[drgreen]

Blood found in a car believed to have been driven by slaying suspect Samuel Littleton II has left investigators with grave concerns about the well-being of an elderly couple he is suspected of abducting.

The couple, Richard Russell, 84, and wife Gladis, 85, have been missing from their home in Logan County since Feb. 16. Investigators say blood was found in the passenger compartment and the trunk of the Russells’ Mercury Grand Marquis, which was seized Tuesday evening at a Princeton, W.Va., Walmart parking lot.

Bellefontaine police Chief Brad K. Kunze told reporters Tuesday that the blood left him with doubts the Russells survived their ordeal.

“It requires more detailed forensic analysis,” Kunze said. “Our focus remains on bringing Dick and Gladis Russell home.”

Littleton, 37, continues to be questioned by authorities. He has provided no information about the location of the Russells, who have health problems and are dependent on medication, Kunze said.

Wednesday, Logan County Sheriff Andy Smith said that searches have been suspended for the moment, pending information from the questioning of Littleton.

He was taken into custody just before noon Wednesday in a wooded area behind the Walmart. He is wanted in the slaying of Tiffany Brown, a 26-year-old Bellefontaine mother of two. Brown was the daughter of Littleton’s longtime girlfriend, Deborah Neeley.

Brown’s funeral and burial were Wednesday.

No date has been set for Littleton’s extradition to Ohio.

[Black Knight]

Piece of garbage. The cops should have just shot the scum bag. Crimes against children and the elderly sicken me.

[drgreen]

true but people like this is what gives us stuff to talk about. but yeh he should have been shot in the woods and draged tied to the cruser to the station.

[alpha.first.one]

so he killed his girl friends daughter? he must have been justified. i wonder what she did?

[drgreen]

yeh he killed her and sold the house. then when they found the body he kidnaped the old couple. they got him but not the old people. so yeh u most likely know there not playing spades at the holiday inn lol

[drgreen]

Samuel K. Littleton II, 37, of Bellefontaine, Ohio, is escorted into the offices of Mercer County Magistrate Rick Fowler for an arraignment this morning on a fugitive from justice warrant originating from Logan County, Ohio.

Samuel “Sammy” K. Littleton II said he would fight extradition to Ohio during a brief afternoon hearing Thursday in a Mercer County courtroom in Princeton, W.Va.

Littleton, 37, of Bellefontaine, is accused of killing his longtime girlfriend’s daughter and is suspected in the disappearance of a Logan County couple in their 80s.

Dressed in a jail-issued orange jumpsuit and wearing handcuffs and shackles, Littleton looked haggard and remained mostly silent during the extradition hearing.

If he had waived his right for extradition, he could have been on his way back to Ohio with Logan County Sheriff’s deputies as early as this afternoon.

Logan County Sheriff Andrew Smith said Thursday that Littleton as of yet has provided no new information that could help authorities locate Richard and Gladis Russell.

Smith said that Logan County Prosecutor Gerald Heaton will soon file paperwork with Gov. John Kasich’s office to move extradition forward. Kasich may in turn issue a governor’s warrant, which is reviewed by the West Virginia governor’s office. That office may then issue an order for the extradition. The process is considered a formality, Smith said.

The Russells’ automobile should be at the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation headquarters in London today, Smith said. It was found in the parking lot of a Princeton Walmart the day before Littleton was captured. Investigators found blood stains in the trunk and in the passenger area.

It will be further examined for evidence, Smith said.

Within minutes of Littleton’s hearing beginning, Judge William Sadler remanded Littleton to the Southern Regional Jail in Beaver, W.Va., without bond. Another hearing was scheduled for March 21. With the exception of talking briefly to his public defender, Littleton said nothing during the appearance. The courtroom was packed with news media representatives and spectators.

Littleton has been charged with the Feb. 16 death of Tiffany Brown, 26, the mother of two young children. No formal charges have been filed in the disappearance of Richard Russell, 84, and his wife Gladis Russell, 85.

The Bluefield Daily Telegraph reported that Littleton was brought before Mercer County Magistrate Rick Fowler for an arraignment this morning on a fugitive from justice warrant from Logan County.

After being interrogated for several hours on Wednesday following his capture by police, Littleton was moved to the Southern Regional Jail, where he was placed in isolation and put on suicide watch, Channel 10 TV News of Columbus reported. He has had no visitors since being booked at the jail, authorities told the news station.