The police commissioner for Suffolk County has said his team is ramping up the search of 7.5 km-stretch near the Oak Beach to find possible clues about the 'Craigslist serial killings' as well as to find more bodies.

We want to do this before the spring foliage grows in and makes it more difficult ... And if there are any more bodies out there, we want to find them, commissioner Richard Dormer said.

Even as more bodies are discovered from the inhabitants are terrified that a serial killer could still be on the prowl.

Police had found the decomposed bodies of four women in December when they launched a search for Shannan Gilbert, a prostitute, who had disappeared in the area last year. One more body was found last week, and the skeletal remains of three more women were found on Monday.

All the identified victims of the serial killer are white women in their 20s. They worked as prostitutes who would contact their clients through Craigslist classified ads.

Even after finding eight dead bodies from the bushy undergrowth outlying the beach, the police have not been able to find Gilbert, who was also a Craigslist prostitute. While four bodies have been identified, those found in the recent days have not been identified. However police say none belonged to Gilbert.

However, according to police chief Dormer, the unearthing of the remains of more women from the same area will give investigators fresh clues about the killings. The police search, which involves helicopters and cadaver dogs, will continue on Wednesday.

RELATED STORIES