Metro

Cops eye ‘8’ link to murder string, release photos of passers-by wanted for questioning

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DEVASTATED: Naima Rahmatollah cries yesterday over her husband’s murder.

DEVASTATED: Naima Rahmatollah cries yesterday over her husband’s murder. (Victor Alcorn)

Sketch released by cops after second murder

Sketch released by cops after second murder (
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A suspected serial killer is on the loose after gunning down three Brooklyn shopkeepers with business addresses that share the digit “eight,” sources told The Post.

The fiend used the same .22-caliber gun and targeted the business owners as they were about to close for the night in each of the shootings — including the murder Friday of a Flatbush boutique owner, the sources said.

All three stores had the number eight in their address — a link that cops are investigating.

“We’re definitely looking into the number-eight angle,” a law-enforcement source said. “But we’re not any closer to solving the case because of it.”

One law-enforcement source said the killer appears to be targeting men who are Middle Eastern.

The newest victim, Vahidipour Rahmatollah, 78, was found in the back of She She Boutique with two gunshot wounds to the head and one to the torso, sources said.

Rahmatollah was shot behind the counter and dragged into the back, where the killer covered his face with clothes, the sources added.

Relatives were horrified.

“He never had in his whole life one enemy. He didn’t have. He was a very kind man,” sobbed his wife, Naima Rahmatollah, who said he was supposed to attend a bar mitzvah yesterday.

The family began to worry when Rahmatollah didn’t come home at his usual time of 9 or 9:30 p.m.

“He didn’t show up at 10, 10:30, so we called the police,” said daughter Yasmin Rahmatollah. “A half-hour later, detectives came and I got the picture he was dead. It was so shocking, and it was one of the worst nights of my life.”

“He just wanted to work hard and provide for his family,” she said.

The murder spree began July 6, with the second slaying on Aug. 2.

Cash was stolen in the first two killings, but nothing was taken in the most recent, law-enforcement sources said.

Investigators consider a serial killer a person who murders at least three people over an extended period with a cooling-off period in between.

The Brooklyn shooter appears to be well trained.

“He could be some guy who has really done his homework. He may have read up on how to do this,” a law-enforcement source said. “Professionals sometimes use .22s, which make less noise and, because it has less firepower, it does a lot of internal damage.”

Store owners near the latest killing that have an eight in their addresses are in a panic.

“My store has eight in the address. I just have to open my eyes bigger and bigger,” said one store owner who gave only his first name, Albert, because he was too terrified. “We can’t lock the door. People see the door locked, they walk away.”

Cops posted fliers around the neighborhood of the most recent murder, offering a $22,000 reward.

The NYPD later released surveillance photos and video of four passers-by who cops said they want to question in the most recent slaying Friday. Authorities said the two men and two women are not considered suspects but that they were near the Flatbush store before owner Rahmatollah Vahidipour’s body was found inside at 7:11 p.m.

The four passers-by who cops want to talk were identified by authorities as:

—  “John Doe Duffle Bag,” a balding man with a mustache who wore a long overcoat and carried a duffel bag. He was seen in the vicinity just after 6 p.m.

— “Jane Doe Long Coat,” a woman wearing glasses and a neck scarf who also was in the area around the same time.

— Jane Doe Green Jacket,” a younger woman with a white head scarf and green coat who was seen running about a half-block from the scene while shedding her jacket at 6:52 p.m. The coat was later found in a nearby garbage can.

—  “John Doe Bubble Jacket,’’ a young man who was seen running right in front of the woman with the green jacket around the same time.

Additional reporting by Larry Celona, Jamie Schram and Georgett Roberts