Information about the whereabouts of an Elkview man who police say shot two people flooded the Charleston Police Department on Wednesday after it announced a $10,000 reward offered by the Kanawha County Commission for information leading to his arrest, Lt. Steve Cooper, chief of detectives for the police department, said Thursday.
In the end, though, it was a Roane County deputy doing a routine patrol who spotted the car police believed the suspect was using, leading to his arrest Wednesday evening, Cooper told the Kanawha County Commission.
"The tips came pouring in," Cooper told the commission at a regular meeting Thursday. "Once the reward was announced through the media the tips came pouring in. A few tips were no good at all. Many were legitimate tips, but they just so happen to have been leads we had already exhausted."
West Virginia State Police caught Bobby Hall, 42, and Misty Rucker, 38, Wednesday evening. They were arrested in the Queen Shoals area near Clendenin after a police pursuit.
The two were wanted in connection with a shooting reported at about 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at the home of Timothy Jett, at 332 Garrison Ave., in Charleston.
Charleston police found Jett, 55, and Audrey Short, 38, in the bedroom. Jett, who suffered gunshot wounds to the face and neck, died at the scene, according to a criminal complaint filed in Kanawha Magistrate Court. Short, who police believe was staying with Jett, was shot in the head and neck. She was taken to Charleston Area Medical Center's General Hospital, where she remained in critical condition Thursday.
Hall, of Elkview, allegedly shot both victims, then he and Rucker fled by vehicle, Cooper said. Hall was wanted on a first-degree murder charge. Rucker was wanted on charges of first-degree murder and conspiracy.
Hall and Rucker are being held at South Central Regional Jail. No bail was set.
Cooper said Hall wanted to "take 10 to 12 police officers with him" and "make history." The threat was very serious, Cooper told commissioners.
Cooper said a Roane deputy suffered minor injuries when his car slid into a tree during the pursuit. Hall and Rucker also sustained minor injuries and were taken to a hospital to be checked out.
Cooper and Maryclaire Akers, assistant Kanawha County prosecutor, were at the commission meeting Thursday for the commission's official approval of the county's offer of the $10,000 reward. Akers said the reward was intended for information about the suspect's location and the prosecutor's office no longer is seeking information about the case.
State law allows the prosecutor's office to ask the commission for rewards in special circumstances, she said. Akers said she's only worked one other case with a reward - a series of sniper-style killings in 2003.
Akers said thanked the commission for its offer of a reward. Threats to police officers are taken very seriously, she said.
Commissioner Ben Salango thanked Cooper and the department for arresting the couple.
"I would like to thank you guys for apprehending the couple so quickly," Salango said.
"Anything we can do to make the community safer and assist law enforcement, we're going to do it," Salango said. "I thought it was a very good idea when you guys requested the money for the reward. There was no hesitation."
Reach Lori Kersey at lori.kersey@wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-1240 or follow @LoriKerseyWV.