Overview
- Virginia State Police announced at a Friday press conference that evidence ties Wilmer to Powell’s fatal stabbing in Gloucester County in 1988.
- Powell was last seen on March 8, 1988, on Route 614; her body was found on April 2 in the Elizabeth River near Carney Island with multiple stab wounds.
- Investigators said multiple agencies used advanced forensic methods, including comparisons using DNA obtained from Wilmer after his death because he had no felony record on file.
- Wilmer, who died in 2017 at age 63, had previously been named the suspect in the 1987 killings of David Knobling and Robin Edwards and the 1989 murder of Teresa Lynn Howell.
- Authorities noted the 1987 double homicide is one of the Colonial Parkway cases and said inquiries continue into whether Wilmer is linked to additional crimes.