MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) - Police in West Virginia arrested a suspect Wednesday in the slaying of a woman who was found dead inside her own car in a Walmart parking lot.
Gary Donald Smith II, 60, of Morgantown was charged with first-degree murder in the death of Alexa Randolph, 32, the Monongalia County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.
Smith is the paternal grandfather of Randolph’s minor child, according to the agency.
Randolph’s body was discovered Jan. 29, one day after she was last seen and reported missing, Morgantown police said.
Investigators alleged that a suspect dropped Randolph’s car off in the shopping center parking lot just before 9 p.m. then left the scene on foot.
Authorities previously said an autopsy was performed on the victim’s body. Her cause of death was not released.
Smith was jailed without bond Wednesday and was awaiting a preliminary hearing, news outlets reported.
It was not immediately clear whether he had an attorney who could comment for him.
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