Tulsa Police Expect to Find More Victims of Newspaper Carrier

By: Joe Strupp A Tulsa, Okla., detective investigating a newspaper carrier's confessed murder of two of his elderly customers says more victims could be found. Police are conducting a detailed review of the 220 homes along his delivery route.

When asked if more victims are likely in the case of Tulsa World carrier Paul Williford, Tulsa Police Division Commander Steve Steele said, "We think so."

"We are looking at deaths in that area and his paper route, which is a pretty big route," Steele told E&P, adding that it would be unlikely that a suspect such as Williford would just begin killing people on a route he has had for two years. "We can't believe that in the last four weeks, he just made three attacks. They don't just bubble up like this."

World editors also were looking into reports that Williford , 64, was a contracted carrier for nearby Good News Distribution, the local distributor of The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. Representatives of Good News declined to comment on whether Williford delivered for them.

The carrier was arrested last week for allegedly assaulting one of his customers, a 75-year-old woman, in her home last Friday. On Tuesday, he confessed to police that he murdered two other women on his route within the past four weeks.

The confessions, relating to the deaths of two women in their 70s, were surprising in that both women's deaths had not been deemed murders, prompting a new review by the coroner. In addition, police have begun researching all deaths along Williford's route, which he has had since November 2003.

Steele stressed that no links to other deaths have been confirmed, but said Williford may have had a pattern of purposely failing to deliver papers so that customers would call him to complain and he would bring a paper, thus gaining entry to their homes. "That was his M.O.," Steele said. "He didn't throw the paper to old ladies' houses so that he could call to get in."

It is not known if either of Williford's murder victims had been involved in such a delivery complaint. But police have said that the woman he assaulted last week got into her confrontation with the carrier after he came to her house when she complained about not receiving the paper that day.

KOTV, a local television station, reported Friday that Williford's bail had been raised to $1.2 million and a preliminary hearing had been set for Nov. 15. He has been charged with assault and battery with intent to kill, rape, robbery, and burglary. But no murder charges have apparently been filed.

The World, meanwhile, has made the story front-page news, according to Managing Editor Susan Ellerbach -- who said stories have graced Page One for three days. She also said the paper had started reviewing its policy for contracting with carriers to see if background checks can become a standard practice. She added that the paper does not do such checks on its 650 carriers because they are independent contractors.

The background-check policy has become an issue in the case since it was revealed that Williford had served time in a state prison for felony assault, robbery, and weapons offenses during the past 20 years. "We are still looking at doing background checks and we are talking to other papers to see what they do and how we could renegotiate 650 independent contracts," Ellerbach said.

Ellerbach added that the paper received about a dozen phone calls from customers asking about the case, but said no subscriptions had been cancelled as a result: "People have had some concerns about how we handle carriers."

She said potential legal fallout from the incidents is "a concern" but added that no formal actions of any kind had been taken. Attorney Schaad Titus, who represents the World, did not want to speculate on any possible culpability for the paper. But he said the World's policies related to carriers "are consistent with those in the industry."