GUILTY VA - Peg Sinclair, 85, found dismembered, White Post, 18 June 2016

New details are emerging in Virginia and West Virginia surrounding the death of 85-year-old Peg Sinclair, whose dismembered body was found on Tuesday.

Authorities with the Hampshire County, West Virginia Sheriff's Office said in a press release that what they believe to be Sinclair's body was found "in pieces."

The release states that the remains were found near Scotty's Gully road, and it is believed the they were dumped there on June 18- the same day Sinclair was reported missing. According to the press release, "the suspect(s) burned some of the evidence and body parts of the victim near the area where the body was found."

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Sinclair's caretaker, Charlene Hopkins, is charged with her murder.

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Much more at the link: http://www.your4state.com/news/virg...w-details-emerge-leading-up-to-alleged-murder

I'm from this area but don't know these people. I can only "try" to give help on the area.

BadRx said:

I'm from this area but don't know these people. I can only "try" to give help on the area.

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Thanks! I am completely unfamiliar with the area (being on the other side of the U.S.) and I have to admit, it took me much longer than it should have figure out what location to put in the thread title. Am I correct in saying that White Post is in Virginia, but her remains were found across state lines in West Virginia? Between the unincorporated towns, the two different investigating counties, and the different states, I was

Yes, White Post is in VA. And the remains were in WV. I'm not familiar with the area that her remains were found. My niece posted the article and it came up on my Facebook page as "Romney, WV".

I'm not sure why Romney plays a role, unless it was just a post from their news?

the dismemberment cases really disturb me. RIP ma'am

I'm not sure why Romney plays a role, unless it was just a post from their news?
I tried to post a map but I can't figure out how?

BadRx said:

I'm not sure why Romney plays a role, unless it was just a post from their news?
I tried to post a map but I can't figure out how?

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I can try and help you post a map. Do you just want a map of area? Any particular cities you'd like to focus on and make sure are included?

edit to add: or do you want a map of the specific area she was found?

How Awful !!! Why would anyone want to do something like this to an elderly lady??

I would truly appreciate help with posting a map!
The victim was from White Post, VA. I know this is off 522, near Winchester,VA
Victim's remains were found "near" Scotty's Gully Road. I can't find this on Google maps?

When I go home, I travel 17 Northto 50 West. This road is off 17, where the Sheetz is. But I can't find the area she was "found"

BadRx said:

I would truly appreciate help with posting a map!
The victim was from White Post, VA. I know this is off 522, near Winchester,VA
Victim's remains were found "near" Scotty's Gully Road. I can't find this on Google maps?

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I'm almost positive I had found it last night & should have posted the map right then. I had to clear my cookies in order to view an article for another WS case, and now I can't find it again. Give me a bit longer...I'll keep looking

Here it is



https://www.google.com/maps/place/S...1s0x89b5795b4f177de3:0x544d59427539da36?hl=en

ETA: Should have included that I realize the name of the road does not match exactly, but I'm pretty sure they are one in the same.

Per link, http://www.your4state.com/news/virg...w-details-emerge-leading-up-to-alleged-murder June 23

Caretaker Charlene Hopkins said:
- June 18, Fri eve., Hopkins took care of Peg Sinclair.
- Sinclair had diarrhea & soiled her bed sheets & rugs
- Sinclair cut her finger & blood "dripped on the floor and was slung across the walls."
- She threw out the sheets & put rugs in her car to take to the cleaners.
- She left a note about her clean up efforts, inc'g. bleach, for Sinclair's dau.
- Sat 2:00am, she left Sinclair's home, picked up hitchhiker, drove w her ~ 1 hr. to Capon Bridge, WV just a few miles away from Scotty's Gully, in order to meet a "male friend" (per below)

Warrants:
- said Hopkins later said male friend, whom she & hitchhiker met w in Capon Bridge, offered to dispose of sheets.
- focused on Hopkins' 2008 Chevy Trial blazer [sic] & her iPhone.
- noted Hopkins is last person to have contact w Sinclair.

Sinclair's dau told LE:
- Fri eve, she got home ~8:30 p.m., found Hopkins still there, w "Sinclair in her bedroom with the door locked." (?)
- Sat 4:00am, she saw Hopkins' note, phoned Hopkins who explained.
- Sat 11:00am, on noting Sinclair not in her room, dau reported her missing.

LE found:
- what's believed to be blood in Hopkins' car, "cleaned meticulously," w large white stain on a seat.
- in Hopkins' home, shoes wet w bleach-cleaning, a bottle of bleach on counter, floor mats from Hopkins' car drying off, & some of Sinclair's personal documents in kitchen.
- remains near Scotty's Gully Road, LE believing they were placed there same day reported missing, June 18.

LE media release:
"the suspect(s) burned some of the evidence and body parts of the victim near the area where the body was found."

Cpt. Donald Lang, of Frederick County Sheriff's Office was quoted briefly at link:
- Hopkins & Sinclair met a few yrs ago.
- Hopkins is not a reg. nurse.
- Initial reports said Sinclair walked away from home and may have had dementia, but LE cannot "officially confirm."
- No other arrests have been made.
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Sad, sad, sad. RIP Ms Sinclair.

At least, LE has already connected a lot of the dots needed to prosecute.

Attorney subpoenas informant records

Frances Charlene Moss-Hopkins, a Berryville caregiver who allegedly killed and dismembered 85-year-old Peg Sinclair in June, appeared Thursday in Frederick County Circuit Court.

No trial date has been set for the 56-year-old, but Frederick County Commonwealth’s Attorney Ross Spicer and Public Defender Tim Coyne agreed on a March 23 hearing date, when Judge N. Randolph Bryant is expected to rule on several motions filed by Coyne.

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Caretaker pleads guilty to murder

http://www.nvdaily.com/news/2017/05/caretaker-pleads-guilty-to-murder/

The defendant, Frances Moss-Hopkins, 56, entered an Alford plea in an agreement that changed the offense from first-degree to second-degree murder. The plea agreement will also dismiss at sentencing the other two charges Moss-Hopkins was facing: concealing and willfully defiling a dead body in the June 2016 death of 85-year-old Lake Frederick resident Peg Sinclair. Circuit Judge N. Randolph Bryant accepted the agreement.

Tim Coyne, the public defender appointed to represent Moss-Hopkins, told the court that an Alford plea was agreed upon because Moss-Hopkins has a mental disability in which she has difficulty recollecting certain events, and that she still cannot remember exactly what happened during the night of the murder.

It was determined that Sinclair had been killed by blunt force trauma, and her body was dismembered to fit in Moss-Hopkins’ car. Her body was hidden in a remote location along U.S. Route 50 in West Virginia. Moss-Hopkins told investigators that, “something bad happened,” and took them to the site where she hid the body. There investigators recovered a burned saw and a burned hammer that authorities determined was the murder weapon.

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Sinclair’s daughter and granddaughter were in the courtroom during Thursday’s hearing, and both expressed their approval of the plea agreement. Bryant offered the family his sympathies on behalf of the court, saying that he feels both the prosecution and the defense worked to see justice served in the agreement.

The maximum sentence for second-degree murder is 40 years imprisonment. Sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 24 in Frederick County Circuit Court.

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Moss-Hopkins to serve 20 years in prison for murder of elderly woman

http://www.winchesterstar.com/moss-hopkins-to-serve-years-in-prison-for-murder-of/article_7e6d53e8-c97a-11e7-bb4d-675fcf8dbe67.html

Although mentally ill, caregiver Frances Charlene Moss-Hopkins didn’t fit Virginia’s definition of insanity when she murdered and dismembered 85-year-old Peg Sinclair last year and hid the remains.

Judge N. Randolph Bryant said he took that into consideration when he sentenced the 57-year-old on Tuesday in Frederick County Circuit Court to 40 years in prison with 20 years suspended.

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A tearful Moss-Hopkins addressed Sinclair’s family before the sentence was pronounced. She said she would be “tortured mentally for what I did until I take my last breath.” Moss-Hopkins said she wished she could have done more to address her mental illness, which she said she had since she was a child.

Lisa Gilkerson, Sinclair’s daughter, said in an interview after the sentencing that she was satisfied with the sentence and that the murder was a “huge tragedy” for both families.

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I can't believe I've never heard about this. I don't live far from Romney, across the MD border, and own property in the same county.