In early 2003, the city of Jacksonville, Florida, was gripped by a series of terrifying crimes against young women. This wave of violence tragically included the death of 19-year-old Caucasian female, Surita Ann Cohen. On February 5, 2003, her body was discovered in a vacant lot alongside her 17-year-old friend, Jovanna Tyrica Jefferson. Both young women had been strangled, their wrists bound, and their lives cut short in a brutal fashion.
Surita's mother had reported her missing on February 4th, having last seen her on January 30th. The discovery of the two friends was a grim escalation in a string of murders that had begun in December of the previous year, instilling a deep sense of fear within the community.
The investigation into the murders of Surita Cohen and Jovanna Jefferson soon pointed towards a suspect who used his position of trust to prey on his victims. Authorities identified Paul Durousseau, a 32-year-old taxi driver for Gator City Taxi, as the primary person of interest. The connection was made after it was discovered that Surita and Jovanna were last seen alive with a cabdriver. Investigators meticulously pieced together evidence that linked Durousseau to the crimes. A search of his vehicle uncovered jewelry belonging to both Surita and Jovanna, and cell phone records confirmed that the victims had been in contact with him. Furthermore, a bedsheet found at his former residence contained DNA evidence from Jefferson. This evidence, combined with a consistent pattern of violence against other young women, painted a chilling picture of a serial predator.
On June 17, 2003, Paul Durousseau was formally charged with five counts of first-degree murder, which included the deaths of Surita Ann Cohen, Jovanna Jefferson, Nicole L. Williams, Nikia Shanell Kilpatrick, and Shawanda Denise McCalister. He was also a suspect in the 1997 murder of Tracy Habersham in Georgia. Despite being indicted for Surita's murder, prosecutors decided to focus their efforts on a different case to secure a conviction. Durousseau was brought to trial for the 1999 murder of Tyresa Mack. In June 2007, a jury found him guilty of first-degree murder. Initially, in December 2007, he was sentenced to death. However, due to a subsequent change in Florida law requiring a unanimous jury recommendation for the death penalty, his sentence was overturned. In December 2021, Durousseau was resentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Following this definitive sentence, the state opted not to prosecute him for the other murders, including that of Surita Ann Cohen, as he was already guaranteed to spend the remainder of his life incarcerated. The case of Surita Ann Cohen, while not individually tried in court, was part of a larger investigation that successfully identified and imprisoned a dangerous serial killer, bringing an end to his deadly rampage.
