PACHUCA, Mexico (AP) — Authorities in the central Mexican state of Hidalgo say they have captured a man who allegedly killed seven women in as many months.

Hidalgo state Public Safety Secretary Damian Canales says Omar Nieves has confessed that he raped and strangled his first victim in June.

Canales said Friday that Nieves then killed three more women, including an ex-girlfriend, by strangling or smothering them.

He says the 33-year-old taxi driver killed an additional three women in December with the help of a friend, Constantino Dominguez, who also has been detained.

Canales says Dominguez told police the victims were women looking for a taxi and traveling alone.

The official says Nieves' girlfriend told authorities he was behind the killings that terrorized the town of Tula, leading to his arrest.