Suspect linked to Mississippi highway shootings

TUNICA, Miss., May 18 (UPI) -- The handgun of a man already charged with kidnapping and rape was linked to the shooting deaths of two motorists in Mississippi, authorities said Friday.

James Willie, 28, was arrested early Tuesday after a disturbance involving a woman in Tunica, Miss.

The gun, a semiautomatic Ruger 9mm that was found in his possession, was linked to the shootings elsewhere in the state, the Mississippi Highway Patrol said.

Willie, of Sardis, Miss., was held on charges of kidnapping, rape and aggravated assault related to his initial arrest. He is expected to be charged with two counts of capital murder, the Highway Patrol said.

The state's crime lab said the gun was linked to:

-- The May 8 shooting of Thomas Schlender, 74, of Raymond, Neb., who was found dead in his pickup truck on Interstate 55 in Panola County.

-- The May 11 shooting of Lori Anne Carswell, 48, of Hernando, Miss., whose body was found beside her car on the shoulder of a state highway in Tunica County.

Police had warned motorists after the shootings that the gunman might have been posing as a police officer.

"Hundreds of man hours have been devoted to tracking down and arresting this individual," Gov. Phil Bryant said in a statement.