The gun and bullets found on a man whose identity remains unknown, match those used in recent murders in the Gaffney south Carolina area, according to State Law Enforcement Deputy Director Neil Dolan.
Investigators from South Carolina, tracking a serial killer, have been checking out a possible link to a man killed by police in North Carolina. Gaston County officials contacted the South Carolina investigators after evidence found at the scene of an officer related shooting peaked their interest.
The serial killer has killed five people in a little over a week in and near Gaffney, South Carolina. The first murder occurred June 27, on a Saturday. Kline W. Cash, a Cowpens area peach farmer, was found shot to death in the living room of his home. Investigators said Cash appeared to have been robbed. The killer first spoke with Cash’s wife about buying some hay. She left to run some errands, returning a few hours later to find her husband dead. The Cherokee County Sheriff’s Department believes that Cash’s wife may have been the killer’s intended victim.
On Tuesday, June 30, the bodies of 83-year-old Hazel Keaton Linder and her 50-year-old daughter, Gena Linder Parker, were found bound and shot to death inside of Linder’s home in Gaffney.
Thursday, July 2, the killer struck again. Stephen Tyler was shot and killed at his place of business, Tyler Home Center in Gaffney. His fifteen-year-old daughter, Abby Tyler, was shot in the head. She was taken to Spartanburg Regional Medical Center where she later died, on July 4.
The serial killer is depicted in the the composite on this page as described by witnesses. The man was reportedly driving a 1991-1994 Ford Explorer Sport, 2 door, faded gray or champagne in color. The occupants of a vehicle matching this description were involved in a shooting incident this morning. One man was killed. This man, authorities believe, may have been the Gaffney area serial killer. The man was killed only about 40 miles northeast of Gaffney, the crux of the serial killer’s activity. Investigators from the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division and the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office traveled to the area northeast of Gastonia in Gaston County. The shooting occurred in the 700 block of Dallas-Spencer Mountain Road.
The man killed by police has not been identified as authorities seek his next of kin. He was identified by one of his cohorts as "Patrick." The man was reportedly wanted on a warrant out of Lincoln County, North Carolina.
The events began unraveling a little before 3:00 AM. A neighbor had called to report something going on in a vacant house in the Dallas, North Carolina neighborhood. Three officers arrived on scene and found the older-model Ford Explorer occupied by three people. Two of the occupants were identified as Mark Stamey and his sister, Sharon Stamey. The two told police that they lived in the house. The third man gave police a false name. His true identity was determined, and after finding that he a warrant had been issued for his arrest, police attempted to take him into custody. The man resisted efforts to apprehend him, firing at police. Officer J.K. Shaw was wounded in the leg. Shaw returned fire, killing the man.
It looks as if the Gaffney serial killer has met his end. Good riddance, and may the citizens of Cherokee County, South Carolina breathe a little easier. Still, a tremendous loss has been suffered in the area. May our hearts go out to those who have lost loved ones in so tragic a manner.
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