Renewed focus on San Francisco 'Doodler' serial killer sought in murders of gay White men

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There is a renewed push in San Francisco to catch a serial killer authorities believe committed multiple murders in the 1970s in a series of gruesome crimes that put the city's gay community on edge. 

The "Doodler" killer killed at least six men in the middle of the decade, with his last victim believed to have been murdered in 1975. The San Francisco Police Department recently offered a $250,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction. 

"These men — the victims — came to this city for a better life and ended up getting killed," says San Francisco Police Department investigator Dan Cunningham told PEOPLE. "They deserve justice, their families deserve justice and we are all their advocates now."

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This pair of sketches provided by the San Francisco Police Department shows what a serial killer might look like now in a cold case involving at least five stabbing deaths of gay men in the mid-1970s in San Francisco. (SFPD)

The Doodler is believed to have killed an additional five White, gay men between 1974 and 1975. He also attacked others who survived. Police discovered the Doodler’s first victim, 50-year-old Gerald Cavanaugh, 48 years ago at Ocean Beach.

Another victim, Joseph "Joe" Stevens, was a star in the city's drag scene. In 1974, he went out for a drink at a popular cabaret and never made it home. His body was discovered on June 25 of that year in Golden Gate Park. 

"I had to identify his body at the morgue," his sister Melissa Stevens Honrath, now 72, told PEOPLE. "It was just a horrible experience."

Days after Stevens was found, Klaus Christmann, 31, who had recently moved to San Francisco from Germany, was found dead by Ocean Beach. Other victims include Vietnam veteran Fred Captain, 32, and Harald Gullberg, who was discovered on June 4, 1975. 

In June 2022, investigators identified a sixth victim – Warren Andrews. Andrews, 52, was found unconscious on April 27, 1975 near the Golden Gate Bridge. He died from his injuries several weeks later. 

An "age progression" sketch of the "Doodler," a suspected 1970s-era serial killer who is believed to have killed six gay men in the 1970s. (San Francisco Police Department )

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The Doodler got his name because a surviving victim told police that when he met the suspect at a diner after hours on a July night in 1975, his attacker drew animal pictures on a napkin. In the past, he was described as being around 6 feet tall and having a "lanky" build with a medium complexion.

Police recently released an "age progression" sketch of the suspected killer. They also said a man who was interviewed by police in the 70s is still considered a person of interest. 

Fox News' Mike Ruiz contributed to this report.