Alleged Craigslist killer gets friends' support on Facebook

23.04.2009
The man arrested for allegedly targeting women who advertised massage and other exotic services on Craigslist is getting some support - on Facebook anyway.

Supporters of Philip Markoff, 22, of Quincy, Mass., created a Facebook page focused on "rallying against the media" that has been reporting on the case. Dubbed, , the group had 108 members -- some of whom are members of the press -- as of 5:30 p.m. EDT Thursday.

The page had a lot of comments from various users before 5 p.m. but those comments were removed, along with the ability to leave comments, shortly afterwards. Many of the comments were negative toward Markoff and focused on the evidence against him. Two pictures - one of an electric chair and one of a guillotine - that had been posted on the site also were removed.

Markoff was arraigned in Boston Municipal Court on Tuesday. Ordered held without bail, Markoff is charged with murder, armed robbery, unlawful possession of a firearm, and kidnapping. The charges, according to the Boston Police Department, are in connection with the of Julissa Brisman at the Copley Marriott Hotel in Boston and the April 10 kidnapping and robbery of another woman at the Westin Hotel, also in Boston.

Markoff, a second-year medical student at Boston University, was taken into custody late Monday afternoon. He is due to make his next appearance in Municipal Court on May 21 for a pretrial conference.

work was a key factor in tracking down the suspect, according to Jake Wark, press secretary for the Suffolk County, Mass., district attorney's office.