DNA clears Fresno man in SoCal serial killer case

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - A DNA sample has cleared a Fresno man, currently jailed on kidnapping charges, of a series of murders committed in Southern California, authorities said.

Inglewood Police Sgt. Steve Overly said Tuesday that a saliva sample taken from Roger Hausmann, 65, did not match evidence gathered in the homicides, which date back to the 1980s.

Hausmann became a suspect in the case last August after he told Fresno investigators that he killed prostitutes in the Los Angeles area. His name was revealed in a LA Weekly article last month.

"He made some incriminating statements to investigators in Fresno that led to the sample being taken," Overly said. "We still know (one) suspect is responsible for four homicides."

Inglewood detectives used DNA evidence to connect the rape and slaying of a 14-year-old girl in March 2002 to three Los Angeles murders. Valerie McCorvey was found in a south Los Angeles alley in 2003. She had been strangled, as had the 14-year-old victim.

The other two victims were Bernita Sparks, who was found April 16, 1987, and Mary Lowe, who was discovered Nov. 1, 1987. In each case, the body had been dumped and covered up, police said.

Detectives in Los Angeles later determined Sparks and Lowe were shot with a small-caliber handgun similar to the one used in six other deadly shootings.

In the Fresno case, Hausmann has been charged with kidnapping and threatening to kill two teenage girls.