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The Valentines were on edge because the Gaffney serial killer was just a short drive away. They watched two people who sometimes visit the neighboring home get out of the vehicle, followed by a third man who matched the description of the killer: tall, heavyset, unshaven and wearing a baseball cap. The man appeared to be very drunk, Mike Valentine said. When officers arrived and went inside, Terri Valentine said she heard someone yell "put it down" and heard a gunshot. Then "bam, bam, bam, bam. Next thing I know, all of Gaston County was here," she said. Gaston County police said the other two people were in custody, but did not indicate whether they were facing charges. The Gaffney killings happened in a 10-mile area over six days. Peach farmer Kline Cash, 63, was killed June 27 and 83-year-old Hazel Linder and her daughter, 50-year-old Gena Linder Parker, were found bound and shot in the older woman's home four days later. The next day, Stephen Tyler and his 15-year-old daughter Abby were found shot in their family's furniture store. The investigation isn't over, and Cherokee County Sheriff Bill Blanton said investigators will trace the suspect's recent activities and trying to figure out if he has killed other people in other places. "Now we have someone we can focus on," Blanton said. He said he hoped the resolution calmed the fears of 54,000 people in the county 50 miles west of Charlotte, N.C., known for its peach orchards and mills. "We feel the victims' pain," Blanton said. "This isn't over. We're just changing gears."
[Associated
Press;
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