Manhunt Expands But Triple Homicide Suspect Eludes Police For Another Night
A manhunt expanded substantially on Friday and Saturday for Shane Franklin Miller, a suspect in the triple slaying of his wife and young daughters at their home in Shingletown, CA. Northern California authorities called him armed and dangerous, and SWAT teams from three counties joined the hunt through isolated canyon terrain in rural Humboldt County.
An armored vehicle and two helicopters were employed yesterday in the demanding manhunt through rugged rural countryside where the convicted marijuana grower and weapons offender is thought to be hiding out.
As I reported yesterday, authorities received a 911 call during a shooting at a Shinglewood, CA home on Tuesday night. When they arrived, they found Miller’s wife and two daughters already dead.
They think Miller slipped away in the fog. His vehicle was spotted in Petrolia on Wednesday. But, by the time law enforcement closed in on the 2010 Dodge pickup, it had been abandoned.
No one has reported seeing the triple slaying suspect since.
More than 70 deputies and officers searched Saturday, only to come up empty-handed, according to a local news source, The Record Searchlight.
As the search drags on, Humboldt County residents have returned to their lives with caution.
Saturday’s 35th annual Tour of the Unknown Coast bicycle race went on, although many people mistakenly thought it was cancelled. Of about 1,100 registered sign-ups, less than 900 actually showed up to compete in the race.
Officers previously discovered multiple weapons in Miller’s Shingletown home, and there have been persistent rumors that he has more stashed somewhere in rural northern California. As a result, law enforcement is still urging people to stay inside and to lock their doors at night, particularly in isolated areas.
There are still no answers about Shane Franklin Miller’s possible motive in the triple homicide of his family. A lot of questions won’t be answered until the expanded manhunt succeeds.
UPDATE: #Shingletown triple homicide suspect is Shane Franklin Miller: 45 years, 5’10”, 200 lbs, red hair, blue eyes twitter.com/KRCR7/status/3…
— KRCR News Channel 7 (@KRCR7) May 8, 2013
[helicopter search photo by SisterF via Shutterstock]
