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http://www.cnn.com/2002/US/South/10/21/sniper.shootings/index.htmlhttp://www.cnn.com/2002/US/South/10/21/sniper.shootings/index.html
Sources: Detained men not linked to sniper
RICHMOND, Virginia (CNN) --Authorities have found no evidence connecting two men who were taken into custody Monday near Richmond, Virginia to the sniper attacks, law enforcement sources said.
They described the men as undocumented workers -- a Mexican and a Guatemalan -- who "may have been in the wrong place at the wrong time," according to CNN Justice Correspondent Kelli Arena.
Two men were taken into custody Monday morning -- one was a man driving a white van who stopped at a pay phone at an Exxon gas station near Richmond -- and questioned as part of the sniper shootings probe.
Neither man was initially charged with any crime, and federal law enforcement sources said no evidence has been found linking either man to the shootings.
Search warrants were issued to allow police to examine the van taken from the service station and the undisclosed location, where the second man was taken into custody, sources said, but no material related to the sniping attacks was found.
Witnesses said police moved quickly, taking the man and the van without incident.
The station was one of several locations police had under surveillance, sources said.
Victim's wife urges prayer
In Maryland, where the sniper investigation has been centered, police spokeswoman Lucille Baur called the situation "very fluid" and no news briefings would be held there until further notice.
"We're in a very sensitive stage in the investigation," she said.
As of now, nine people have been killed and three wounded by the sniper who first struck October 2 in Montgomery County, Maryland, outside Washington. The latest shooting happened Saturday night outside a Ponderosa Steakhouse in the Richmond suburb of Ashland -- more than 80 miles south of Washington -- and was the first weekend attack by the sniper.
A key piece of evidence was the bullet removed from the victim in surgery Monday morning and taken to a federal laboratory in Maryland for testing.
"The ballistics evidence uncovered during our investigation has been matched with the other shooting cases," Hanover County Sheriff Stuart Cook said.
Saturday's 37-year-old victim, described as 6 feet tall and 200 pounds, had just dined with his wife before he was gunned down with a single shot. He remained in critical but stable condition, able to communicate with his wife, who was at his bedside, only by blinking his eyes.
His wife issued a statement Monday urging well-wishers to continue praying for her husband as well as "for the attacker and also that no one else is hurt." (Full story)
Phone tip led to note
Investigators found a handwritten note in the woods near the Ponderosa. One source close to the case said the note contained "significant content."
Sources said investigators found the note after a caller to the investigation tip line said there was a note for police in the woods near the restaurant. The phone call, placed after the Saturday night shooting, was traced to a location in Richmond near where the man with the minivan was picked up Monday.
Sources said the note "hinted at a demand for money." Sources also said the caller was a man with "an accent of unknown origin."
Montgomery County, Maryland, Police Chief Charles Moose, who is heading the sniper investigation, issued a brief, cryptic statement Monday. "We are going to respond to a message that we have received," he said. "We will respond later. We are preparing a response at this time."
It was not clear whether Moose was referring to the letter found in Ashland, or to a newer communication.
The note marks the first time police have acknowledged finding a communication during the course of their investigations. According to law enforcement sources, investigators found a Tarot card near the scene of a shooting October 7 at a middle school in Bowie, Maryland.
Other developments
•Funeral services were held Monday for the victim most recently killed in the series of shootings. Linda Franklin, 47, of Arlington, was gunned down in a shopping center parking garage one week ago in Falls Church. (Full story)
•Public school superintendents in Richmond and Chesterfield, Goochland, Henrico and Hanover counties closed their schools Monday, and encouraged other districts to follow suit. They also urged parents to monitor their children's activities and routines.
•The man charged with giving false information to police after Franklin's shooting was arraigned Monday in Fairfax County, Virginia, and denied bond. Matthew Dowdy, 37, claimed to have seen a man with a gun just before the shooting and also told police he saw a cream-colored van with a malfunctioning taillight. If convicted, he faces up to six months in prison and a $1,000 fine. (Full story)
•Results of a forensics test conducted on a white box truck seized Friday could be released as early as Monday, said authorities. Investigators searched the truck and examined a shell casing found in the back, but one source said the truck was "not a high priority."
CNN Correspondents Kelli Arena, Jason Carroll, Patty Davis and Jeanne Meserve, and Producer Mike Ahlers contributed to this report.
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