GUILTY NC - Thomas Bryson, 68, Mills River, 26 July 2017 *Arrests*

New Posts

[h=1]Body of Mills River man kidnapped by armed felon found; Stroupe to face murder charges[/h]
The body of a 68-year-old Mills River man believed to be kidnapped by Philip Micheal Stroupe II, the armed felon that led police on a multi-day manhunt throughout Western North Carolina, was found Sunday night.

A member of the Skyland Fire and Rescue Department located the man, Thomas Bryson's body in a corn field off Ledbetter Road in Arden at around 8:32 p.m. A cause of death has not yet been determined.

Henderson County Sheriff Charles McDonald said Stroupe will likely face murder charges in the coming days. Bryson's family has been notified.
"Obviously this is not the outcome we would have liked to have," McDonald said.
Click to expand...
http://www.citizen-times.com/story/...-found-stroupe-face-murder-charges/524360001/
 
I am sad and angry. But I am glad that this searcher found him and that so many people assisted in locating his body. Stroupe will never be a free man again.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Rest in peace, Mr. Bryson. I hope his family can find peace as well. What a shame. I can't even imagine why Stroupe felt like he had to do this to a random stranger. I'm assuming he told LE where to look for Mr. Bryson. I hope that doesn't mean he gets any kind of deal.

As for the accomplices, I think they had and still have a genuine concern for their safety and the safety of their families (due to the gang affiliations). But they are obviously lying and/or covering up something. Body language, speech patterns, sunglasses, contradictions. I think they're probably trying to cover up why Stroupe knew they would be lying around at home in the middle of the day. Stroupe probably knows somebody just like that in Tennessee. I will not be surprised if somebody over that way is also charged with harboring.

Even if they were too afraid to call LE while driving toward Marion, the accomplices could have come forward after Stroupe's arrest under condition of anonymity. They did not. Criminal minds.
 
BlkMtnGirl said:
Rest in peace, Mr. Bryson. I hope his family can find peace as well. What a shame. I can't even imagine why Stroupe felt like he had to do this to a random stranger. I'm assuming he told LE where to look for Mr. Bryson. I hope that doesn't mean he gets any kind of deal.

As for the accomplices, I think they had and still have a genuine concern for their safety and the safety of their families (due to the gang affiliations). But they are obviously lying and/or covering up something. Body language, speech patterns, sunglasses, contradictions. I think they're probably trying to cover up why Stroupe knew they would be lying around at home in the middle of the day. Stroupe probably knows somebody just like that in Tennessee. I will not be surprised if somebody over that way is also charged with harboring.

Even if they were too afraid to call LE while driving toward Marion, the accomplices could have come forward after Stroupe's arrest under condition of anonymity. They did not. Criminal minds.
Click to expand...

Based on the late night press conference that MotherOcean posted up above, Mr Bryson was found by a searcher. Stroupe never cooperated so I don't think they cut him a deal. He will be charged with murder.

I agree the 3 arrested might have been scared and probably didn't contact Stroupe on the run and offer to harbor him or anything, but I still can't figure out why they would not just turn off a different direction and go to the police after leaving the house. They had to have been following him for at least 2 hours driving before the police found them. They were in their own vehicle and he was in Mr. Bryson's truck. If he needed to threaten them to get their help he would have taken one of them in the truck and told the others he would shoot the one in the truck if they didn't follow him. But they were following him to Lake James to help dispose of the truck when police found Stroupe. Then, when police went lights blazing after Stroupe they high-tailed it out of there but instead of going back to their own home he went to his sister's house. It seems like they were hoping police wouldn't figure out who was behind Stroupe when he was pulled over. JMO.

And the man's statements in the interview are all over the place. First he says Stroupe pulled up and showed him the 2 spent shells, implying he had shot someone and saying that they would be next if they didn't help him, but later in this same interview he says twice he didn't know Stroupe had hurt anyone and he didn't know there was a dead body anyplace. And that's just one contradiction I noticed in their statements. The only part of their interview I believed is that they don't trust police and didn't feel like the police would protect their family if they called and told them of Stroupe's threats (which I believe is false and police would have sent someone to their house if they had called). But they are trapped in a lifestyle and mindset of their own making by their past actions and it's hard to feel empathy for them. I only feel bad for their kids having to put up with other kids talking about their parents. I hope their kids make it out of this way of thinking of the police being the enemy. They don't have to continue this cycle of crime and violence. JMO.

My heart is broken this morning as I think of Tommy Bryson's family. This was a senseless, cold-blooded murder. #JusticeforTommyBryson
 
Buncombe County, N.C. (WLOS) — Authorities confirmed the discovery of Thomas Bryson's body just before midnight Sunday evening.

A member of the Skyland Fire and Rescue Department found the body of Thomas Bryson in a corn field in Arden on Sunday night. A cause of death hasn't been determined.
Click to expand...
The Henderson County Sheriff says Stroupe has been difficult to get information from during much of the investigation.

Henderson County Sheriff Charles McDonald says Stroupe will likely face murder charges in the coming days, in addition to multiple charges levied in Buncombe, Transylvania, Henderson, Yancey and McDowell counties.

Sheriff Charles McDonald, Henderson County, "I can tell you he's not been very corporative up until this point. I think I would say really in all of this is, there's been a tremendous amount of community effort, crossing a lot of different counties, bringing in a lot of different agencies, sheriff's office, federal and state agencies together to get to this point."
Click to expand...
The Henderson County Sheriff's office is planning a press briefing for Monday, but a time has not yet been released.
Click to expand...
http://wlos.com/news/local/authorities-confirm-the-body-of-thomas-bryson-has-been-found
 
Gardener1850 said:
Based on the late night press conference that MotherOcean posted up above, Mr Bryson was found by a searcher. Stroupe never cooperated so I don't think they cut him a deal. He will be charged with murder.

I agree the 3 arrested might have been scared and probably didn't contact Stroupe on the run and offer to harbor him or anything, but I still can't figure out why they would not just turn off a different direction and go to the police after leaving the house.

#JusticeforTommyBryson
Click to expand...

Not that it matters at this point, but my thought initially was the news interview was held to throw anyone affiliated with Stroupe (gang wise) off the path of the 2 that did the interview & lead them to believe that hadn't said a word. I initially thought it was possible they DID end up giving some information & it was an attempt to help 'protect' their family from said individuals. At this point, knowing it was a searcher who found Mr Bryson, I don't believe that was the case whatsoever.

Such a tragic story that didn't have to end this way. Mr Bryson seemed like such a sweet man. I can't even fathom what the family is enduring. My heart breaks for the Bryson family. [emoji1317]
 
I'm so sad and angry at this outcome. Mr. Bryson sounded like an amazing man and he had to die just because stroupe needed his vehicle to escape? He could have easily left Mr. Bryson on the side of the road alive while taking his vehicle. So sad. [emoji17]
 
cnmccarthy said:
I'm so sad and angry at this outcome. Mr. Bryson sounded like an amazing man and he had to die just because stroupe needed his vehicle to escape? He could have easily left Mr. Bryson on the side of the road alive while taking his vehicle. So sad. [emoji17]
Click to expand...
Amen....senseless... [emoji25]

Sent from my VK815 using Tapatalk
 
cnmccarthy said:
I'm so sad and angry at this outcome. Mr. Bryson sounded like an amazing man and he had to die just because stroupe needed his vehicle to escape? He could have easily left Mr. Bryson on the side of the road alive while taking his vehicle. So sad. [emoji17]
Click to expand...

Exactly!! Why did he have to die? According to previous articles, Stroupe had encountered a fisherman & possibly one other individual; both left unharmed. This is such a shame. Completely senseless.
 
[h=1]Stroupe's father charged with accessory after the fact of first-degree kidnapping[/h]
Henderson County, N.C. (WLOS) — Phillip Stroupe, Sr, 65, the father of Phillip Michael Stroupe, II, has been arrested and charged with accessory after the fact of first-degree kidnapping.

Stroupe had his first court appearance on the charge Monday morning in Henderson County.
Judge Mack Brittain told Stroupe Sr. he could face up 204 months in prison if he's convicted on the felony charge.
Click to expand...
http://wlos.com/news/local/stroupes-father-now-charged-in-henderson-county
 
[h=1]3 accused of harboring Stroupe: We didn't call 911 because police wouldn't believe us[/h]
ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — The three people accused of harboring Phillip Stroupe II made their first court appearances on Monday.

Frederick Badgero Jr., Jennifer Hawkins, and Larry Hawkins III are all charged with felony harboring an escapee.

All three maintain their innocence, saying they feared for their lives when Phillip Stroupe II showed up at Jennifer Hawkins' home.

"I was scared for my life. I believed he was going to kill us. I really do," Badgero told News 13 on Monday.

Jennifer Hawkins said they asked him to leave multiple times.
Click to expand...
http://wlos.com/news/local/3-accuse...nt-call-911-because-police-wouldnt-believe-us
 
[h=1]Stroupe II charged with 1st-degree murder; 3 suspects face upgraded charges[/h]
HENDERSON COUNTY, N.C. (WLOS) — A man accused in the kidnapping and killing of a Mills River man will be charged with first-degree murder and will face the death penalty, authorities said at a news conference Monday afternoon.
The body of Thomas Bryson, who was reported missing Wednesday morning, was discovered in Arden on Sunday night. Investigators said Bryson was found 20 minutes away from where he was abducted and the person responsible is Phillip Stroupe II.

Stroupe is being charged with first-degree murder, and Henderson County District Attorney Greg Newman said he intends to seek the death penalty.
Bucombe County Sheriff Van Duncan said the three people who were arrested Saturday and charged with harboring Stroupe are back in jail Monday on upgraded charges of accessory after the fact.
Click to expand...
http://wlos.com/news/local/watch-live-henderson-county-sheriff-press-breifing
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

DNASolves

Who is Escambia County John Doe (1989)?

Members online

... and 188 more.
Total: 4,159 (members: 189, guests: 3,970)

Online statistics

Members online
189
Guests online
3,970
Total visitors
4,159
Totals may include hidden visitors.

Forum statistics

Threads
592,462
Messages
17,969,224
Members
228,773
Latest member
OccasionalMallard
Back
Top