Houston serial murderer known as 'Tourniquet Killer' gets October date with death

An execution date has been set for Anthony Allen Shore, the so-called "Tourniquet Killer." Keep clicking to see other Texas serial killers in history. An execution date has been set for Anthony Allen Shore, the so-called "Tourniquet Killer." Keep clicking to see other Texas serial killers in history. Photo: DPS Photo: DPS Image 1 of / 21 Caption Close Houston serial murderer known as 'Tourniquet Killer' gets October date with death 1 / 21 Back to Gallery

Houston's so-called "Tourniquet Killer" - a man who admitted to raping and killing young women in Harris County over nearly a decade - is slated for execution in October.

Anthony Allen Shore, 55, terrorized the county in the 1980s and 1990s, leaving behind a trail of young victims in a gruesome set of crimes marked by the killer's use of handmade tourniquets.

He was found guilty of one of the murders in 2004 and, finally, on Thursday, state District Judge Maria T. Jackson set his execution date for Oct. 18.

The brutal killings went unsolved for nearly two decades before Shore was finally arrested for sexually assaulting two girls - both of whom were relatives.

When DNA evidence led to a breakthrough in the cold cases, Shore confessed to each of his crimes, which started with the slaying of 14-year-old Laurie Tremblay in 1986.

Six years later, he raped and murdered 21-year-old Maria del Carmen Estrada before leaving her naked body in the drive-through of a Spring Branch Dairy Queen.

In 1994, he killed 9-year-old Diana Rebollar, followed by the murder of 16-year-old Dana Sanchez the following year.

All of the victims were raped and tortured before he strangled them with the handmade tourniquets.

Shore is a "true serial killer, a person deserving of the ultimate punishment," Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said in a statement Thursday.

"His crimes were predatory, and his victims the most vulnerable in society - women and children. For his brutal acts, the Death Penalty is appropriate."