Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, February 27, 1994 TAG: 9402270090
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ALLISON BLAKE STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Hampton is suspected of a two-state crime spree.
"I think he's been spotted everywhere in the United States this morning. We've been flooded with calls," said Montgomery County Sheriff's Dept. Sgt. Dennis Rakes.
Eight to 10 calls were reported by early Saturday afternoon alone.
"They range from `I saw him two weeks ago,' to `I saw him two days ago,' " said Rakes. "At this time, we don't know. We've got the information out to all the agencies and states surrounding us."
Although nobody knows where Hampton is hiding, Pulaski County Sheriff Ralph Dobbins said his department is "operating as if" Hampton's still in the area.
"We're searching every place we know he frequents, staying in touch with his friends and family," said Dobbins.
Hampton, 35, of Christiansburg, was last seen Thursday leaving the Ironto rest stop on I-81 in a white Oldsmobile with Maryland handicapped plates. But Dobbins said it's possible that those plates have been changed by now.
"He is very familiar with those back roads down [around Christiansburg], having grown up and lived there.
"I don't mean to be an alarmist, but as long as he's out, people need to be aware of their surroundings. He's not afraid to bash somebody's head in."
Virginia Tech officials on Friday asked dormitory students to take extra safety precautions, said university spokesman Larry Hincker.
Hampton's flight apparently began earlier this month when a Pulaski County grand jury indicted the convicted murderer in the beating of an acquaintance, Robert H. "Bobby" McDaniel, 43, on Nov. 9.
Dobbins said last week that Hampton fled after learning of the indictment.
Police said Hampton is suspected in a crime spree that took place on Wednesday and Thursday, including the West Virginia kidnapping and rape of a woman whose car he allegedly stole and drove to Montgomery County; the clubbing of an 81-year-old McCoy man, from whom he stole $500; and in the attack of a 77-year-old woman and her passenger at the Ironto rest stop on Interstate 81.
Hampton took the woman's 1990 Oldsmobile, license number 74924HC, and drove north on I-81, police said.
The auburn-haired man is 5 feet 7 and walks with a limp.
Staff writer Todd Jackson contributed information to this story.
by CNB