New Tips Continue to Come in Six Years After Kanawha Sniper Shootings

Updated: 12:00 AM Aug 15, 2009

Kanawha Valley Sniper-Style Shootings Still Unsolved

The FBI says it continues to get tips and follow leads in the unsolved Kanawha County gas station sniper-style shootings that left three dead six years ago Friday.
WEB EXTRA: revisit the investigation with our interactive map, archive footage, & news coverage

Posted: 2:18 PM Aug 14, 2009
Reporter: Mike Waterhouse
Email Address: mike.waterhouse@wsaz.com

width:200 and height: 120 and picwidth: 200 and pciheight: 120

KANAWHA COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) -- The FBI says it continues to get tips and follow leads in the unsolved Kanawha County gas station sniper-style shootings that left three dead six years ago Friday. John Hambrick, spokesperson for the FBI in Charleston, says the investigation continues to be a collaborative effort with all of the agencies initially involved in the "sniper task force." That team, made up of local, state, and federal agencies, used to have a common working office in downtown Charleston, but the space has since been vacated. The case is still considered "very active."	VIDEO ARCHIVES Remembering the Victims 5 Years Later First Shooting (8/11) Breaking News: Patton Shot (8/14) Two Gas Station Murders (8/15) Initial Connection (8/15) 3 Shootings Linked (8/15) Fear to Pump Gas (8/16) Suspect Vehicle Animation Unedited News Conference (8/18) One Year Later: Part 1 One Year Later: Part 2 One Year Later: Part 3 One Year Later: Part 4 One Year Later: Part 5

"We still desparately want to solve these cases," said Lt. Sean Crosier with the Kanawha County Sheriff's Department.

Crosier says the sniper shooting cases will always be open and ongoing until they are solved.

To this day, no one has been charged in the shootings. They happened within five days and within miles of each other. Investigators determined the same gun was used to kill all three victims: a .22 caliber rifle.

TIMELINE OF EVENTS

INCIDENT #1
Date/Time: Sunday, August 10, 2003 / 11:10pm
Location: Go-Mart, Bigley Ave. in Charleston
Victim: Gary Carrier Jr.

INCIDENT #2
Date/Time: Thursday, August 14, 2003 / 10:15pm
Location: Speedway, Campbells Creek Drive
Victim: Jeanie Patton

INCIDENT #3
Date/Time: Thursday, August 14, 2003 / 11:45pm
Location: Go-Mart, Route 60 in Cedar Grove
Victim: Okey Meadows Jr.

ABOUT THE VICTIMS
GARY CARRIER JR. was the first of the sniper victims. On August 10, 2003, he pulled up to the Bigley Avenue Go-Mart on Charleston's west side and started using the pay phone. That's when a sniper fired a single shot, hitting him in the head and killing him. The 44-year-old had four children and was from South Charleston. Gary worked at Charleston Tire. His murder was the eighth recorded in Charleston at that point in 2003.

JEANIE PATTON was the next victim four days later. She was pumping gas at the Speedway on Campbells Creek Drive when someone fired one shot that hit her head and killed her. This happened at about 10:20 p.m. on August 14, 2003. Jeanie was 31 years old and from Campbells Creek. She worked as a cook for Kanawha County Schools and left behind a son and a boyfriend of 16 years.

OKEY MEADOWS JR. was shot about 90 minutes after Patton. He was standing in line to buy milk outside the Go-Mart on Route 60 in Cedar Grove when a single bullet hit him in the neck from 70 yards away, killing him. He was 26 years old and from Cedar Grove. Okey had a 3-year-old son and was the son of WSAZ engineer, Okey Meadows Sr.

CASE INFORMATION

During the course of the investigation, police say they had thousands of leads, but none led to the arrest of a suspect.

Almost immediately after the shootings happened, investigators put the public on alert for a dark-colored, black or maroon Ford F-150 extended cab pickup truck with gold trim. It seemed to be the one similarity between the shootings in Campbells Creek and Cedar Grove. Witnesses at both scenes mentioned a dark colored pickup -- and at least one person said they saw it speed away from the scene. The surveillance video system at the Go-Mart in Cedar Grove even captured a pickup truck driving on its lot prior to the shootings, but police were unable to determine if it was the actual suspect vehicle.

Investigators even went so far as to have an animation created of the suspect vehicle, and then distributed it to the media. The clip shows what the truck might have looked like driving up and down Campbells Creek Drive.

Police also released a description and sketch of the person they believe was driving the truck: a heavy-set white male with dark hair and a goatee (pictured). They referred to him as a "witness." Investigators also wanted to question a white male with a slim build, beard, and very white, hairy legs.

Sheriff Tucker also alluded to a possible drug connection between the sniper victims, but never publicly provided evidence to prove it. This angered many of the victims' family members, some of whom spoke out to the contrary via the media.

At one point during the investigation, investigators said Brian Caldwell was a "person of interest" in the case, but he was never charged. He was, however, convicted and sentenced to prison on illegal weapons charges that were in no way related to the sniper shootings.

INTERACTIVE MAP
Use the Google map to the right to see exactly where each of the Kanawha County sniper shootings occurred. Click on the placemarks to bring up more information about that particular incident.

ANOTHER POSSIBLE CONNECTION
Police have not ruled out the possibility that a fourth shooting that happened months before the others is somehow connected to the August sniper shootings.

Randy Burgess, 29, of Mink Shoals, was leaving the Kroger at the Kanawha Mall in Charleston at about 8:30pm on March 20, 2003, when police say he was shot twice in the chest with a .30 caliber, high-powered rifle.

Police say Burgess then made his way back into the store to get help. He died the next day at the hospital.

Investigators never really publicly linked Burgess' murder with the others, but we observed Burgess' picture on a bulletin board with the others during a follow-up interview with the FBI one year after the sniper shootings. Joe Ciccarelli, the then-spokesperson for the Charleston office of the FBI, said they were not able to rule it out as possibly being connected.

WHERE THE CASE STANDS
The FBI in Charleston continues to lead the investigation, but all of the original sniper task force consisting of the FBI, ATF, Kanawha County Sheriff's Department, West Virginia State Police, and the Charleston Police Department, continue to work on the cases.

Anyone with information about the Kanawha Valley sniper shootings is asked to call 1-866-WV-WATCH. Tips can also be submitted on the FBI's Web site: https://tips.fbi.gov

REMEMBERING THE VICTIMS
The family of Jeannie Patton is having a candlelight memorial service on Friday from 7:00 p.m. until 10:30 p.m. at the Speedway on Campbells Creek Drive. The family wants to honor all of the victims of that deadly crime spree.

[ Copyright 2010 – WSAZ.com. All Rights Reserved. ]
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Severe Weather and Breaking News Coverage

To send a news tip or submit a story idea, e-mail news@wsaz.com

Latest Comments

Posted by: Morgana on Aug 14, 2009 at 11:09 PM

John Mohammad did this maybe? He was caught in other states, and charged for being a sniper. Mr. Mohammad did travel. Was he here in West Virginia? Does anyone know?

Posted by: food for thought on Aug 14, 2009 at 06:47 PM

How come the story about the mechanic and the lie detector test that was shown on WV's Most Wanted was never followed up? I remember the story Andrew Palmer did on that show. That the truck was not a Ford but a Dodge. Also, Palmer said once the guy passed the lie detector test and the names were solidified, Palmer knew the ring leader of this group. When lie detector tests are done and the police say they have evidence on a person(s) they get the suspect. I guess when an independeb=nt test is done it's not good enough?

Posted by: Dude on Aug 14, 2009 at 06:05 PM

Here you go again bring up Brian Caldwell He has nothing in this leave him alone

Click here to post or read all 5 comments.

	Full 2010 Olympic coverage from the WSAZ Olympic Zone.
	Healthy Connections Find a local health professional
	Healthy Tri-State Tips to live a healthier lifestyle
	WV Lottery Nightly drawings and numbers
	SOMC Very good things are happening here
	A collection of resources here to help Moms weather the daily storms that come along with parenting.
	Big Sandy For all your furniture and appliance needs

Search for WV, OH, KY Local Businesses:

Popular Searches Apartments in Huntington, WV Attorneys in Huntington, WV Auto Dealers in Huntington, WV Auto Parts in Huntington, WV Auto Repair in Huntington, WV Beauty Salons in Huntington, WV Car Rental in Huntington, WV Dentists in Huntington, WV Doctors in Huntington, WV Flowers in Huntington, WV Hotels in Huntington, WV Insurance in Huntington, WV Loans in Huntington, WV Mortgages in Huntington, WV Movers in Huntington, WV Pizza in Huntington, WV Realtors in Huntington, WV Restaurants in Huntington, WV Storage in Huntington, WV Tax Preparation in Huntington, WV Travel in Huntington, WV Featured More... Powered by Local.com