The cluster of deaths in and around Lady Bird Lake has alarmed residents in Austin and drawn national attention, fueling speculation of foul play. But Austin police say talk of a serial killer is false.
However, the persistence of apparently unresolved cases, the lake's proximity to a party hub, and high visibility on social media have led to increased distrust of officials, and pressure to explain the ongoing deaths and address community fears.
Rumors of a killer known to people in Austin as the "Rainey Street Ripper" erupted again on June 3, after the body of a teenage boy was found in the lake.
The 17-year-old was reported missing after a family outing involving kayaks and paddleboards.
"Another paddleboarder was here out on Lady Bird Lake and notified us that it appeared that an individual was deceased and floating on Lady Bird Lake," said Corporal Jose Mendez of the Austin Police Department, according to FOX 7 Austin.
The teen was not wearing a life jacket and disappeared after stepping off an underwater shelf, according to a statement from the Austin Police Department cited by the outlet.
Between 2022 and June 2025, 19 bodies were recovered from Lady Bird Lake, according to police.
The rumored killer became known as the Rainey Street Ripper due to the proximity of the popular bar and restaurant area of Austin, and Lady Bird Lake.
According to My San Antonio, bodies have shown up in Lady Bird Lake for most of its history. However, they started to gain media attention when six men with similar features were found dead around the same time in 2022.
In early 2023, five more corpses were found, all men, who had gone missing after being out with friends on Rainy Street late at night. All except one were deemed to have drowned accidentally. One man's death was deemed unknown.
Despite police attempts to quell the rumor, the Facebook page The Lady Bird Lake Serial Killer, is filled with people stating their distrust of law enforcement, per My San Antonio reporting.
A Change.org petition from 2024 amassed over 6,000 signatures from people urging the police to further investigate the incidents and to install better lighting and protection around the lake.
Former Austin Police Department PIO Demitri Hobbs told My San Antonio that he believes these deaths were due to "drunk guys" falling into the lake. However, according to the Change.org petition, some family members of the deceased believe something more sinister occurred.
For example, the family of Martin Gutierrez, whose body was found in the lake in 2018, before the media frenzy around Lady Bird Lake, believe he was drugged while on a night out. According to the petition: "The APD has refused to admit that this may be a possibility, and they seemingly have tried their hardest NOT to investigate this case."
Referring to the 19 bodies found in the lake, Austin Police Department told Newsweek: "The deaths of these individuals are not considered suspicious due to the results of these investigations. There are a variety of factors leading into each death, including suicide, natural causes like heart attacks, inability to swim, impairment due to alcohol or drugs, and a variety of mental illnesses."
Sergeant Nathan Sexton of the Austin Police Department told My San Antonio: "There is no evidence to support that these deaths are suspicious in any way," says. "The vast majority of the cases either involve someone suffering from mental illness, substance abuse, or a medical issue."
UT professor Kate Winsler Dawson, a crime historian, told My San Antonio: "I think there have been enough instances in high profile cases where the police, quite frankly, have screwed up, that it makes people very suspicious already. Some people think [police] are lazy, that they don't care, and I don't know if that comes from personal experience or if it's a generational thing. But I certainly think over the years the trust in the police has eroded for many different reasons."
