PORTLAND, OR (KPTV) -
A Portland homeless man already in jail has now been linked to a second homicide, this one the death of a young woman whose body was found in Portland's Washington Park, police said.
Portland police detectives said Mark Beebout killed the unknown woman earlier this summer. Her body was found in late June by park rangers just west of the Vista Bridge off Southwest Jefferson Street, but police still don't know her name.
Though crime lab detectives have linked Beebout to the victim through DNA, they haven't determined the woman's exact cause of death.
She was described as mixed-race (possibly Hispanic or Native American), in her teens or early 20s, about 5' tall and 100 pounds with long, straight black hair. Police believe she may have been a runaway or a missing person from out of the area who was new to the transient lifestyle. Evidence near the scene suggested there were homeless campers in the area who may be able to help in the investigation.
Detectives hope a photo of the sweatshirt she was wearing as well as a facial reconstruction sketch will lead to new tips regarding her identity.
Police announced Beebout as the suspect in her death at a news conference Monday. They said he was indicted last week on nine counts of aggravated murder and one count each of rape, sodomy and sex abuse in connection with the unknown woman's death.
The announcement came less than two weeks after Beebout pleaded not guilty to killing Nikayla Powell, whose body was discovered inside her Belmont Street apartment July 10. A medical examiner said her badly decomposed body had a shoestring tied around her neck. Powell, a volunteer for the group Operation Nightwatch, was apparently letting Beebout stay in her apartment.
The two met through Operation Nightwatch, which helps the homeless. A group spokesman said it has a "stringent set of guidelines" for volunteers, requiring them to keep boundaries between themselves and the people they help.
A week after Powell's body was discovered, U.S. marshals arrested Beebout in Seattle. Officials said they found him with
Powell's dog and they believe he also stole her car and credit cards.
Longtime volunteer Larry Bishop told FOX 12 last month that Powell was a kind and generous woman.
"She was a very good volunteer and everybody liked her," he said. "... I don't understand why she invited him back to her house because you're not suppose to do that."
Copyright 2012 KPTV (Meredith Corporation.) All rights reserved.
Mark Beebout is now accused of killing two women in Portland.
An artist created this sketch of the woman whose body was found in Washington Park.
Beebout is accused of killing Nikayla Powell at her Belmont Street apartment.
Detectives shut down Belmont Street in July to investigate Powell's death.
