'Budding serial killer' sentenced in 2023 stabbings of homeless people in Philadelphia

'Budding serial killer' sentenced in 2023 stabbings of homeless people in Philadelphia

DShawn Crawford plead guilty to two stabbing in Philadelphia that targeted sleeping homeless people. District Attorney Larry Krasner called Crawford a "budding serial killer."

PHILADELPHIA - Prosecutors say a "budding serial killer" will spend 40-80 years behind bars after he was captured on video stabbing two homeless people as they slept in 2023.

DShawn Crawford pleaded guilty to the gruesome stabbings that happened months apart in Philadelphia's Fairhill neighborhood.

What we know:

Prosecutors say DShawn Crawford dressed similarly to the WWE wrestler "The Undertaker" when he carried out the stabbings in February and March 2023.

Surveillance video captured Crawford eerily approaching a sleeping homeless man near 5th and Huntington streets, and stabbing him nearly 20 times. 

The victim, who was stabbed in the head, back and face, survived the attack.

Days later, investigators say Crawford stabbed 43-year-old Marcos Torres Rivera to death as he slept on a park bench on the 2600 block of North 4th Street.

Prosecutors say Crawford lived near where the attacks happened. A search of his home uncovered several unsettling items, including knives and occult material.

What they're saying:

District Attorney Larry Krasner called Crawford a "budding serial killer" in a press conference on Wednesday. 

"If left on the street for a longer period of time, D'Shawn Crawford might well have become known as a serial killer," Krasner said.

He said there are "reasons to believe" that Crawford had aspirations of continuing his violent and murderous streak.