A SERIAL killer is feared to be stalking a small American town after three women were found dead and two others vanished in the last six months.

The bodies of the three women were all found within 650ft of each other in Lumberton, North Carolina, yet the police, working with the FBI, are yet to confirm if the cases are linked.

5 Abby Patterson vanished just a few thousand feet from where four other women either died or vanished Credit: Facebook

5 Her disappearance has helped spark fears a serial killer may be at large Credit: Facebook

Suspicions were emerged in April when police were told of a strange smell coming from an abandoned property and discovered the rotting corpse of Christina Bennett, 32.

Police captain Terry Parker said that the scene was the worst he’d ever seen in his 22 year career.

Later that same day the body of a second woman, Rhonda Jones, was found across the street stuffed in a rubbish bin.

Her friend Megan Oxendine spoke to a local TV news station the day after and paid tribute to Rhonda, saying she was a "sweet and kind person".

5 Megan Oxendine was found dead just a few weeks after giving this TV interview about her friend Rhonda Jones Credit: CBS

5 Mum-of-five Rhonda, pictured, was found stuffed inside a rubbish bin Credit: Facebook

Incredibly, just three weeks later Oxendine's body was found only 500ft from her friend's, reportedly naked, bound and bloodied.

Megan's mother suspects that she might have known something about the other deaths which was why she met her grizzly end.

News of the deaths has sent conspiracy theorists into a frenzy, with forums and Facebook groups dedicated to solving them.

To add further fuel to their flames, another two women have disappeared in the small provincial town this year.

5 Cynthia Jacobs vanished from Lumberton in July

Cynthia Jacobs, 41, and Abby Patterson, 20, both mysteriously vanished in separate incidents.

Cynthia's sister-in-law has claimed that Cynthia was the last person to see Megan Oxendine alive, while Patterson disappeared less than 3,000ft from the bodies of the other women.

It is believed that all the women involved have suffered from drug addiction, and this has led people to wonder whether a drug or prostitution ring might be behind the deaths.

Some are also linking the unsolved murders of two women whose bodies were found in Lumberton seven years ago.

Both Lisa Hardin, 36, and Michelle Driggers, 23, were found beaten and badly bruised within a mile of each other, and both women were known prostitutes.

M​urder Jill Coit features on American show about killing her husband

At the time, Police Chief Robert Grice had told The Robesonian that "it could be coincidental, or it could be that someone is out there targeting prostitutes".

Police have not released any details yet on the dead women and have not formally linked them with each other, the disappearances, or the 2009 murders.

This silence has only fuelled further speculation among local residents who fear for their safety, with the very real possibility of an active serial killer threatening the small town of 21,000 people.

Parker has confirmed that the three dead women were "known to be on the street", unlike Jacobs and Patterson, the missing women.

He is "99 percent sure" that the disappearances and the deaths are unrelated.

However, with no physical evidence linking the murders, police and the FBI are very much on the back foot.

MOST READ IN NEWS COVID CLAMPDOWN PM unveils huge £10k fines for Brits who break covid self-isolation rules WINTER ON WAY Brits enjoy late summer sun as polar plume threatens earliest snow in century XMAS 'GIFT' PM to consider lifting 'rule of six' on Xmas so families can celebrate together COST OF COVID Rishi Sunak plans benefits freeze to pay for soaring cost of virus crisis NARC NEXT DOOR Hancock calls on snitches to land neighbours a £10k fine for not isolating Exclusive 'HE'S DEVASTATED' Kyle Walker 'furious' after fiancée admits to lockdown fling with toyboy

We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online news team? Email us at tips@the-sun.co.uk or call 0207 782 4368 . We pay for videos too. Click here to upload yours.'