Serial stabber suspect caught trying to flee the country after leaving deadly trail, police say

This image provided by the Michigan State Police shows a composite sketch of a man they say is the serial stabber.

A serial stabber who police think carried out a three-state killing spree was arrested, police said Thursday.

The suspect was caught at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport late Wednesday night, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection official told The Associated Press.

The official said that after the suspect was arrested on unrelated charges, he was handed to the FBI and Atlanta police.

The early-morning attacks started May 24 in Flint, Mich., leaving five men dead and 10 others wounded. Almost all the Flint victims are black and the three men stabbed in Leesburg, Va. have been described by authorities as dark-skinned, leading police to believe the attacks were racially motivated.

A sketch of the suspect depicts him as white. His name has not been released.

"While this is a key step in the investigation, there are still many issues that need to be addressed before we identify this individual as the person responsible for this horrific crime spree," Leesburg Police Officer Chris Jones said in a statement.

Initially, police focused on the Flint area, but a similar stabbing in Toledo, Ohio, followed by the Leesburg attacks that began Aug. 3, widened the search.

Police say they narrowed in on the suspect after witnesses spotted him in a dark green Chevy Blazer.

Last week, a surveillance camera captured a similar vehicle cruising through a Leesburg parking lot where a teen was hit in the head with a hammer by a man who asked him for help fixing the Blazer, police said.

Authorities plan a press conference Thursday afternoon