GUILTY NC - Dorothy Hobbs, 74, & Nellie Bradley, 71, murdered, Murfreesboro, 4 Aug 2006

http://www.wvec.com/news/local/stories/wvec_local_022107_emporia_sisters_murder.20089940.html

There could be a break in the investigation into the murder of two elderly sisters from Emporia who were found dead in North Carolina.

Family photos
Nellie Bradley and Dorothy Hobbs


Authorities confirm to 13News they're following leads in the August murders of Dorothy Hobbs, 74, and Nellie Bradley, 71.
Their bodies were found August 4 off a farm path close to Murfreesboro in Hertford County, N.C. They'd been stabbed in the chest, throat and face and their clothing was ripped off.
Police say they were last seen in Boykins, where they’d driven to make a charitable donation. Their abandoned vehicle was found in the town late that night.
Investigators have said they believe the killer lives in that area and may have family or friends near Boykins.
Investigators also have said they don't believe robery was the motive, adding that the two women may have stopped to help the suspect shortly before they were killed.
Anyone with information on the case can call North Carolina Crime Stoppers at 1-888-298-8567 or the Hertford County Sheriff's Office at 252-358-7800.

Reward offered in slayings of elderly Emporia sisters
Tuesday, August 15, 2006 4:17 PM EDT
By TERESA WELSH - I-M Staff writer
Law enforcement authorities investigating the slayings of two local sisters are offering a reward for information about the Aug. 4 slayings.

The amount of the reward has not been released.
Seven law enforcement agencies are now involved in the investigation into the death of Dorothy Rodgester Hobbs, 74, and her sister, Nellie Bradley, 71.

Investigating the deaths is a multi-agency task force in two states comprised of the Murfreesboro Police, sheriff departments from the counties of Northampton, Hertford, Southampton County and Greensville County, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation and the FBI.

The sisters were found murdered abut 7:30 p.m. on Aug. 4 by a passerby in a wooded area on the outskirts of Murfreesboro in Hertford County, N.C.

A helicopter even flew over the wooded area where the bodies were found. One body was found on the side of the road and the other was found lying against a pine tree a few feet away. The women were last seen alive about 4 p.m. on Aug. 4 in Boykins when they made a donation to the Relay for Life, according to Hertford County, N.C., sheriff Juan Vaughn.

They were last seen near a church and headed south on Route 35 in a 1996 black Crown Victoria, which was found about a mile from Boykins behind an abandoned residence. The sisters were known to frequent Northampton County, Boykins and Greensville County where they went to eat regularly on an almost daily basis.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Hertford County sheriff’s office at (252) 358-7800 or the North Carolina Bureau of Investigation at (800)-334-3000.

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Investigators Get New Lead In Sisters' Slayings


Posted: Nov. 14, 2006
Raleigh — Authorities are following up on a new lead in the August slayings of two Virginia sisters.

Nellie Bradley, 71, and Dorothy Hobbs, 74, both of Emporia, Va., were found stabbed to death on a farm near Murfreesboro -- about 40 miles from their home in early August.

Their car, a black 1996 Ford, was found in Boykins behind an abandoned house. New tests on the car show DNA belonging to a third person.

Investigators said they are not ruling out the possibility that the women were killed elsewhere and that their bodies were dumped along the wooded area less than two hours later.

A purse belonging to one of the victims was found tossed on a roadside, about a mile from where the bodies were found.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Hertford County Sheriff's Office at 252-358-7800 or the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation at 800-334-3000

http://www.localtechwire.com/news/local/story/1062073/

By Frank Green
Published: November 22, 2008
Updated: November 22, 2008 1:22 AM

William Curtis Futrell, charged with murdering two Emporia sisters in North Carolina two years ago, faces a probable-cause hearing next month.

Hertford County, N.C., Sheriff Juan E. Vaughan Sr. said Futrell, 34, of Franklin, Va., appeared in in Hertford County District Court yesterday. A court clerk said Futrell will be appointed a lawyer and is to appear Dec. 2.

Futrell was arrested Thursday and charged with the first-degree murders of Dorothy Hobbs, 74, and Nellie Bradley, 71.

http://www2.timesdispatch.com/rtd/news/local/crime/article/SIST22_20081121-213130/119287/

Looks like this may be a death penalty case. Going to see if I can find any trial info. now.

Staff

Published Saturday, November 22, 2008

More is being learned about the past criminal history of William Curtis Futrell, the 34-year-old Franklin, Va. man arrested Thursday in the 2006 murders of two elderly sisters.

Additionally, the Roanoke-Chowan News-Herald has confirmed that Futrell once lived in the Lewiston area of Bertie County and attended Bertie High School.

Meanwhile, it appears that Futrell is no stranger to local law enforcement.

On January 11 of this year, Futrell was taken into custody after stealing a Northampton County Public Works truck in Jackson and driving it to Rich Square.

More on his prior record at link. He is still awaiting trial for the murders.

http://www.roanoke-chowannewsherald...murder-suspect-has-criminal-background/?print

From August 2010:

http://www.roanoke-chowannewsherald.com/2010/08/19/double-murder-suspect-enters-guilty-plea/

Life without parole – times two.

William Curtis Futrell, 36, of Franklin, Va. plead guilty to two counts of first degree murder here Thursday morning during scheduled proceedings at Hertford County Superior Court...

Futrell never offered any explanation of his involvement in this crime, including a motive.

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