BREVARD, N.C. — The search for an armed suspect believed to be in a national forest in North Carolina is keeping visitors away and causing businesses in the area to lose customers during their most lucrative time of year.
The Asheville Citizen-Times reports authorities continued to keep hundreds of acres of the Pisgah National Forest off-limits to hikers, bikers and campers Monday as seven law enforcement agencies searched a third day for 38-year-old Phillip Michael Stroupe II of Weaverville, described as a suspect in a break-in.
The forest along U.S. 276 was evacuated Saturday, including popular areas such as Looking Glass Falls, Sliding Rock and the Cradle of Forestry.
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Transylvania County Sheriff's Capt. Jeremy Queen says about 10,000 people usually visit the area on a summer's day, though police haven't evacuated that many people.
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