The number of women suspected to have been killed by the notorious ‘Craigslist killer’ crept up to at least seven on Tuesday as police discovered three more bodies from an area near the highway leading to Jones Beach in New York.

The Suffolk County Police said the body of an eighth woman has also been found, but the case has not yet been connected to the Craigslist killing.

Police stumbled into finding decomposed bodies of four women initially when they launched a search for Shannan Gilbert, a prostitute, who disappeared almost a year ago. Even after finding seven dead bodies in the search, the police have not been able to find Gilbert, a Craigslist prostitute.

The bodies of the four other women, who also worked as Craigslist escorts and were in their 20s, were found along the same highway by police searching for Gilbert, Britain's Daily Mail reported on Tuesday.

The four dead bodies were found in December in bushy undergrowth near the highway. According to the police, a serial killer is involved in the murders, but they haven’t zeroed in on any suspect as yet. It is believed that the serial killer had snared the prostitutes by getting in touch with them through the classified ads site.

Forensic tests failed to confirm that any of the eight dead bodies belonged to Gilbert, a New Jersey woman. Police said the search for Gilbert will resume on Tuesday. Police used helicopters and cadaver dogs, as well as police academy cadets, detectives and volunteer firefighters, the report says.

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