Suspect identified in women’s 1996 double murder at national park campsite: FBI WHIO TV 7 and WHIO Radio [Video]

RICHMOND, Va. — After nearly three decades, a convicted serial rapist has been identified as the suspect in the 1996 double murder of two women in a Virginia national park, federal authorities said.

But the suspect won’t face charges, as he died in prison six years ago, authorities said.

On May 24, 1996, Laura “Lollie” Winans, 26, and Julianne “Julie” Williams, 24, were sexually assaulted and killed in a “brutal” attack at their Shenandoah National Park campsite, Christopher Kavanaugh, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Virginia, said at a Thursday news conference.

Winans and Williams met through an organization providing outdoor adventure and educational programs for women, Kavanaugh said.

The women went into the park on May 19 and were last seen alive on the evening of May 24, Kavanaugh said.

Their relatives called the National Park Service when they didn’t come home, and their bodies were discovered a …