Grim news from Virgina as authorities are investigating the shooting of two fishermen on Dismal Creek near Mechanicsburg along the Appalachian trail. The anglers were both shot and one is in serious condition as reported by Roanoke.com. A suspect was apprehended driving a truck that matched the description of one spotted at the scene of the crime. Authorities have closed a portion of the Appalachian trail near the area.
The suspected shooter is Randall Lee Smith, who served only 15 years in prison for the 1981 slaying of two hikers on the Appalachian trail. His crimes were documented in the book "Murder on the Appalachian Trail".
In 1982, Smith pleaded guilty to the 1981 murders of two hikers on the Appalachian Trail. He shot Robert Mountford Jr. three times, stabbed Laura Susan Ramsay more than a dozen times and left their bodies in shallow, leaf-covered graves. He was given two consecutive 15-year sentences. The plea agreement halted the case just before it went to trial in Giles County Circuit Court. Smith was released in 1996.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to the injured anglers and their families.
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