Ohio mother indicted for ‘serial killing’ after meeting men for sex and robbing them
An Ohio mother has been accused of being a serial killer who fatally drugged men to rob them after meeting for sex.
Rebecca Auborn, 33, was indicted Wednesday on four counts of murder for fatally drugging “johns” to rob them after sex in Columbus in the first half of this year, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said.
Auborn was also accused of a fifth attack in December on a man who survived the attempted overdose.
“Don’t buy sex in Ohio — it ruins lives and could cost you yours,” Yost said while stressing that detectives suspect there are other victims.
“For me, if you’ve got somebody that has a series of killings that are separated in time, they’re a serial killer,” Yost told the Columbus Dispatch. “We have the same MO here.”
Investigators first became aware of the potential link between the string of overdose deaths when someone left an anonymous tip, the AG’s office said.
The Columbus Division of Police and Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation were then able to connect Auburn “to several overdoses and robberies,” the release said.
By September, Auborn was indicted and pleaded not guilty to murder and drug-related charges in the January death of one of the men, Joseph Crumpler, 30.
In that case, she even admitted to Columbus police that she had mixed fentanyl in a man’s crack pipe after meeting the man for sex, according to court records obtained by the Dispatch.
She reportedly told the detectives she knew the man was overdosing but decided to take his vehicle and debit card.
Auborn, who has at least one child — as well as a daughter who died in 2016 at just 18 days of age — had no prior criminal history, according to records obtained by the Dispatch.
She now faces four counts of murder, four counts of involuntary manslaughter, five counts of aggravated robbery, five counts of felonious assault, five counts of corrupting another with drugs, one count of tampering with evidence, and four counts of trafficking in drugs – which are all felonies.
Detectives believe there may be more victims, combing through records for similar overdose deaths — while also appealing for anyone who survived an encounter to come forward with no fear of prosecution if they solicited sex.
“We’re interested in holding a killer accountable,” the AG said. “That’s our focus.”
