Bodies Of Three Women Found In Cleveland, Suspect Arrested

East Cleveland, OH — The bodies of three women were found in the past two days on a Cleveland property. All three bodies are of black women and were found in plastic bags.

A 35-year-old man identified by police as Michael Madisonhas been arrested in the case, but he has not yet been charged. East Cleveland Mayor Gary Norton announced the suspect is a registered sex offender and has served time in prison in the past.

The suspect was arrested on Friday after one woman’s body was found in a garage, reports NBC News. Two more bodies were found on Saturday — one in a backyard and another in the basement of a vacant house.

Mayor Norton added that the suspect led them to believe he may have been influenced by Anthony Sowell. Sowell was convicted of killing 11 women and hiding their bodies on his property. He was convicted and sentenced to death. He is currently in prison.

A search for more possible victims will resume on Sunday. The man was arrested after a standoff with police on Friday. Police searched vacant houses in the neighborhood on Saturday, according to The Washington Post.

Police, the FBI, the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation, and the Cuyahoga County Sheriff’s Department all participated in the search. They used trained cadaver dogs in the search through the abandoned houses and yards near where the suspect lived.

All three women’s bodies found so far were found within 250 of the suspect’s residence. It is unclear if Madison indicated to police that there were more bodies hidden in the area.

The news of three women’s bodies discovered in Cleveland comes just two months after three women were found living in captivity in the same city. Their alleged kidnapper and rapist, Ariel Castro, is currently awaiting trial on more than 977 charges related to the kidnappings.

Police added that all three bodies of women found in Cleveland over the weekend were killed in the past six to 10 days.

[Image via ShutterStock]