DURANT, Miss. — A man suspected in the slayings of two nuns found dead in their Mississippi home has been arrested and charged with capital murder in the shocking killing that rocked the small town communities where the women served,
DURANT, Miss. — A man suspected in the slayings of two nuns found dead in their Mississippi home has been arrested and charged with capital murder in the shocking killing that rocked the small town communities where the women served, authorities said.
Rodney Earl Sanders, 46, of Kosciusko, Mississippi, was charged in the deaths of Sister Margaret Held and Sister Paula Merrill, Mississippi Department of Public Safety spokesman Warren Strain said late Friday. Both women were 68.
The women’s bodies were discovered Thursday after they failed to show up for work at a clinic in Lexington, Mississippi, about 10 miles from where they lived.
“Sanders was developed as a person of interest early on in the investigation,” Lt. Col. Jimmy Jordan said in the statement.
Authorities said Sanders was being held in an undisclosed detention center pending a court appearance. They have not given any details on why they think Sanders killed the women or whether he knew them.
People who knew the nuns, longstanding pillars of the community known for their generosity and commitment to improving health care for the poor, have been grappling with why anyone would want to kill them.
Dr. Elias Abboud, the physician who oversees the clinic, said Saturday he called the office manager after he saw there was an arrest made to check if Sanders had been a patient at the clinic but he was not.
Sanders was also not known to the small congregation where Held and Merrill had led Bible study for years.
The Rev. Greg Plata, sacramental minister at St. Thomas Catholic Church in Lexington, said Saturday that he does not think people at the church knew Sanders.
Strain said Saturday he does not know whether Sanders is represented by an attorney. Authorities do not anticipate making any other arrests. Strain said “investigators believe Sanders acted alone.”
Merrill’s nephew, David Merrill, speaking by telephone from Stoneham, Massachusetts, said Saturday the family was “thankful” Sanders is off the streets.
