In a strange and shocking twist, late Thursday night the San Francisco Police Department announced that they believe they have found the people responsible for killing Canadian backpacker Audrey Carey in Golden Gate Park last weekend — and that the same suspects are implicated in another high-profile Bay Area slaying on Monday.

If you haven't already read about Carey, who was found dead near GGP's bison paddock on Saturday morning; and 67-year old Steve Carter, who was found shot to death on a Marin hiking trail Monday night with one hand still on the leash of his dog, those preceding links are your cue to catch up on the bizarre and sad details of their respective deaths.

According to SFPD spokesperson Sergeant Michael Andraychak, there were similarities between the two cases that sparked SF homicide investigators' interest. Most significantly, Andraychak says, "both were shooting homicides that occurred in wooded or park areas." (Though Carey's death was initially described by police as blunt force trauma to the head, upon investigation the San Francisco Medical Examiner's Office determined that she had actually been shot in the skull.)

Wednesday three suspects in Carter's slaying, 23-year-old Morrison Haze Lampley, 24-year-old Sean Michael Angold and 18-year-old Lila Scott Allgood were arrested after the Marin County sheriff’s department used GPS to trace Carter’s 2003 Volkswagen Jetta, which had been stolen near the scene of his death, to just outside a Portland Catholic church soup kitchen, Marin County sheriff’s Lieutenant Doug Pittman says.

In the meantime, SFPD investigators had been working in tandem with Marin County Sheriff's investigators on these two similar crimes. Following the arrests in the Carter case, two SFPD investigators flew to Oregon to talk to the suspects, Andraychak says.

"Audrey Carey's property, linking the suspects to the Golden Gate Park homicide, was found in the suspects' possession when they were taken into custody in Oregon," Andraychak says. They were also still in possession of the gun used to kill Carter when they were nabbed, Pittman says.

According to the Marin County Sheriff's Department, all three suspects, none of whom appear to have a permanent address, will return to Marin to face charges there for Carter's death. They will also face robbery and murder charges in SF for Carey's slaying.

According to the Chron, "Little is known about the suspects, but court records show Lampley was charged in May in San Diego County with the unlawful selling or receiving of a stolen vehicle, a felony, and with stealing a dog, a misdemeanor. He pleaded guilty to the felony charge and was sentenced to 97 days in jail, but was released because he had served that amount while the case was pending."

"All three people seem to be living off the radar," Pittman told ABC7.

"The best way I can describe it? They appear to be lost souls."

Though these arrests have been made, Andraychak says that "this is still an active and ongoing investigation," one of the reasons police have been slow to release additional details on the case (for example, motive). But also, that means that police can still use the public's help. He asks that anyone with information on Carey or Carter's deaths contact SFPD's Anonymous tip line at (415) 575-4444 or to text them a tip at TIP411, just remember to begin your message with "SFPD."

Previously: SFPD Wants To Know If You Recognize Woman Who Was Killed In Golden Gate Park
Noted Tantric Teacher Murdered, Dog Shot On Marin County Trail