On July 19, 2013, East Cleveland police responding to reports of a foul odor, investigated a garage leased to Michael Madison, a 35-year-old sex offender, and discovered a decomposing body lying inside. Two more bodies were found the following day, one in a backyard and the other in the basement of a vacant house. The bodies, which all belonged to young African-American women, were found 100-to-200 yards apart, each wrapped in a plastic bag. After obtaining a search warrant, police entered Madison's apartment and found "further evidence of decomposition". After a brief standoff with police at his mother's house, Madison was taken into custody without incident. Some media organizations say he might have been influenced by convicted Cleveland serial killer Anthony Sowell.