Man charged in slayings of Virginia sisters

MURFREESBORO, N.C. — A Virginia man has been arrested in the deaths of two elderly sisters whose bodies were found along a rural North Carolina road more than two years ago, authorities said Thursday.

William Curtis Futrell, 34, faces two counts of first-degree murder, and Hertford County Sheriff Juan E. Vaughan Sr. said additional charges are pending.

The bodies of Dorothy R. Hobbs, 73, and Nellie R. Bradley, 71, were found in August 2006 along a dirt road just north of Murfreesboro and about 40 miles from their Virginia home. The sisters from Emporia, Va., had been stabbed multiple times. The two women were last seen alive as they dropped off a charitable contribution in Boykins, Va.

Vaughan said Futrell had not been a suspect until evidence tested in the last few days led investigators to him. He declined to discuss the details of the evidence or a possible motive.

"I'm relieved," Vaughan said. "It's a blessing that we got him. We worked hard on it, and we never gave up."

Futrell was arrested in Franklin, Va., and extradited to Hertford County on Thursday. He will be arraigned Friday morning. Hertford County authorities did not know if Futrell had an attorney.