Two parolees accused of raping and killing at least four women in Orange County while wearing GPS ankle bracelets pleaded not guilty to charges on Monday.
Franc Cano and Steven Dean Gordon were each charged with four felony counts of special circumstances murder and four felony counts of rape, according to the Orange County District Attorney's Office.
- Download: Download the NBCLA News App
The two men, both registered sex offenders, are accused of committing the crimes in October and November 2013 in Anaheim and Santa Ana while wearing tracking devices, Anaheim police said in April. They also checked in with police every 30 days.
The case broke when a woman's body was discovered on a conveyor belt at an Anaheim recycling plant on March 14. She was later identified as 21-year-old Jarrae Nykkole Estepp of Oklahoma.
The three other women had been reported missing from Santa Ana. They were identified as 20-year-old Kianna Jackson of Las Vegas, and Santa Ana residents Josephine Vargas, 34, and Martha Anaya, 28.
Anaheim police believe there may be a fifth victim.
Local
Get Los Angeles's latest local news on crime, entertainment, weather, schools, COVID, cost of living and more. Here's your go-to source for today's LA news.
The women’s cases were tied together based on their lifestyle, location and pattern of behavior, including drug use and prostitution in Anaheim and Santa Ana, police said.
Cano and Gordon are due back in court June 6.
