Rachel Morin murder: Sheriff investigating believes suspect could be a serial killer

• Morin’s body was discovered the day after she disappeared when she set out on August 5 for a hike in Bel Air, Maryland
• The sheriff investigating the brutal murder believes the suspect – also tied to a March home invasion and rape of a girl in Los Angeles – could be a serial killer
• ‘Serial killers all start somewhere. What he did in Los Angeles was certainly, I believe, in that direction,’ said Harford County Sheriff Jeff Gahler 

The sheriff investigating the brutal murder of Rachel Morin believes the suspect – who has been tied to a March home invasion and rape of a girl in Los Angeles – could be a serial killer.

Morin, 37, set out on August 5 for a hike and left her car at the Williams Street trailhead in the center of Bel Air, Maryland, about 20 miles northeast of Baltimore.

Her body was discovered the day after she disappeared naked and beaten in a tunnel along the scenic Ma & Pa Heritage Trail.

After DNA at a crime scene in Los Angeles matched that at the scene of Morin’s killing, Harford County Sheriff Jeff Gahler said Monday that there may be a disturbing pattern developing.

‘Serial killers all start somewhere. What he did in Los Angeles was certainly, I believe, in that direction,’ said Gahler. ‘I believe it was his intention to inflict more serious physical harm.’ 

The sheriff investigating the brutal murder of Rachel Morin (pictured believes the suspect – who has been tied to a March home invasion and rape of a girl in Los Angeles – could be a serial killer 

The man can be seen walking away from the house in Los Angeles. His DNA was linked to the LA home invasion and the body of Morin

A manhunt is currently underway for the unidentified suspect who committed the grizzly murder as well as the rape earlier this year on the West Coast. 

Gahler said that he and some of his deputies from Harford County visited Los Angeles last week to investigate but it’s still too early to tell just what they’re dealing with. 

‘We don’t know who he is yet,’ the sheriff added. ‘He could still be laying his head here in our county, or he could have fled anywhere in the country or even the world.’ 

The unidentified suspect in the case is described as a Hispanic man, aged between 20 and 30. He’s approximately 5-feet 9-inches tall, weighing around 160lbs, and muscular. 

‘We believe this was a person that Rachel didn’t know, potentially a random act of violence,’ said Colonel William Davis, speaking at a news conference last week. 

‘We know nothing more about him other than he was in L.A. in March and we believe him to be the murderer.’ 

Davis said they are not looking for any accomplices, and told local people to be on their guard.

‘We believe the suspect acted alone and, he does not represent the entire Hispanic community of Harford County, who we are now partnering with to identify this suspect,’ he said.

After DNA at a crime scene in Los Angeles matched that at the scene of Morin’s killing, Harford County Sheriff Jeff Gahler (pictured) said Monday that there may be a disturbing pattern developing’ 

Gahler said that he and some of his deputies from Harford County visited Los Angeles last week to investigate but it’s still too early to tell just what they’re dealing with

Morin in a picture shared by the Harford County Sheriff’s Office in August shortly before she was found murdered

Ten deputies are working to solve the case, and they have received more than 100 tips – but he urged people to send in more, even if the information seemed inconsequential

‘I know I can speak for the sheriff when I say we are very proud of this community.’

Gahler said ten deputies are working to solve the case, and they have received more than 100 tips – but he urged people to send in more, even if the information seemed inconsequential.

Just days ago, Morin’s boyfriend shared his relief after police identified another suspect in her murder. Richard Tobin, 27, was the one to report Morin missing after she went for a walk and did not return home. He also found her car at the trailhead. 

Tobin had given investigators a DNA sample and handed over his cell phone, said: ‘I hope they found this scum of the earth, justice for Rachel. Rip, love you Rach.’

She had only recently publicly declared her relationship with Tobin on Facebook, and it was unclear how long they had been together. 

Gahler has clarified in the weeks since her death that they do not believe Tobin to be a suspect in the mother of five’s murder. 

‘At this point, there is no indication that he was involved. But until we know who this guy is or whether he acted alone, the entire world is a suspect,’ Gahler said.

Tobin has maintained his innocence in the matter since her disappearance. 

In one Facebook post, he wrote: ‘I love Rachel. I would never do anything to her, let the family and I grieve. Yes, I have a past but I also have 15 months clean and have changed as a person.’ 

Tobin has been arrested 14 times since 2014 on a variety of charges including drug dealing, assault, disorderly conduct and refusing arrest. 

Morin had recently announced on Facebook she was in a relationship with Richard Tobin

This is the trail where Morin’s body was found on August 6 

It is believed Morin’s body was found in one of the drainage tunnels of the trail  

Law enforcement have not released a cause of death for the woman. 

A source close the family told DailyMail.com in mid-August that the young mother had suffered serious head trauma.

‘The injuries were so horrific that there won’t be an open casket (at her funeral),’ the source said.

A spokeswoman for Harford County’s Sheriff’s Office declined to comment on the nature of how Morin was killed.

Her family say she did not ‘go willingly’ and that her death was ‘not accidental’. 

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