Search of suspect's home turns up a gun, police say
Underwear of victims also allegedly found
When investigators searched the Quincy apartment of Philip Markoff after the Boston University medical school student was arrested in two recent Craigslist attacks, they found a handgun hidden in a hollowed-out copy of Gray's Anatomy of the Human Body and underwear they alleged was taken from two victims, according to a law enforcement official with knowledge of the case.
The underpants were mementos from the crimes, said another law enforcement official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Investigators are testing the handgun to determine whether the semiautomatic weapon hidden in the medical textbook was used to fatally shoot Julissa Brisman, a 26-year-old masseuse, April 14 at the Boston Marriott Copley Place hotel.
The disclosures provided another startling twist in a case that has drawn international news coverage and pulled back a curtain on the sordid world of prostitution fostered by the anonymity of the Internet. Authorities say they are investigating whether Markoff, a 23-year-old medical student, attacked the masseuse and robbed a prostitute at the Westin Copley Place on April 10 because of gambling debts. The prostitute had also advertised on Craigslist.
In another development yesterday, a spokesman for Rhode Island Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch said authorities there expected to charge someone in an April 16 attack on a woman at a Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites in Warwick in the next three or four days. But the spokesman, Michael J. Healey, appeared to back off the assertion several hours later, saying he expected the charges to be filed "as soon as we can."
Healey said authorities believe there is a strong connection between what happened in Boston and what happened in Warwick, but he would not say whether Markoff is the man he expects to be charged.
Healey said a grand jury may be convened in the Warwick attack. Prosecutors are likely to charge the assailant with assault with intent to commit robbery and two unspecified firearms charges, he said.
The Warwick victim, a 26-year-old prostitute from Las Vegas, had advertised private lap dances on Craigslist. She told police that her client, a clean-cut blond man who stood about 6 feet tall, tied her up at gunpoint around 11:15 p.m. But after the woman's husband entered the room, the assailant backed out, pointing his gun at the man before fleeing.
Markoff's lawyer, John Salsberg of Boston, said prosecutors have not shared with him any of the evidence they have against his client.
"The only thing I know is what I hear in the press and see on television," he said.
Salsberg and another lawyer from his firm visited Markoff yesterday morning at the Nashua Street Jail, he said.
"Keep in mind, he's a young man with no prior record, and he's being held at a jail," Salsberg said. "It's difficult for anybody to be there, even if you're been there more than once. But I think he's bearing up."
Markoff was arraigned Tuesday in Boston Municipal Court on charges of murder, kidnapping, and armed robbery. A plea of not guilty was entered on his behalf, and he was ordered held without bail until his next court appearance, on May 21.
Boston police arrested Markoff Monday in Walpole as he drove south on Interstate 95 along with his fiancée, Megan McAllister, according to Suffolk District Attorney Daniel F. Conley. Markoff told police the two were heading to Foxwoods Casino in Ledyard, Conn.
When investigators searched Markoff's apartment in Quincy afterward, they found the pistol and the underwear, the law enforcement official said.
"We're not going to comment about any evidence that was seized until it has been processed and brought before a grand jury," said Sergeant Detective Daniel Duff, an investigator on the case.
Authorities also confirmed that they were aware that a Google search of Markoff's phone number in Quincy elicited an old Craigslist posting advertising "Ebony Erotic Masseuse." The ad said "taking my last appointment" and encouraged customers to call Markoff's number.
Since Markoff's arrest, Conley has publicly encouraged members of the public to come forward if they have been assaulted in connection with erotic services advertised on Craigslist.
His spokesman, Jake Wark, said yesterday that prosecutors have received many communications from the public, but he would not discuss the substance of those communications.
Maria Cramer can be reached at mcramer@globe.com. Jonathan Saltzman can be reached at jsaltzman@globe.com. 
