julissa Brisman.
The slain 26-year-old New Yorker advertised her services on CraigsList and was shot in a posh Boston hotel April 14.
Markoff also will be charged with kidnapping and robbery for an attack four days earlier in another luxury Boston hotel on an erotic dancer who advertised online.
Read resource details...
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_crime/2009/04/20/2009-04-20_massachussetts_police_arrest_suspect_in_craigslist_killer_case.html
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