Paul Durousseau

Paul Durousseau (born August 11, 1970) is an American serial killer who murdered seven young women (including two who were pregnant) in the southeastern United States between 1997 and 2003.

In 1970, he moved in with his mother's family in Los Angeles, California, after his father, unwed to his mother, deserted them.

Little else is known publicly about Durousseau's childhood.

After graduating high school, 19-year-old Durousseau found himself working as a security guard.

German authorities suspect he may have also killed several local women when he was stationed there with the United States Army during the early 1990s.

Typically, Durousseau would gain the victim's trust, enter the victim's home, tie their hands, rape, then strangle them to death.

All of his known victims were young, single African-American women.

Paul Durousseau was born in Beaumont, Texas.

His first offenses as an adult took place on December 18, 1991, and January 21, 1992, for carrying a concealed firearm.

In November 1992, Durousseau enlisted in the United States Army and was stationed in Germany, where he met Natoca, who would later become his wife.

The two married in 1995 in Las Vegas.

In 1996 the couple were transferred to Fort Benning, Georgia, where, on March 13, 1997, Durousseau was arrested for kidnapping and raping a young woman.

However, in August of that year he was cleared of those charges.

Soon after, however, he was found in possession of stolen goods.

Less than one month after the acquittal over the rape charges, the nude body of 26-year-old Tracy Habersham was found on September 7, 1997, in Fort Benning.

She had been missing for 48 hours and was last seen leaving a party.

She had been raped and strangled to death with a cord.

Durousseau was not a suspect in the murder, but DNA would later tie him to the crime.

He later confessed to Habersham's killing after his arrest.

He was court-martialed in January 1999, found guilty and dishonorably discharged from the Army.

Durousseau and his wife moved to Jacksonville, Florida, where they had two daughters.

It was during this period that he committed most of the murders.

Durousseau struggled to keep jobs to make ends meet, and the couple would often argue over their financial situation.

In 1999, the police advised Durousseau's wife on how to file for a restraining order after he allegedly slapped her in the face and grabbed her by the neck.

Later, she testified that he became violently angry when she talked about getting a divorce.

In 1999, Durousseau raped and killed 24-year-old Tyresa Mack in her apartment.

Witnesses saw him leave her place carrying a television.

In September and October 2001, Durousseau spent 48 days in jail for domestic battery.

Durousseau still managed to hold various legitimate jobs.

In 2001, he was hired as a school bus driver and an animal control worker despite being a convicted felon.

In 2001, he was arrested for raping a young woman in Jacksonville.

He spent 30 days in jail and received two years' probation.

On December 19, 2002, 18-year-old Nicole L. Williams' body was found wrapped in a blue blanket at the bottom of a ditch in Jacksonville.

She had been reported missing two days earlier.

By 2003 he was working as a taxi driver for the Gator City Taxi Company, which was how he first came into contact with some of his victims.

It was erroneously reported that the taxi company failed to run a background check on Durousseau; the City of Jacksonville was responsible for the background check, and issued Durousseau's taxi driver permit.

Neighbors and friends described Durousseau as a "lewd womanizer" who often asked young women when they planned to "make flicks" with him.

A witness recalled Durousseau hitting on a girl that appeared to be around 13 or 14 years old.

On January 1, 2003, family members of 19-year-old Nikia Kilpatrick went to check on her.

They had not had any news from her for several days.