A Missouri man has been arrested on suspicion of being the serial killer who stalked and murdered five middle-aged men in Kansas City.

Fredrick Demond Scott, 22, is believed to have shot dead the five men - three in the back of the head - between August 19, 2016, and August 13 this year.

The first four victims were killed in secluded areas, mostly on or near hiking and biking trails in the area.

But Scott became over-confident and was captured after claiming his fifth and final victim in broad daylight on a city street then getting on a bus, police told The Kansas City Star.

When being questioned, Scott - whose possible motive is unclear - allegedly boasted of his stealthiness, saying of the victims: 'They didn't see it coming.'

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Serial killer? Fredrick Demond Scott, 22, is believed to have murdered five men between August 19, 2016 and August 13 of this year near Indian Creek trail in Kansas City, Missouri

Victims: Steven Gibbons (left) is the fifth and final victim, and was shot in the head in broad daylight. DNA linked Scott to his murder and that of first victim John Palmer (right), cops said

Shot: David Lenox (left), 67, was shot in February. Mike Darby (right), 61, was shot in May. Cops say Scott used different types of amm and usually killed in one shot to the back of the head

So far Scott has been charged with two of the slayings, which saw five white men - all aged between 54 and 67 - shot dead.

Four of them were shot in the head, police said; three of them in the back of the head. Most were killed near trails in quieter areas of Kansas City.

All five were killed with varying types of ammunition, most in just one shot.

At noon on August 13, the last victim, 57-year-old Steven Gibbons, got off a bus in Kansas City, unaware that Scott, who had been on the bus with him, was close behind, police claim.

Despite the fact that it was broad daylight, cops say, Scott then shot him in the back of the head before turning around and getting on another bus.

Gibbons, whose body was found in the 1100 block of East 67th Street, survived on life support for over a day before succumbing to his wounds.

This was a break in Scott's usual pattern of secluded killings - and led to his capture after video footage of the men was taken from the bus, cops said.

Deaths: Many of the victims were found close to the Indian Creek Trail and its associated trail, leading to the deaths being dubbed the 'Indian Creek Murders'. The slain men were John Palmer (1), David Lenox (2), Timothy S Rice (3), Mike Darby (4) and Steven Gibbons (5)

Angry: Scott (left) said he was angry about his brother's death in a robbery in 2015. The man convicted of that killing, Jimmie Verge (right), was sentenced to 45 years in prison on Friday

Detectives pulled DNA off an iced tea bottle and cigarette he was seen dropping on CCTV near Gibbons' death, and matched them to Scott, they claim.

They say Scott had been mowing lawns to make money, and working at a Burger King close to the site of three of the murder scenes.

When questioned, Scott admitted that he used a 9mm handgun recovered by police to kill Gibbons, cops said. He allegedly said it went off accidentally when he took it out of his pocket.

But he also claimed that he used the Indian Creek trails regularly, visited a friend close to where one of the victims was killed, cops said.

And they claimed he 'repeatedly' said he was furious about the death of his own brother, Gerrod H Woods, 23, in 2015.

He was shot dead on December 14 of that year in a robbery, along with another man. On Friday the man convicted in those killings - Jimmie Verge, a 22-year-old black male - was sentenced to 45 years in prison.

Scott has been charged with the death of not just Gibbons, but also John Palmer, 54, the first of the supposed 'Indian Creek Killer'.

Police are now working to link Scott to the other deaths linked to the killer: David Lenox, 67; Timothy S Rice, 57; Mike Darby, 61.

Police say they need the public's help to connect all five of the murders.

'If you have seen the defendant in the area of these homicides, or in the area of south Kansas City, please call us,' said Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker.

'If you heard shots in the area of these homicides, we’re asking that you please call us.'