Alleged 'Craigslist Killer' commits suicide in jail

Boston - The man dubbed "Craigslist Killer," Philip Markoff, 24, was pronounced dead by the EMS at 10:17 AM (1417 GMT). According to prison sources Markoff suffocated himself with a plastic bag.

Markoff was a Boston University Medical student who was arrested in April 2009. He was given the Web 2.0 moniker for allegedly using fake accounts to meet women who advertise services on Craigslist. According to BBC, Markoff was arrested for multiple charges including first degree murder and armed robbery, among others. Markoff was charged for hitting Julissa Brisman with a pistol before shooting her at the Marriott Copley Place on April 14, 2009. Markoff also allegedly committed armed robbery on Trisha Leffler at another hotel in Boston. He pleaded not guilty to all charges. New York Daily News reports that a few days after his arrest, Markoff attempted suicide but failed. This prompted prison officers to put him on the suicide watch list. According to Steven Tompkins, spokesperson for the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office, Markoff was no longer on the watch list when he committed suicide this morning. Based on a report from The Boston Globe, district attorney spokesman David Procopio stated that this is the third time an inmate has committed suicide at the Nashua Street Jail in Boston in the last decade. Michael Ivy, 22, hanged himself with a jacket in Nov 2003, and Rolf Fischer, 20, hanged himself with bedsheets in Sept 2003, said Procopio.