WMBFNews.com | Myrtle Beach/Florence, SC | News, Weather, SportsSC serial killer dead after police shootout in NC

SC serial killer dead after police shootout in NC

GAFFNEY, SC (WBTV/AP) - Officials in South Carolina confirmed Monday evening that a man shot and killed during a shootout with police earlier in the day in Gaston County, NC, was the serial killer wanted for a string of murders in Cherokee County, SC.

The serial killer, who was identified by authorities as Patrick Tracy Burris, 42, shot five people to death in South Carolina within a week.

Authorities said Burris was a career criminal who had a lengthy history of crimes in at least five states. (View Burris' criminal record in NC)

Neil Dolan, Deputy Director of the SC State Law Enforcement Division (SLED), said ballistics of the gun and bullets found on the man in rural Gaston County, NC, matched those used to kill residents in and around Cherokee County, SC, some 30 miles away. 

The news of Burris' death begin to put to rest fears in a community 50 miles southwest of Charlotte that had been on edge since people ranging from age 83 to 15 were killed in seemingly random situations during the 6-day killing spree.

Dolan told The Associated Press, "We have him. He's our serial killer."

Reggie Lloyd, also with the SC SLED, told WBTV the suspect has a long arrest history in other states.  Lloyd said Burris was wanted for a parole violation.  His last address on NC incarceration records was in Lincoln County, NC.

Authorities said they found Burris when Gaston County Police officers responded to a possible burglary at a vacant house.  They say he gave a fake name and pulled a gun when police officers tried to arrest him for the parole violation. (Click here to read related story about shootout.)

Terry Valentine is the person credited with tipping off authorities about the serial killer's presence in her neighborhood.  She was awakened by her 8-week-old puppy around 2 a.m. Monday morning. 

That's when she noticed a champagne-colored Ford SUV backing into a shed at a neighbor's vacant home.  She thought it was unusual for a vehicle to be there at that time of the morning.  The vehicle fit the description of the one used by the serial killer in Cherokee County. 

Officials said Valentine was able to describe to authorities a specific characteristic about the SUV that only law enforcement officers and witnesses to the murders knew about.

"I knew I had never seen the vehicle there before and what made it so suspicious when they parked under the carport, they didn't get out," said Valentine.  "They stayed in the vehicle."

Valentine also said the man driving the Explorer matched the description of the suspect wanted for the murders in South Carolina.

She called the Gaston County Police who came to the house and questioned Burris.  Then, Burris changed his story and a shoot-out began.  A police officer was shot in the thigh and officers returned fire killing Burris at the scene.

During a press conference late Monday night, Lloyd was upset that a man who had committed dozens of crimes in many states was not incarcerated.

"At some point, the criminal justice system is going to have to explain why this man was out on the street," Lloyd said.  "Individuals are repeatedly arrested and put out on the street. We can only speculate now... had the justice system lived up to what it was supposed to and put him away."

Earlier Monday, the sheriff's office said tips were coming in every hour and they were hopeful someone would provide a credible tip leading to the arrest of the serial killer.

Within the past week, more than 100 investigators worked the case including officers from state, local and federal agencies. 

On Friday, the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office released a second sketch of the man they believe was responsible for the Cherokee County murders. 

Victims of the Gaffney Serial Killer

The first murder in which authorities say Burris committed happened on Saturday, June 27.  Peach farmer Kline W. Cash, 63, was found dead by his wife in their home.  Cash's wife says a man called to inquire about hay for sale.  The caller was supposed to meet with her. 

When the suspect arrived, Cash's wife reportedly had to leave and go to the store. When she came back, she found her husband's body.  The sheriff's office said the home may have also been robbed.

The second and third victims were killed four days later on Wednesday, July 1.  Relatives found the bodies of 83-year-old Hazel Keaton Linder and her 50-year-old daughter, Gena Linder Parker inside Linder's Cherokee County home.  Both died from gunshot wounds and were bound.

One day later, Stephen Tyler and his 15-year-old daughter, Abby, were shot as they were closing the Tyler Home Center near downtown Gaffney.  Stephen Tyler died Thursday night, and his daughter remained in critical condition and died Saturday morning. 

Reminder of "Gaffney Strangler" of late 1960s

The search for Cherokee County's serial killer was a reminder for many of another horrific crime spree which happened more than 40 years ago.

Lee Roy Martin, the man later known as "The Gaffney Strangler," abducted and strangled four women during a killing spree in 1967 and 1968 that finally ended with his arrest three days after he strangled his final victim, a 14-year-old girl.

Martin called then-reporter Bill Gibbons and tipped him off about the killings.

Gibbons said Martin told him, he lost control during the killings.

"I said 'You know, this has got to stop' and he said, 'No, it'll keep going until I'm caught and shot like the dog that I am,'" Gibbons recalled.  (Click here to see a story about the "Gaffney Strangler".)

Martin was caught after his fourth murder.  He was convicted and sentenced to four life sentences, but was later killed in prison.

(The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

(The following story was filed on Sunday, July 5, one day before the serial murderer was shot and killed in Gaston County, NC.)

By David Whisenant - bio l email

GAFFNEY, SC (WBTV) - The hymn church members sang at the Cherokee Avenue Baptist Church on Sunday morning was "It Is Well With My Soul."  For many in the congregation and the community, the sense of well being has been shattered.

"Very sad, some were scared," said Youth Minister Jason Allison.  "But as a church, we realize that God is in control."

Cherokee Avenue is the home church of the two latest victims, Stephen and Abby Tyler.  Both were shot Thursday night at the family business, just a few blocks from the sheriff's office.

Abby, 15, was a popular member of the youth group.

"It's hard for them to understand that things happen the way they do, but they also understand that she's in a better place," Allison said.

Pastor Clyde Thomas planned to deliver a patriotic message Sunday, but he changed those plans after the killing of Stephen and Abby Tyler.

Instead, he offered practical words, urging his church members to be careful, to protect themselves, and to rely on their faith.

"We as Christians don't live by explanations," said Thomas.  "We live by promises and God has promised he will never leave or forsake us."