McAllister Stands By Markoff As Allegations That He Solicited Men Emerge

Philip Markoff’s fiancée has issued another statement of support as police uncover evidence linking him to a Rhode Island robbery and a Boston man, who claims Markoff contacted him for sex on Craigslist.

• Police had been searching for more women who may have been victimized by the “Craigslist Killer,” but now they are expanding the search to men as well. In an interview with NBC News yesterday, a Boston professional who did not want to be identified said that Markoff contacted him through the site. “I posted an ad on Craigslist under ‘male for t,’ which stands for ‘males for transsexuals,’ ” the man said. “That’s where he found me.” He says Markoff replied by writing, “I am a 22 y/o grad student. 6’3, 205, good build, blond/blue eyes … let me know what else you want to see or know about me.” The emails started last spring and continued through late January, but they never met. He claims Markoff called him “babe” and said in another email, “What are you into and what are your stats? What are you doing tonight?” The man says Markoff used the Yahoo! address “sexaddict5385” and send explicit pictures, which is how the man recognized Markoff. According to the man, Markoff’s ad in Craigslist’s “casual encounters” section said he wanted to meet, “men who dress as women, with transsexuals – anyone who he can get ahold of online.” The man added, “This person was trolling Craigslist like a Monopoly game. I don’t know who knows who else he contacted through there.”
• Markoff’s fiancée, Megan McAllister, issued a statement through her lawyer. The Boston Herald reports:
• “In the past two short weeks, my life and what I hoped my life to be has dramatically changed,” Megan McAllister said in a statement released by an attorney.
• “I also love my fiance and I will continue to support him throughout this legal process. My heart goes out to all of those afflicted by these events,” McAllister said. “It is my intent to fully cooperate with my fiance’s attorney as well as the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office . . . I can only tell them what I know and what is the truth. I will expect that these discussions will occur within the next several days.”
• “What has been portrayed and leaked to the media is not the Philip Markoff that I know,” McAllister, 25, said. “To me and my family, he is a loving and caring person and . . . he is innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt . . . My fiance’s fate should not rest in the court of public opinion, but rather in a court of law.”
• McAllister did not say, as she has in previous statements, that Markoff had been set up.
• When asked how his daughter was doing, Jim McAllister told reporters with tears in his eyes that, “Megan is not doing so well, it’s a very tense situation,” according to People.
• As mentioned earlier, a member of the Bstreetband, a Bruce Springsteen tribute band, said the wedding had been called off. Keyboardist William Forte said a member of the McAllister family called and said, “that as of right now, there is no way they will be able to have the August 14 wedding date,” according to the Associated Press.
• A law enforcement official said Markoff’s fingerprint was found on the wall of a hotel in Rhode Island where a stripper was robbed at gunpoint and that Markoff sent text messages from the hotel.
• Markoff owes more than $130,000 in student loans and can’t afford an attorney, according to court papers. “[Markoff] stated he did not receive financial support from his family,” said an April 23 document signed by a probation officer. “[Markoff] further stated he was unemployed for a lengthy period of time and was essentially living off student loans in the amount of $130,000.”
• The New York Times has a lengthy look into Markoff’s background. He grew up outside of Syracuse in Sherrill, which claims to be “the smallest city in New York State,” with a population of 3,150. His parents were divorced and he grew up with his mother while his brother went to live with his father. Like many high school students in town, he enjoyed hanging out at the bowling alley and local casino.
• In college at the State University of New York at Albany, Markoff was a member of the College Republicans. “We were surrounded by such a left-wing student body, and he was more like me: he didn’t really share those sentiments,” said one classmate, Jonathan Zierler. “He was a traditionalist as far as things like men and women’s roles in society. He was a throwback from a more conservative era.”
• An eviction notice is hanging on the door of Markoff and McAllister’s Quincy, Massachusetts apartment. “He seemed like the rest of us in med school,” Shanna Rone, a classmate at Boston University School of Medicine, told The Times in an e-mail message, “making ends meet with some skeletons in the closet … nothing out of the ordinary.”

Was Craigslist Suspect Also Targeting Men? [MSNBC]
Philip Markoff’s Fiancee: I Love Him [The Boston Herald]
Fiancee Still Stands By Accused Craigslist Killer [People]
Craigslist Killing Suspect Can’t Afford Lawyer [The Associated Press]
Details, But Little Insight, On Craigslist Killing Suspect [The New York Times]

Earlier: The “Craigslist Killer”: A Story Told In Many Voices
Fiancee Of Accused Craigslist Killer Says He’s Innocent