Serial Killer Ryan Scott Brinston Arrested in 2020 #truecrime

Over just a few short weeks in 2020, a vicious monster took the lives of 3 people and attacked at least 2 others who barely survived the ordeal in Oroville and Las Molinos, California and a motive has never been determined for the heinous crimes. The killer scouted out his victims as he worked as a tree trimmer, hmm that sounds familiar. The creature targeted older customers with the youngest of the 3 he killed being 57 while the others were at least in their 80’s. Once a person or couple had been selected he returned alone after his crew left and slashed his victims throats then left without stealing a thing. The killing was what he came for.

Ryan Scott Blinston, the Northern California Cutthroat

Ryan Scott Blinston was born on August 26, 1983 in California. There is little information aside from this on his early years, but he entered into the public record at age 22, when he stole a ford explorer in Hanover, New Hampshire. He was charged with felony theft.

The next time Blinston pops up is in 2013. He had returned home to California and was using methamphetamines which led him to burglary and theft. Police arrested him in possession of 3 stolen guns while driving a stolen car. The drugs pushed him over the edge into crime, but after his release, he was ready to escalate further, this time into violence. But what is strange is that the murders did not seem to be motivated by theft.

In the year 2020, Blinston was working as part of a tree trimming crew that serviced Butte and Tehama county in california, just north of Sacramento. In mid May they were doing a job for an elderly couple in Los Molinos. Loreen Severs was 88 and her husband Homer was 91 at the time. Blinston scouted out the couple as they worked and realized how vulnerable the couple was.

The night before the murders, cell phone tracking showed that Blinston returned to the house again, perhaps to see their routine. Then, around 7:45 AM on May 23, he came back. This time, he did not simply watch the elderly couple. Blinston broke into the home and attacked Loreen and Homer. Loreen died from a stab wound to the upper torso and both had their throats slashed. Thankfully Homer survived the ordeal and was rushed to the hospital in a helicopter.

Once Blinston crossed the line to murder, he seems to have been unleashed internally as he soon killed again. On June 4, less than 2 weeks after the Severs murders, the creature was working another tree trimming job. Sandra George was 82 years old and likely never suspected the evil in her midst.

The drug addled monster waited until the rest of the crew left after the job was done then returned to the home. He broke in and attacked the elderly woman, slashing her throat and leaving her dead in the home. She was discovered the next afternoon around 5pm and declared dead on the scene.

The final murder took place only 2 days after the George killing. This time the victim was an acquaintance of Blinston rather than a customer. 56 year old Vicky Cline was last seen with the monster in downtown Oroville on June 6 2020. Later that day, he doused her car in gasoline and lit it on fire. When it was discovered police searched it for DNA and fingerprint evidence. Her body was not discovered until 3 weeks later on June 21 a week after the creature had been arrested. She had been dumped in a river an hour away from Oroville in the town called Belden.

Police were able to connect Blinston to the burned car and before Clines body was found, police wanted to question Blinston. They learned that he had been camping out on a property in the town of Brush creek and SWAT was sent to arrest him. When they arrived, they discovered yet another crime in progress.

Blinston was outside a mobile home with a hatchet trying to break in. When he saw the police, he ran but was soon captured after being pepper sprayed and tased. Inside the trailer, they found a wounded man who had had his throat slashed. He told police that he had let the killer move into the trailer for the night after Blinston complained of bears on the property.

He woke up to find the creature standing over him. Blinston had stabbed him in the throat, yet the man was able to fight him off and force him out of the mobile home. Now in custody, police were able to connect Blinston to the killings they had been working to solve in the area. He was charged with 3 counts of 1st degree murder and 2 counts of attempted murder.

2 years later in May of 2022, the trial began. The prosecution called dozens of witnesses and hundreds of pieces of evidence including photos, cell phone tracking data, and business records that all pointed to Blinston as the killer. On August 4, he was found guilty on all charges and given 3 life sentences without the possibility of parole. Ryan Scott Blinston is currently housed at the Pleasant Valley state prison in Coalinga.