Sleepy SC town where 'Strangler' struck unnerved by serial killer

This sketch of the suspect in a series of murders in Gaffney, SC, was released by the Cherokee County Sheriff's Dept. Mention the city of Gaffney to a South Carolinian and the first thought will probably be about peaches. You can see the town’s giant peach tower from I-85 and the community has a nationally touted peach festival every summer. It’s normally a quiet city strategically located between Charlotte (in the other Carolina) and Greenville. It’s the official seat of Cherokee County. And within the last week, 5 people have been killed, shot dead for no apparent reason. One victim, a 15-year-old girl shot with her father on Thursday at the family business, died Saturday. Her mother and sister discovered the teen as she clung to life. Her father was already dead.

Gaffney’s other brush with a serial killer occurred in the 60s when Lee Roy Martin, dubbed ‘The Gaffney Strangler,’ killed 4 women. Martin was convicted and died of stab wounds several years after going to prison. Many of us who grew up in South Carolina remember the Strangler, even if we were young. Fear rippled through many small towns at that time.

The latest killings have turned a bucolic town into a frightened city where the sheriff is warning salesmen and travelers not to knock on doors. Rural communities in the Palmetto State have no shortage of hunters or homeowners with guns. Residents are stocking up on guns and ammunition.

The shooter seems to not prefer a gender—2 men and 3 women including the teen are among the victims. Nor does the shooter seek victims in a certain age group—ages for those killed range from 15 to 83 years old.

It’s not surprising the case is being worked by a variety of law enforcement. The hometown paper, The Gaffney Ledger, said, “The task force assembled includes at least 100 investigators and crime scene specialists from multiple local, state and federal agencies, including all counties surrounding Cherokee County.” The paper also said, “There is a $2,500 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for the slayings. You do not have to identify yourself in order to leave a tip.”

The male suspect is described as being 6-feet, 2-inches tall with salt and pepper hair. He may be driving a gray or champagne colored 1991-1994 Ford Explorer Sport.

Officials are as might be expected being selective about the information they share with the public. A sketch has been distributed. Anyone with information should call Cherokee County Crime Stoppers at (864) 489-2746; or 911.

South Carolina’s upstate small towns are among the most beautiful in the nation. Gaffney is nestled in the foothills of the Appalachians. Crimes such as the shootings tend to be taken more personally than killings in a larger city. There’s more a sense of the killings being a crime against the community because homicides are rare in towns like Gaffney.

The sheriff gave good advice. If you’re traveling in that area, be careful how you approach people right now. And be careful whom you trust. The FBI issued a report on myths about serial killers last year. In a previous TUSR column we pointed out one myth the report disclosed: “[S]erial killers are not all dysfunctional loners: some have had wives and kids and full-time jobs and have been very active in their community or church or both.”

Update on Tuesday, July 7, 2009 at 9:21AM by Kay B. Day, Editor

Media reports the alleged serial killer has been killed.