Responding officers discovered the body of 50-year-old Gerald Cavanaugh, the first of the killer’s five known victims. 27, 1974, reporting a body found near Ocean Beach in San Francisco. Police on Wednesday also announced a reward of $100,000 for information leading to the arrest of the killer and released audio of an anonymous call made to police on Jan. The interview came just over a year before Milk, the first openly gay man elected to public office in the U.S., was assassinated. “I respect the pressure society has put on them.” “I can understand their position,” he said. The Associated Press interviewed gay rights advocate Harvey Milk at the time about the victims’ refusal to testify. I can’t think of a more disarming ploy to gain someone’s trust.”Īn Associated Press story from 1977 quotes police as saying the suspect at the time could not be charged because three survivors, including a “well-known entertainer” and a diplomat, were reluctant to “come out of the closet” to testify against him. “Imagine, you’re out at a club having a drink, and someone hands you a sketch they’ve done of you. “Even now, the story gives me chills,” said prominent gay activist Cleve Jones, who recalls how the string of killings terrified the gay community. Another stabbing victim was found in Golden Gate Park. The bodies of four men were found along the beach. He usually sketched them before they would have sex then he would stab them. The killer targeted white men he met at after-hours gay clubs and restaurants in San Francisco. His name was not released, and authorities declined to say whether he resembled the man in the sketches. McEachern said police had interviewed the man since returning to the case and that he remained a person of interest.

Serial killer images police sketch