Funerals Held For Two Victims Of Suspected Serial Killer

Police officials in South Carolina had few updates in the search for a serial killer on Sunday. Officers said they continued to field phone calls and track down potential leads. The television show America's Most Wanted is profiling the murder spree to help in the search for the killer.

Also on Sunday, funerals were held for two of last week's victims. Hazel Linder, 83, and her daughter Gena Parker, 50 were found shot to death in their home Wednesday.

Parker was an elementary school teacher in Anderson. Laurie Smith's son was a student of Parker's and came to remember her. "It was a tragic way of her going," Smith said, "and we just need to say goodbye."

Police said they're continuing to work 12 to 14-hour shifts in an effort to catch the killer.

VIDEO: Funerals Held For Two Victims Of Suspected Serial Killer

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On Saturday, authorities said Abby Tyler, 15, died Saturday at a Spartanburg hospital.

Tyler and her father were shot earlier this week in their family's furniture and appliance shop, by the same man police believe killed three other people.

On Saturday, officers handed out a better sketch of the man for whom they are looking. The Gaffney Police Department also announced a $2,000 reward for information in the case.

"We have many leads coming in, still coming in," Gaffney Police Chief Rick Turner said. "We do want those to continue. Anyone that feels they have any information, how slight it might be, please make those calls."

Many families in Gaffney said they are arming themselves and praying the killer will not strike again. Yet, the Rev. Joel Sellers of First Baptist Church described the crowd at Sunday morning Services as overwhelming.

Officers set up checkpoints throughout Cherokee County Saturday night to try to catch the man. They prepared for a long night with tip calls from people who might mistake fireworks for the sound of gunshots.

Officials said they treat every lead as credible until they can prove it otherwise.

Early Sunday morning, investigators in Gaffney said a body was found on a road in the town. However, authorities told Eyewitness News that they do not believe this death is in any way releated to the serial killings.

So far, there is no word on whom that person was or the cause of death.

The rural community hunkered down for the Fourth of July weekend in fear because the killer has not been caught. Longtime residents were reminded of a murderer who terrorized the town in the 1960s.

Memories of the "Gaffney Strangler" were reignited this week after authorities said a new serial killer gunned down four people during three separate incidents over several days. Authorities have released a sketch of the accused killer and a description of the sport utility vehicle he may be driving, but they have been silent about exactly what has linked the slayings.

The town of Gaffney, about 50 miles south of Charlotte, N.C., is located in a county that had just six homicides in all of 2008, and half that the year before. The last time the town was this threatened like this was when the "Gaffney Strangler" killed four women over 10 days in 1968 and vowed to kill more. The town banded together, despite racial prejudice, to find the man who was killing both white and black women.

The strangler, Lee Roy Martin, called the editor of a local newspaper on Feb. 8, 1968, and told him where to find the bodies of two women he'd dumped in the woods. He threatened to kill even more women until he was "shot down like the dog I am."

People started to comb the community for clues, which led to Martin's arrest. He was convicted of four murders and sentenced to four life terms. In 1972, he was stabbed to death in his cell.

The latest killings have residents on edge, with "their guard up and their gun handy," said state Sen. Harvey Peeler, R-Gaffney.

"There is no greater fear than the fear of the unknown and nobody knows. You can cut the tension with a knife," Peeler said. "People are locking their doors, even in broad daylight."

Tanya Phillips had been looking forward to a backyard barbecue at her brother's house but instead planned to stay home with her doors locked.

"I'm not taking any chances," said Phillips, 32, a mother of two who works in a day-care center. “I'll go out during the day, but not at night. I just don't feel safe."

Every available police officer will work the weekend, Cherokee County Sheriff Bill Blanton said, acknowledging there is "real fear in the county." He urged people to take precautions such as going out in groups and calling 911 if their cars break down and they are stuck on the side of the road.

The latest victims were found in their family's small furniture and appliance shop near downtown Gaffney around closing time Thursday. Stephen Tyler, 45, and his 15-year-old daughter were shot and killed. Family members and a store employee found them in the Tyler Home Center.

A day earlier and about seven miles away, family members found the bodies of 83-year-old Hazel Linder and her 50-year-old daughter, Gena Linder Parker, bound and shot in Linder's home.

The killing spree began last Saturday about 10 miles from Tyler Home Center, where peach farmer Kline Cash, 63, was found shot in his living room. Blanton said the killer may have first spoken with Cash's wife about buying hay. She left and came home a few hours later to find her husband's body. Investigators said it appears he was robbed, but they have not determined if anything was taken in the other killings.

Hazel Smith, 47, said neighbors feel vulnerable.

"If he killed once, he'll kill again," she said sitting on the front porch with her friends. "Tonight, I'm going to stay inside and pray, pray a little harder that he gets caught."

The latest shootings happened less than a half-mile from the sheriff's office, where at least 30 investigators were already working on the case. Blanton said a profiler has suggested Tyler and his daughter might have been shot to taunt investigators, but he said his only concern is solving the case.

"We had a 15-year-old girl shot; he killed an 83-year-old woman," Blanton said. "The good people of this community don't deserve that."

Many in the community came together to pray, Friday night.

“This attack has not just been upon a few random families. It’s really been upon a community," said Pastor Joey Turner.

Terrified residents canceled Fourth of July plans and holed up in their homes Friday as investigators hunted for the killer.

Plenty of evidence links the killings, though officials don’t believe the victims are connected or that they knew whoever shot them, said Cherokee County Sheriff Bill Blanton.

"Yes, we have a serial killer," he said at a news conference in this rural community 50 miles south of Charlotte, N.C.

Authorities said the motive is simply unknown.

So far, all investigators have to go on is a sketch of a suspect and a description of a possible getaway vehicle -- an older model gold Ford Explorer -- though police would not say who provided that information. They said the suspect is a white male who is 6 feet 2 inches tall with a three- to four-day-old beard.

Cherokee County, home to about 54,000 people, had just six homicides in all of 2008, and half that the year before.

Residents have "their guard up and their gun handy," said state Sen. Harvey Peeler, R-Gaffney, who recalled the area being terrorized once before, in the 1960s, by a serial killer dubbed the Gaffney Strangler. Otherwise, Gaffney is most famous for a giant water tank shaped like a peach that can be seen from Interstate 85.

"There is no greater fear than the fear of the unknown and nobody knows. You can cut the tension with a knife," Peeler said. "People are locking their doors, even in broad daylight."

The Fourth of July is a busy weekend, with thousands of people expected to attend fireworks displays in several communities.

"You want to live a normal life," Phillips said as she stood outside a grocery store. "But you just can't."

Every available police officer will work the weekend, Blanton said, acknowledging that there is "real fear in the county." He urged people to take precautions such as going out in groups and calling 911 if their cars break down and they are stuck on the side of the road.

"If someone breaks into my house, I'm armed and ready," said Mike Daniels, 53, a retired Army sergeant. "And I won't hesitate to shoot first and ask questions later."

The sheriff reminded people they have a right to protect themselves and advised salesmen and others to avoid knocking on strangers' doors with so many on heightened alert.

"People are going to start shooting at shadows," Blanton said.

Anyone with information can call the Gaffney Police Department at 864-489-8746.