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Ohio woman indicted on murder charges in 'serial killings' of at least four men, attorney general says

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An Ohio woman has been indicted in what the attorney general is calling the "serial killings" of at least four men in Columbus, though investigators believe there are more victims.

Rebecca Auborn, a 33-year-old from Columbus, is accused of meeting men for sex before fatally drugging them and then robbing them, state Attorney General Dave Yost said in a statement.

A message seeking comment was left with her attorney Thursday. The Columbus Division of Police declined to comment further on the investigation.

The attorney general's office said the Central Ohio Human Trafficking Task Force received information that a woman was allegedly meeting men for sex and dosing the "johns" with drugs so she could steal from them. 

Four out of five of Auborn's alleged victims died of overdoses between December 2022 and June 2023 and one man survived, authorities said, but they did not identify the victims.

"Don't buy sex in Ohio – it ruins lives and could cost you yours," Yost said in a statement.

Auborn already had been indicted and pleaded not guilty in September to murder and drug-related charges in the January overdose of one of the men.

She's currently being held in Franklin County Jail and an arraignment is scheduled for Friday.

The investigation remains ongoing, according to the attorney general's office, and investigators are focusing on her activities in northeast Columbus between December of last year and August 2023 as they search for more possible victims. 

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