Alan Wilmer Sr: Fisherman identified as prime suspect in three decades-old Virginia cold-case killings
Warning: This article contains a recollection of crime and can be triggering to some, readers’ discretion advised.
HAMPTON, VIRGINIA: A fisherman who died over six years ago has been named as the prime suspect in three cold-case killings in Virginia, which even includes a pair that was once linked to an infamous slaying spree known as the “Colonial Parkway Murders”, as per The Independent.
Alan W Wilmer Sr was linked through DNA evidence to the 1987 shooting deaths of David L Knobling and Robin M Edwards, as well as the 1989 strangulation of Teresa Lynn Spaw Howell, Virginia State Police announced on Monday, January 8.
Inside Colonial Parkway Murders
Wilmer died in December 2017 at age 63, the state police explained. “Wilmer had no felonies on his criminal record, so his DNA had never been obtained until it was necessary for identification purposes following his death,” the statement as per the NY Post read.
“The Virginia Department of Forensic Science in 2023 issued a ‘Certificate of Analysis’ confirming a genetic match to Wilmer based on evidence collected from the 1987 shooting and 1989 strangling victims,” the officials added.
If Wilmer were alive today, “charges would be filed against him in connection with the three homicides,” the Virginia State Police confirmed. On September 23, 1987, the bodies of 20-years-old Knobling, and 14-years-old Edwards were discovered in Isle of Wight County on the James River's south bank, according to the police. Edwards had been sexually abused, and both victims had been shot dead.
The double homicide eventually became known as part of the “Colonial Parkway Murders,” the unsolved killings of four couples around the scenic roadway between Jamestown, Williamsburg, and Yorktown between 1986 and 1989, as per CBS News.
According to Virginia State Police spokesperson Corinne Geller, at the press conference, "there is no forensic or physical evidence suggesting their murders are connected to the other Colonial Parkway cases now that Knobling and Edwards' killings are considered solved." The investigations into those cases are still ongoing.
State police's statement
The state police also shared a joint statement from Knobling and Edwards’ families. "For 36 years, our families have lived in a vacuum of the unknown. We have lived with the fear of worrying that a person capable of deliberately killing Robin and David could attack and claim another victim,” the emotional acknowledgment read.
Lieutenant Colonel Tim Lyon, director of the Virginia State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigation said, “Only those who have suffered the loss of a child in this way can truly understand the depth of their sorrow and the frustration over not knowing who was responsible for taking their loved one’s life in such a violent and cruel way.”
“Now we have a sense of relief and justice knowing that he can no longer victimize another. His death will not allow us to seek out the answers to countless questions that have haunted us for so long.”
Wilmer's DNA also connected him to the murder of Howell, 29, who was last seen by police outside a well-known Hampton nightclub early on July 1, 1989. Authorities reported that Howell had been sexually abused and strangled. Her murder had nothing to do with the killings on Colonial Parkway.
“Law enforcement’s dedication, relentless efforts, and evolving technology have brought us closure that we have sought over the last 34 years,” Howell’s family said in a statement shared by Hampton Police Capt Rebecca Warren.
"While we are grateful for the closure that has been provided, nothing will bring Terry back. The void left by her absence over the years is inexpressible,” it concluded.
Wilmer was a seasoned hunter who was a member of several local hunt clubs. Wilmer's potential connections to other instances are being investigated by police, and they are asking the public for any information they may have.
Even though Wilmer has been named as a suspect, the police are still requesting that anyone with knowledge of him come forward to aid in their investigation. He goes by the moniker "Pokey" and is described as being 5'5" and 165 pounds, with sandy-brown hair, blue eyes, and a close-cropped beard.
"We recognize relationships and loyalties change over time. As do people and their perspectives. There are occasions where people who may have had knowledge of an incident didn’t feel comfortable coming forward with that information in the past, but we want them to know it’s not too late for them to step forward,” Brian Dugan, the special agent in charge of the FBI’s field office in Norfolk, said at the press.
