HAMPTON, Va. — A now-deceased Northern Neck resident has been named as the suspect in two decades-old homicide cases in Hampton and Isle of Wight County, including one of the Colonial Parkway murders.
Authorities said Alan Wilmer Sr. was responsible for the deaths of David Knobling, 20, and Robin Edwards, 14, in 1987, as well as the 1989 murder of 29-year-old Teresa Lynn Spaw Howell.
The announcement was made during a Monday afternoon news conference with several law enforcement agencies, including the Hampton Police Division, FBI and Virginia State Police.
Wilmer died in December 2017 at age 63 in his Lancaster County home, but charges would be filed against him by the Isle of Wight County and City of Hampton Commonwealth’s Attorneys if he was still alive, according to a news release from law enforcement.
Knobling and Edwards were one of four couples killed in the Colonial Parkway murders between 1986 and 1989.
The two were found shot to death on Sept. 23, 1987, on the south bank of the James River in Isle of Wight County. The next day, Knobling’s pickup truck was found abandoned in the Ragged Island parking lot.
"Although the similarities in the series of double homicides that spanned a three-year period cannot be ignored, at this time, there is no forensic nor physical evidence to link the Isle of Wight County homicides to those other double homicides," said Corinne Geller, a spokesperson for Virginia State Police.
In the second case, Howell was last seen alive on July 1, 1989, around 2:30 a.m. outside of the Zodiac Club, which used to be at 207 East Mercury Boulevard and no longer exists today. Later that morning, Howell was found dead in the 500 block of Butler Farm Road, authorities said.
Investigators determined she was sexually assaulted and died by strangulation.
There was a man previously arrested in connection to Howell's murder; however, a judge had set aside the charges in the case due to DNA excluding him as a suspect, law enforcement said.
According to law enforcement, Wilmer didn't have any felonies on his criminal record, so his DNA wasn't obtained until necessary for identification purposes after he died. In 2023, the Virginia Department of Forensic Science confirmed a genetic match to Wilmer based on evidence collected in both homicide cases.
Law enforcement said Wilmer owned a small commercial fishing boat named the Denni Wade, which he would dock at marinas in Gloucester and Middlesex counties, and around the Northern Neck. He worked as a fisherman during the 1980s and ran a business called Better Tree Service.
Wilmer had a "distinctive, blue" 1966 Dodge Fargopickup truck with the Virginia license plate “EM-RAW," one of several pickup trucks he drove in the 1980s and 90s.
Families of victims, suspect respond: 'We have a sense of relief and justice'
The families of Knobling and Edwards shared a statement thanking law enforcement and expressing relief at the discovery.
"For 36 years, our families have lived in a vacuum of the unknown. We have lived with the fear of worrying that a person capable of deliberately killing Robin and David could attack and claim another victim," the statement read in part. "Now we have a sense of relief and justice knowing that he can no longer victimize another."
Knobling and Edwards' families also extended their prayers to Howell's family, saying they're "now connected through this tragedy and will forever be linked."
"We also recognize this is a difficult time for the Wilmer family and ask that the public extend the same grace to them as we do," the statement said.
The Hampton Police Division shared a statement from Howell's family, who expressed their gratitude to all of the investigators who worked the case.
"While we are grateful for the closure that has been provided, nothing will bring Teri back," the statement read. "The void left by her absence over the years is inexpressible."
In a statement, Wilmer's family said the crimes come "as a complete and horrific shock" to them, adding they learned about this news about the same time as everyone else.
"The man who committed these crimes was not someone we knew," the family's statement read. "The revelation of what he's done has deeply impacted our family as we are forced to reconcile who we believed him to be with the unimaginable things he has done."
The statement continued: "We deeply mourn with the victim's families and the community and have them in our prayers. We can't imagine what they've gone through for all these years. We are fully cooperating with law enforcement and are asking for privacy during this extremely difficult time."
Law enforcement is encouraging anyone who may have spent time with or seen Wilmer to reach out to the FBI by calling 1-800-CALL-FBI or submitting a tip online. People can also submit information to Virginia State Police by emailing questions@vsp.virginia.gov.
"Let us know if you knew him, how you knew him, what encounters you had, so we can build that timeline and find out if, in fact, there are other victims out there," Geller added.
The FBI is also still looking for tips that can help them solve the Colonial Parkway murders. Anyone with information is asked to email the FBI at Colonial_Parkway_Murders@ic.fbi.gov.