We've learned a bit more information about suspected serial killer Wesley Brownlee since his arrest on Saturday, and it appears that several of his victims were killed within feet of either his home or the homes of relatives in Stockton.
Brownlee was taken into custody early Saturday after police had been following him for an unknown period of time. Stockton police say they homed in on Brownlee thanks to a tip, and they were surveilling his activities Friday night into Saturday morning, when they say he appeared to be actively "hunting" for a new victim.
Now we are learning that of his six alleged victims in Stockton, five of whom were killed and one female victim who survived, none were very far from residences associated with either Brownlee himself or his relatives.
ABC10 spoke with one alarmed neighbor who lives in the apartment complex where Brownlee lives, who says he now realizes that he has "locked eyes" with him on more than one occasion as he passed by. And one of Brownlee's alleged victims, 21-year-old Jonathan Hernandez Rodriguez, was shot in the parking lot of the complex, the Meridian Pointe Apartments, on August 30.
"It’s kind of crazy knowing it was that close," neighbor Jesse Evango tells ABC 10. Evango adds, "“I didn’t really interact with him that much, just see him walk past while I was outside sitting here on my porch. He didn’t say anything to me really, just walked by and did a head nod and just kept going."
Per ABC 10, the surveillance footage of a figure seen from behind that was widely circulated last week was taken at the Pacific Pointe Apartments, which is an address listed for one of Brownlee's relatives. That complex is just a few hundred feet from Manchester Avenue, where Brownlee allegedly killed 52-year-old Juan Cruz on September 21.
Three of the victims were killed within feet of one of these addresses associated with Brownlee, and all five of the men who were killed were within two miles of these addresses.
Stockton's mayor, Kevin Lincoln, spoke to reporters on Sunday morning and said that he shed a few tears of relief after hearing of Brownlee's arrest. "The city was able to sleep a little bit better last night,” Lincoln said, per KARE. “No resident of this city should have to walk around town looking over their shoulder in fear.”
Brownlee has a criminal record that includes several arrests and a DUI, and the Chronicle reported Monday that he has two felony drug arrests in Alameda County from two decades ago for which he served time.
Police in Stockton say they received about 100 tips per day after opening their tip line in the case, and one or multiple tips led directly to Brownlee's arrest. As KCRA reports, police have not determined whether the $125,000 in reward money will be split between multiple individuals.
Previously: Police: Serial Killer Suspect Arrested In Stockton While Out 'Hunting' For New Victim
Photo: Google Street View