Reports: Craigslist suspect had items from victims

ByABC News
April 23, 2009, 2:31 AM

— -- A Boston University medical student accused of robbing women who advertised erotic services on Craigslist, killing one of them, had items belonging to both victims in his apartment, a law enforcement official said Wednesday.

Philip Markoff is charged with killing a masseuse at the Marriott Copley Place hotel April 14. He is also charged in the robbery of another woman who he allegedly met at another Boston hotel four days earlier.

A law enforcement official who spoke on the condition of anonymity said police found items belonging to both women in Markoff's apartment in Quincy, south of Boston. The official wasn't authorized to speak about evidence in the investigation.

The official would not confirm a report by ABC News that the items seized by police included the victims' underwear. ABC News said two unidentified law enforcement sources said Markoff appeared to be collecting underwear as "souvenirs" from his alleged victims.

ABC News did not say how Markoff took the underwear, and he has not been accused of sexually assaulting either woman. Prosecutors have said he went through the purse of the first woman he allegedly robbed.

Investigators are looking into gambling as the possible motivation. The law enforcement source said Markoff was a "frequent visitor" to Foxwoods casino in Connecticut.

Markoff, 23, is accused in the death of Julissa Brisman, 26, of New York City, a masseuse who was found dead in the doorway of her hotel room after being bashed in the head and shot three times. He's also accused of robbing and tying up another woman, and police have said there could be more victims.

Foxwoods Resort Casino, in Mashantucket, Conn., has confirmed it is cooperating with authorities investigating Markoff's gambling habits.

Markoff was arrested on Monday on Interstate 95 in Massachusetts as he and his fiancee drove to Foxwoods.

Suffolk District Attorney Daniel Conley said he believes Markoff's original motive was robbery, but he ended up killing Brisman when she fought back.