Was Media Information Concocted In The 2003 Sniper Killings? by Jack Swint & Sam Webber . WestVirginiaNews@gmail.com.
Charleston Police Chief Brent Webster said in January 2007 that he had received new information about the case from Andy Palmer, host of the public access TV show West Virginia's Most Wanted. Palmer said at the time that he received information that a gang known as the Charleston 5 was responsible for the sniper-style deaths." .. Charleston Daily Mail.
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Six years after three innocent victims lost their lives to an unknown shooter, facts have emerged that appear on the surface to show that at least one media outlet concocted facts to gain attention for themselves.
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The True Facts:
In August of 2003 three people were killed with the same weapon in sniper-style shootings at Kanawha Valley convenience stores. Their deaths still remain unsolved. It all began on August. 10, 2003 at approximately 11 p.m. when 44 year old Gary Carrier Jr. of South Charleston was shot in the head while using a pay phone outside a Go-Mart on Charleston’s West Side. Three days later on August 14, 10:20 p.m.
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Jeanie Patton, 31, was shot in the back of the head as she finished pumping gasoline into her red Firebird at a Speedway store in Campbells Creek. One hour later, Okey Meadows Jr., 26, of Campbells Creek was shot in the neck outside a Cedar Grove Go-Mart while buying milk and paying through a security window. That store was about 10 miles from the scene of Jeannie’s murder. Another shooting was reported that same night at another convenience store but no one was hit in that incident, and neither a bullet nor a spent casing had been recovered.
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All three victims’ were shot in the head or neck from distances of 30 to 70 yards. In the days following Aug. 14, 2003, Kanawha Valley residents nervously stood behind their cars at night as they pumped gasoline, entered and exited stores or they just stayed home altogether. Within days after the shootings police began to theorize that they were somehow all tied together. Questions began to surface of a possible drug related tie to the three victims and one shooter. In an August 20th, 2003 Daily Mail article law enforcement began outlining their beliefs.
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"I don't believe the shooter just happened upon them," said then Kanawha County Sheriff's Deputy Phil Morris. "They were obviously targets. I believe it's one shooter, one weapon, and two victims. Possibly three," he said. Forensics tests also have determined that the bullets that killed Jeanie Patton and Okey Meadows, both of the Campbells Creek are, were fired from the same gun, Morris said. "We have no reason to believe that we don't have any more than one person involved in both Thursday night shootings," he said.
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Thousands of man hours and hundreds of city, county, state and federal investigators worked around the clock in an attempt to solve the sniper type murders. From witness accounts and investigators reports police released a composite of a possible suspect that described a white man with a beard in a dark Ford F-150 pickup..
Days turned into weeks, then into months and into the first year since the murders occurred and police were no closer to naming or arresting anyone in the case. On the first anniversary of his daughter's death, Larry "Rodney" Patton told the Charleston Newspaper that he wanted to tell the public how poorly he felt the investigation into three sniper-style killings was going. Other victims' families told him criticizing law enforcement might jeopardize the case against the person or people responsible for three shooting deaths in four days that terrorized the Kanawha Valley. So he kept quiet.
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To date, only one person has been identified as a "person of interest" and the task force investigating the murders was vague in their statements. Brian Douglas Caldwell of Winifrede Hollow West Virginia was identified by investigators as someone they were looking at as the sniper. Caldwell "loosely" fit the description and composite. He also drove a black Ford F-150 - the type of truck police called a "vehicle of interest.".
Mainstream media allowed People to draw their own conclusions about Caldwell the day after a local TV reports showed investigators combing his property and using vague sound bites such as "person of interest" and "neither confirm, nor deny" in reference to Caldwell. Plus he owned a lot of guns. Caldwell's lawyer Tim DiPiero cautioned the media and the public not to make his client into another Richard Jewell, the Atlanta security guard who was mistakenly treated as the prime suspect in the 1996 Olympic bombing case.
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Intentional Media Damage Or The Actual Killers Exposed
In January of 2007, Public Access TV aired a segment about one mans reported and explosive new facts in the sniper killings. The show was produced by Andrew Palmer, pictured to the left, who was the founder of the former organization known as "Chain Breakers." Palmer also created and hosted a local TV show "West Virginia’s Most Wanted." Mainstream media across the state promoted the TV expose’ that claimed to shed new light on what really occurred, and what law enforcement had failed to discover. Even the Charleston Newspaper, the states largest media company, reported that Charleston Police Chief Brent Webster said in January 2007, that he had received new information about the case from Andy Palmer, host of the public access TV show West Virginia's Most Wanted.Palmer claimed that he received information that a gang known as the "Charleston Five" was responsible for the sniper-style deaths. He told everyone that a confidential informant allegedly came to him with details and information that a "red neck gang" known as the Charleston 5 committed the murders. Palmer claimed the informant passed a polygraph too. And, that two of the three killings were committed randomly to throw officers off the their true motive to only kill Jeanie Patton. "They threw the other two in the pot to make it look random," said Palmer.
The unidentified informant, who was interviewed on the program from the neck down, sitting in a rocking chair, said that the reason for the killings was over a stolen automobile engine. The leader of the gang sought to murder Patton because her boyfriend had stolen a car engine that belonged to him. "As it was told to me, he said he had lost something he loved, and now he was going to take away something this individual loved."
Law enforcement in the case asked Andrew Palmer not to air the segment, that his story would hamper their investigation. As one city elected official recently put it… "The guy is a nut case." But, authorities had a duty to investigate any possibilities, no matter what their gut feelings told them. Government sources and other witnesses have come forward with information that they say show that Palmer may have concocted and or embellished parts of the story to make better headlines for himself, and his now defunct "Chain Breakers" and "West Virginia’s Most Wanted" TV show.
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Who is the alleged informant who contacted Andrew Palmer to expose the real murder plot on TV? His longtime friend and Kanawha County business associate, Bobby Walker.
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There really was a group known as the "Charleston 5," .. But, not in WV! The only Charleston 5 gang that ever existed was a group of five men who were brought up on felony charges for conspiracy to incite a riot on January 19, 2000 in Charleston, South Carolina. The five men, Kenneth Jefferson, Rick Simmons, Peter Washington, Elijah Ford and Jason Edgerton, were union workers from two local longshore unions. They claimed to have appeared to peacefully protest a Norwegian freight company from using non-union workers on the Charleston SC docks when fighting between picketing workers and a police force ensued. The five men were arrested along with four others and were held on felony charges that could have carried a prison sentence of up to 10 years.
As one state official said, "if Andy Palmer had factual information about this case, he would have come straight to us and allowed the task force time to investigate. Instead, he and a friend created a media frenzy." Palmer claims he did bring the information to law enforcement first, but they would not listen to him so he aired the segment. FBI Special Agent John Hambrick recently told WCHS TV that someone knows the murderer and urges them to do the right thing. A $100,000 reward is still on the line for information.
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Research and development for this story was made possible by the assistance of the Kanawha County Public Library, City, County, State and Federal Law Enforcement Agencies..
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Who Killed Eddie Brown Of Kincaid WV?
The 72-year old life-long resident Dewey Edward Brown, of Kincaid was a man whose very presence brought a smile to adults and children alike in Kincaid WV. At 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighing 250 pounds, Eddie had the physical size to be intimidating but his sweet smile and laughing eyes soon unveiled his warm and gentle heart.
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Eddie was a familiar sight at Via’s Service Station where he had helped people for years. Although he worked 12 to 14 hours a day, it was generally assumed that he really didn’t need the money. Eddie lived simply in the family home on Camp Branch Road with his younger sister, Ola. It was common knowledge that he always carried money in his right shirt pocket. People knew that if they went to Eddie for help, he was always willing to pull the money out for a loan or a gift toward gas or groceries.
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Children grew up knowing he could always be counted on to slip them a candy bar if they didn’t have the money. As they grew to adulthood, they knew the same was true for gas or grocery money for the family. For the community of Kincaid, Eddie was a symbol of the type of kindness and trusting innocence that has made small town America a beloved memory.
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As the 1980s ended, citizens of the tiny town of Kincaid and nearby Page WV began to feel the economy slipping downhill. Unemployment was up, property values declined and a new breed of resident began to emerge. Run-down campers were brought in and parked in the hollow near Camp Branch Road. Neighbors were complaining about the partying, drinking, and drug deals that were going on. Community leaders formed a plan to work with the Sheriff’s Department to set up a Neighborhood Watch Program. In 1991, a rash of burglaries, break-ins and windows being shot-out became part of the way of life. Police stepped up patrols in the area and a juvenile believed to be the leader of a gang was arrested. Everyone felt that arrest would bring the end to the recent crime spree.
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On the morning of January 22, 1992, Eddie began his day in the usual way. He wasn’t scheduled to open Via’s Sunoco Station until 6:00 a.m. but he usually had it open by four. Since he had gotten older, Eddie found he didn’t sleep much and he preferred to be busy. He reportedly made the walk every morning and except in very bad weather, it was one of the highlights of his day. Sometimes Dick and Clarine Marshall would drive by on their newspaper route and stop to offer him a ride but he usually turned down the offer. Eddie liked the walk. That morning, Eslie Bills told police investigators that he was driving down Rt. 61 returning to his home. As he passed the Sunoco station, he saw Eddie unlocking the door. He remembers that Eddie looked up with what Bills later described as a bewildered or "deer in the headlights" look on his face. Thinking that his automobile coming unexpectedly down the road had startled Eddie; Bills traveled on toward home with a slight twinge of regret. Glancing at the clock, he noticed it was 2:39 am.
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The Marshalls regularly traveled through Kincaid at that time of night to deliver the Beckley Post-Herald. They had grown accustomed to seeing the Sunoco station opened on their return journey as Eddie prepared it or the coming day. However, this morning was different. They knew that instantly when they saw the station sitting dark and apparently abandoned. Concerned, the couple entered the station and switched on the lights. What they saw amazed them. The station area was covered in blood and so was Eddie. He seemed confused and wandered around the room, holding a brown rag to his head in an attempt to staunch the blood. He didn't seem to understand how much he was bleeding or how badly he might be injured.
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Bewildered and unsteady, Eddie allowed Marshall to drive him to Oak Hill Hospital. The doctor told Glen Brown that his brother’s skull looked like a "road map" of holes and fractures. Someone had hit Eddie hard and more than once. When forensic experts examined the x-rays, it was determined that the 72 year old had been struck at least four times with a sharp, pointed object that had punctured his skull with each blow. At the hospital, Eddie’s clothes were turned over to his family. His sister-in-law found that the approximately $500 that he always carried in his right shirt pocket was missing. Eddie lay in the hospital for 29 days. On February 20, 1992, he died from his injuries.
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In hopes of helping to solve the murder, officers released a key piece of information describing a woman’s blouse that Eddie was holding against his wounds when found that morning. The owner of this blouse may have been present on the night of Eddie Brown’s attack. It is Size Small and of a brown and cream color. If you know who may have owned this blouse in 1992, please contact the Fayette County Sheriff Department at (304) 574-4216 or Crimestoppers at (304) 255- STOP.
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On March 19, 2007, Fayette County Sheriff William R. Larid IV increased the reward for information that leads to prosecution and conviction of any unsolved murder in Fayette County from $5,000 to $20,000.
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Research and development for this story was made possible by the assistance of the Fayette County Public Library, Crime Stoppers of Raleigh County, friends and family of Eddy Brown. George and Morgan Bragg of GEM Publications in Beaver WV whose book provided the picture and contents for this story.
Who is the alleged informant who contacted Andrew Palmer to expose the real murder plot on TV? His longtime friend and Kanawha County business associate, Bobby Walker.
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There really was a group known as the "Charleston 5," .. But, not in WV! The only Charleston 5 gang that ever existed was a group of five men who were brought up on felony charges for conspiracy to incite a riot on January 19, 2000 in Charleston, South Carolina. The five men, Kenneth Jefferson, Rick Simmons, Peter Washington, Elijah Ford and Jason Edgerton, were union workers from two local longshore unions. They claimed to have appeared to peacefully protest a Norwegian freight company from using non-union workers on the Charleston SC docks when fighting between picketing workers and a police force ensued. The five men were arrested along with four others and were held on felony charges that could have carried a prison sentence of up to 10 years.
As one state official said, "if Andy Palmer had factual information about this case, he would have come straight to us and allowed the task force time to investigate. Instead, he and a friend created a media frenzy." Palmer claims he did bring the information to law enforcement first, but they would not listen to him so he aired the segment. FBI Special Agent John Hambrick recently told WCHS TV that someone knows the murderer and urges them to do the right thing. A $100,000 reward is still on the line for information.
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Research and development for this story was made possible by the assistance of the Kanawha County Public Library, City, County, State and Federal Law Enforcement Agencies..
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Who Killed Eddie Brown Of Kincaid WV?
The 72-year old life-long resident Dewey Edward Brown, of Kincaid was a man whose very presence brought a smile to adults and children alike in Kincaid WV. At 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighing 250 pounds, Eddie had the physical size to be intimidating but his sweet smile and laughing eyes soon unveiled his warm and gentle heart..
Eddie was a familiar sight at Via’s Service Station where he had helped people for years. Although he worked 12 to 14 hours a day, it was generally assumed that he really didn’t need the money. Eddie lived simply in the family home on Camp Branch Road with his younger sister, Ola. It was common knowledge that he always carried money in his right shirt pocket. People knew that if they went to Eddie for help, he was always willing to pull the money out for a loan or a gift toward gas or groceries.
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Children grew up knowing he could always be counted on to slip them a candy bar if they didn’t have the money. As they grew to adulthood, they knew the same was true for gas or grocery money for the family. For the community of Kincaid, Eddie was a symbol of the type of kindness and trusting innocence that has made small town America a beloved memory.
.
As the 1980s ended, citizens of the tiny town of Kincaid and nearby Page WV began to feel the economy slipping downhill. Unemployment was up, property values declined and a new breed of resident began to emerge. Run-down campers were brought in and parked in the hollow near Camp Branch Road. Neighbors were complaining about the partying, drinking, and drug deals that were going on. Community leaders formed a plan to work with the Sheriff’s Department to set up a Neighborhood Watch Program. In 1991, a rash of burglaries, break-ins and windows being shot-out became part of the way of life. Police stepped up patrols in the area and a juvenile believed to be the leader of a gang was arrested. Everyone felt that arrest would bring the end to the recent crime spree.
.
On the morning of January 22, 1992, Eddie began his day in the usual way. He wasn’t scheduled to open Via’s Sunoco Station until 6:00 a.m. but he usually had it open by four. Since he had gotten older, Eddie found he didn’t sleep much and he preferred to be busy. He reportedly made the walk every morning and except in very bad weather, it was one of the highlights of his day. Sometimes Dick and Clarine Marshall would drive by on their newspaper route and stop to offer him a ride but he usually turned down the offer. Eddie liked the walk. That morning, Eslie Bills told police investigators that he was driving down Rt. 61 returning to his home. As he passed the Sunoco station, he saw Eddie unlocking the door. He remembers that Eddie looked up with what Bills later described as a bewildered or "deer in the headlights" look on his face. Thinking that his automobile coming unexpectedly down the road had startled Eddie; Bills traveled on toward home with a slight twinge of regret. Glancing at the clock, he noticed it was 2:39 am.
.
The Marshalls regularly traveled through Kincaid at that time of night to deliver the Beckley Post-Herald. They had grown accustomed to seeing the Sunoco station opened on their return journey as Eddie prepared it or the coming day. However, this morning was different. They knew that instantly when they saw the station sitting dark and apparently abandoned. Concerned, the couple entered the station and switched on the lights. What they saw amazed them. The station area was covered in blood and so was Eddie. He seemed confused and wandered around the room, holding a brown rag to his head in an attempt to staunch the blood. He didn't seem to understand how much he was bleeding or how badly he might be injured.
.
Bewildered and unsteady, Eddie allowed Marshall to drive him to Oak Hill Hospital. The doctor told Glen Brown that his brother’s skull looked like a "road map" of holes and fractures. Someone had hit Eddie hard and more than once. When forensic experts examined the x-rays, it was determined that the 72 year old had been struck at least four times with a sharp, pointed object that had punctured his skull with each blow. At the hospital, Eddie’s clothes were turned over to his family. His sister-in-law found that the approximately $500 that he always carried in his right shirt pocket was missing. Eddie lay in the hospital for 29 days. On February 20, 1992, he died from his injuries.
.
In hopes of helping to solve the murder, officers released a key piece of information describing a woman’s blouse that Eddie was holding against his wounds when found that morning. The owner of this blouse may have been present on the night of Eddie Brown’s attack. It is Size Small and of a brown and cream color. If you know who may have owned this blouse in 1992, please contact the Fayette County Sheriff Department at (304) 574-4216 or Crimestoppers at (304) 255- STOP.
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On March 19, 2007, Fayette County Sheriff William R. Larid IV increased the reward for information that leads to prosecution and conviction of any unsolved murder in Fayette County from $5,000 to $20,000.
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Research and development for this story was made possible by the assistance of the Fayette County Public Library, Crime Stoppers of Raleigh County, friends and family of Eddy Brown. George and Morgan Bragg of GEM Publications in Beaver WV whose book provided the picture and contents for this story.
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Where Is Faithann Willis?
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Faithann Willis, of Barrackville WV has been missing for four years now. Her mother, Rose Munro, fears the worst has happened to her daughter and says the disappearance remains a mystery. According to local newspaper coverage, "It's unreal - it's like a bad dream I haven't woke up from yet," Munro said. "It's long. It's gruesome. It's lonely.".
She was last seen at a fast-food restaurant in Fairmont WV the night of Aug. 6, 2005 after friends dropped her off at the McDonalds around 11pm. No one has heard from her or seen her since. She hasn't contacted anyone. "I just can't see how someone can let a mother go a year without knowing where their child is at," Munro said. The Dominion Post reported that her former boyfriend was the last person known to have seen her, but investigators never commented on whether he was a suspect. Police also have never commented what the man told them when they interviewed him.
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In September 2008, police brought in cadaver dogs to search an area known as Montana Mines. They conducted a "daylight to dusk" combing of the area with the dogs after receiving tips to search the area for human remains. The Fairmont chief of police also called on the US Attorneys office to ask for additional manpower from the federal levels. In August of this year, Fairmont newspaper Times West Virginia reporter Mallory Panuska noted that police have not forgotten, nor will they, this investigation. "We are still investigating the case. We have new information that comes in to us almost daily and we are still following up," Fairmont Detective Sgt. Matt Pigott said. "We are still hoping to close this case and get some answers to the family, but we obviously appreciate the public’s help in answering these questions."
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A California foundation that helps families of missing people donated $5,000 to a reward fund created by Munro to help locate Willis, boosting the fund's total to $10,500.
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A victim of scoliosis or curvature of the spine, FaithAnn is 4-foot-9. She weighs only 105 pounds. She has auburn hair and brown eyes. She has a sun tattoo on her right shoulder and a Green Scorpion tattoo on her lower back. Authorities ask that anyone who has any information on the disappearances of Faithann Willis should call (304) 366-4200 or Marion County WV prosecutor’s office at (304) 367-5380.
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Research and development for this story was made possible by the assistance of the Marion County Prosecutors office, Times West Virginia, Fairmont Police, the Sheriffs Department and WV State Police .
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End Of Part Two
Jack Swint - Publisher
West Virginia News
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8 comments:
Here we go again. All comfortable , law-abiding citizens just going through life and probably helping somebody every day.
Who just got out of jail in that area or who was recently charged with batteries? Or who just lost a girlfriend?
Relationships gone bad, economies taking a turn for the worst and just a bad-ass kind of guys loving to scare and maim with guns, make these things happen.
I'd check the records of recent criminals let out of prison in that area.
I knew Andy Palmer was full of crap with his so called knowledge of the sniper case!!! Only thing he did was give the victims families false hope and sidetrack investigators. Palmer should be arrested!!
Oh, thats right, he has been and is in jail right now!
Faithann sounds so tiny it is a made- in- heaven type of crime for the perpetrator. Unfortunately, the Dominion Post should have pushed for further info regarding the boyfriend and followed through to find out where he was before and after if the cops did not do their job.
Such a long time since the disappearance only helps the criminal but I would definitely lean on the boyfriend, particularly if he was the jealous type and obsessed by her and her independence out with her own friends.
Great thoughts on Faithann case
and the former boyfriend. I to would be looking long and hard at the boyfriend and a possible jealosy angle.
Im not a veternarian, but I know a horses ass when I smell one.
Just wondering if you are brave enough to include the Cathy Carroll murder in this series. The murderer walks free as does the one who arranged the murder. If you want to get away with murder, just commit it in Fayette County.
If you, or anyone else will send me what info and or beliefs you have about the Cathy Caroll murder, we will include it. Your ID would be confidential.
E-Mail to:
WestVirginiaNews@gmail.com
ATF was looking for a 22 mag weapon checked every ATF gun dealer in state.
I know Cathy Carroll's son. Between him and my family I know the same story.
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