Bodies believed to belong to a mother and daughter not seen since August 2000 were found in a backyard in West Virginia hours after their suspected killer died Monday.
Susan Carter was 41 then, and daughter Natasha “Alex” Carter was 10. At the time of the disappearances, the mother was in a custody dispute with Alex’s father, Rick Lafferty, who was not a suspect, the FBI Pittsburgh field office said in a 2021 release.
The pair were staying in the house of a friend, Larry Webb, who was the suspect, around the time they disappeared. The case went cold for years, but an investigation of his house found a bullet behind the baseboard of the bed in a room used by Alex, FBI Supervisory Special Agent Tony Rausa said at a press conference Tuesday.
Blood on the bullet, which was embedded in the wall, was tested and found to belong to Alex. Webb was indicted in October 2023, although medical complications on his end delayed the judicial process, Raleigh County Prosecuting Attorney Benjamin Hatfield said at the press conference.
Earlier this month, investigators went to a nursing home to speak to Webb. When confronted with the evidence, he confessed and told investigators that the remains were in a shallow, unmarked grave in his backyard, Mr. Rausa said.
“It was a detailed, undeniable, unconflicted confession,” Mr. Hatfield said.
Webb said he shot Ms. Carter over a money argument and killed Alex to avoid detection for the first shooting, Mr. Hatfield explained.
Webb was arrested and incarcerated April 12, then was moved to Mount Olive Correctional Complex in West Virginia for medical treatment this month. On Monday, he had a medical episode and died at around 10:30 a.m.
Hours later at around 4:50 p.m., after three days of digging in Mr. Webb’s backyard, the remains of an adult and child were found with a high certainty of belonging to the Carters, Mr. Rausa said.
“A bit of a poetic ending that not even I could write,” Mr. Hatfield said.
The remains have been sent to the West Virginia Office of the Chief Medical Examiner so that autopsies can be conducted.
Mr. Lafferty said his feeling was bittersweet.
“It’s kind of a sad day, but also a happy day because I can bring my baby home. Twenty-four years. This case went cold so many times I almost lost hope several times. If I could tell anyone in my position, just never give up hope of finding your child,” he said.