Texas serial killer on the loose after two women's bodies are found

Authorities in Texas are hunting for a suspected serial killer after linking the DNA between two murder scenes six years apart. 

The Austin Police Department said they had been investigating the recent killing of Alyssa Ann Rivera when they linked DNA with a previous unsolved case.

Rivera, 34, was found dead inside an abandoned home on June 21, with her death now linked to the six year old case of Alba Jenisse Aviles, officials said.

Aviles, 28, was found inside a silver Ford sedan in Bastrop County in 2018, just a few miles from where Rivera was found.

Authorities say it isn't just the DNA at the scene that links the two, with the women both being strangled and their murders 'sexual in nature'. 

Rivera, pictured here, was found dead inside an abandoned home on June 21 with investigators tracing DNA at the scene to an unsolved case

Aviles, 28, was found dead inside of he silver Ford sedan in Bastrop County in 2018, seen here, just a few miles from where Rivera was found

Investigators also said that Aviles' killer met her at a bar in Austin called Club Caribe, just three miles from where Rivera was killed. 

Police have also since released a video that shows Rivera walking with a male 'person of interest' just before she was killed. 

Sgt. Nathan Sexton of the Austin Police Department said: 'There was a DNA link found between this case, and April 14th, 2018, in the unsolved murder of Alba Jenisse Aviles.

'Both victims are believed to have been sexually assaulted— it was DNA found in both scenes, like multiple sources of DNA at both scenes.'  

Even with the new DNA evidence, they have been unsuccessful in using a DNA index system to track the person, meaning they likely haven't been arrested before. 

Sexton added: 'Unfortunately that suspect does not come back to CODIS, what we call the national database, so they're not in that system.'

According to Sexton, the department and Bastrop County Sheriff's Office are working closely together to turn the DNA into a suspect. 

He added: 'We're trying to compare notes and see if there's anyone that may come up in both cases or may have lived here; so it will take quite a bit of research in going through the data.'

When asked if there were any other murders that were linked, he replied: 'There could be more.'

Police have also since released a video that shows Rivera walking with a male 'person of interest' just before she was killed

According to Sexton, the department and Bastrop County Sheriff's Office are working closely together to turn the DNA into a suspect

When asked if there were any other murders that were linked, Sexton replied: 'There could be more'

A GoFundMe has since been set up for the family of Rivera, who said in a post to the fundraiser: 'As many know, our daughter, Alyssa Rivera was found murdered. 

'We still have no answers as to how or why. But in the meantime we need to lay her to rest and are asking for any assistance in doing so. 

'Alyssa was the most kind and big hearted soul. And anyone who knew her knew that. 

'Please help us give our daughter the burial she deserves. Every bit helps and is greatly appreciated.'

An anonymous family member also told CBS Austin: 'We love her so much, and we can't even imagine this happened to her.

'If you met Alyssa one time, you would never forget her. She didn't deserve this. She didn't and neither did we.'