A lawsuit filed in Dallas County claims there are at least six more victims of accused serial killer Billy Chemirmir.
Chemirmir is currently facing charges for the murders of 12 elderly women in Dallas and Collin counties. He’s accuse of either strangling or suffocating elderly victims to steal jewelry and other valuables. Police arrested Chemirmirlast year and announced investigators would review hundreds of unattended death cases for additional potential victims.
The families of six more people say Chemirmir targeted their loved ones who lived the same independent living community in north Dallas.
“Words can’t describe what they’re going through and we’ve had many days where it’s been tough,” said Trey Crawford – attorney for the families and estates of one man and five women who all died in 2016. All six died in about a three month span and lived in the Tradition-Prestonwood Independent Living facility.
Crawford says the families were initially told the deaths were natural, but the families said there were valuables missing from their apartments.
The lawsuit alleges the facility did not live up to its promises of 24 hour a day access control and surveillance cameras throughout the community. It also alleges the facility failed to notify the families and law enforcement that valuables were reported missing in several unattended deaths.
The lawsuit says Joyce Abramowitz’ unit was burglarized in April of 2016. She was found dead three months later. Days later in July, Juanita Purdy was found dead in her home in the same facility, followed by Leah Corken and Margaret White in August. The suit says Solomon Spring and Glenna Day were found dead a few weeks apart in their units in October. All were in their 80’s.
Local
The latest news from around North Texas.
“I think had law enforcement known about the prior instances and the similarities and the missing jewelry at the time, they would have viewed it a lot differently but they were not provided that information,” said Crawford.
Chemirmir has not been charged with crimes in those six cases. The deaths were initially ruled natural.
Wednesday, the Dallas County Medical Examiner said it could not comment on the status of the cause of death investigations. The Dallas County District Attorney’s Office said it could not comment on open or pending cases.
Chemirmir has been charged in the murders of two other people who died at the same facility. A grand jury indicted Chemirmir in the deaths of 85 year old Norma French and 92 year old Doris Gleason, who both died in their homes at Tradition-Prestonwood.
Dallas Police have not responded to NBC 5’s request for information on whether investigators are looking into a connection between Gleason and French’s cases and the six newly alleged victims.
Police have said Chemirmir posed as a maintenance worker or healthcare worker to gain access to elderly people in cases across Dallas and Collin Counties.
Tradition-Prestonwood declined an interview on Wednesday, but sent a written statement denying it withheld information.
Here is the full written statement provided to NBC 5:
The deaths by an alleged serial killer in peoples’ homes and at multiple senior living communities in the DFW Metroplex is a true tragedy.
The Tradition-Prestonwood regards all our residents as family.
The Tradition-Prestonwood relied on the investigations of the Dallas police, its detectives, and other reputable, established governmental entities, including the Dallas County Medical Examiner, the Collin County Medical Examiner, and more. Any death was investigated by Dallas police and the Dallas County Medical Examiner and ruled as attributed to natural causes. Additionally, there were two autopsies which also confirmed death by natural causes.
Those rulings stood for more than 27 months.
The Tradition-Prestonwood has cooperated with all the authorities and will continue to do so. The allegations against Mr. Perlman that he withheld information are absolutely false.
Go here to read the rest of the story from our media partners The Dallas Morning News.
