Michael Vance killed in police shootout in Oklahoma
An HIV-positive fugitive wanted for decapitating his relatives, sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl and a string of shootings has been killed in a police shootout.
Michael Dale Vance Jr, 38, from Oklahoma, was 'pinned down' and shot dead in a 'dramatic' stand-off with state troopers on Sunday - ending a week-long manhunt.
Earlier in the day, Vance shot Dewey County deputy Clay Sander in the arm, leaving him with non-life-threatening injuries.
Vance, who had been on the run for eight days since the savage murder of his uncle Ronald Wilkson, 55, and his wife Valerie, was spotted at a camp site near Hammon in western Oklahoma.
Fugitive: Michael Dale Vance Jr, 38, (pictured) from Oklahoma, was 'pinned down' and shot dead in a 'dramatic' stand-off with state troopers on Sunday
'Dramatic': Vance, from Oklahoma, was killed following an 'exchange of gunfire' with a state trooper
An Oklahoma Highway Patrol (OHP) helicopter then sighted Vance in a stolen vehicle and he was pursued for half and hour before being shot by the trooper at 10.15pm.
'There was an exchange of gunfire between the state trooper and the subject, and the subject was killed,' Dave Turk, from the U.S. Marshals Service said.
'It was pretty dramatic. We pinned him down,' OHP Chief Ricky Adams added.
RELATED ARTICLES
- 'I know I committed a truly horrible crime': Boy murderer... Friends find young couple shot dead dead inside Las Vegas... Hundreds of kind-hearted strangers attend memorial of slain... Pennsylvania college student 'put bleach in his pregnant...
Share this article
Share 80 shares'He's dead. … It was an extremely good job of police work by every agency involved.'
The family of Mr and Mrs Wilkson, who Vance is believed to have killed and dismembered, have spoke of their relief after hearing the news.
'It's one of those sad happy days that our parents are finally at peace,' one relative told News 9.
Killed: Vance (left) was shot dead by cops on Sunday after being accused of murdering his aunt and uncle. Sheriff Clay Sander (right) was shot and suffered non-life-threatening injuries
Prayers: Ellis County Sheriff Shane Booth called for prayers after Sander was shot
Tip-off: Police received a tip from a caller who reported seeing a car matching the description of one Vance was thought to be driving. It was hidden in bushes in a wooded area (shown)
Sheriff Shane Booth of Ellis County Sheriff's Office announced via Facebook: 'The manhunt is over and all Ellis County deputies are fine.
'Unfortunately, one officer was shot and he is one of my best friends. So, I'm asking for prayers for him. Thank you.'
Oklahoma County Sheriff John Whetsel said people across the state could rest easier following Vance's death.
'I think from a standpoint of our citizens is means he's not going to victimize any of our citizens anymore,' Whetsel said.
'Ron and Valerie were just enjoying a Sunday evening when they had their lives taken away by this crazed killer.'
Vance was wanted on multiple charges, including two counts of first-degree murder over the brutal deaths of his aunt and uncle.
He went on the run on October 23, while awaiting trial for sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl.
A search began after he shot and wounded two police officers on the same day in Wellston, 35 miles northeast of Oklahoma City, authorities said.
He then went to a nearby trailer park where he stole a Lincoln towncar and shot at one of the mobile homes parked. No one was seriously hurt.
Murdered: Vance was suspected of killing Ronald and Valerie Kay Wilkinson (pictured), before going on the run. Vance was apparently shot dead before he could complete his 'hit list'
Sighting: Vance, who had been on the run for eight days since the savage murder of his uncle and his wife Valerie, was spotted at a camp site near Hammon, Oklahoma
Later that night, officers in nearby Luther found the bodies of Vance's aunt and uncle, Ronald and Valerie Wilkinson, nearly decapitated in the trunk of an abandoned car.
The following day Vance was spotted in Sayre, east Oklahoma, where he fired shots and attempted a carjacking at around 2.30am.
A man was hit in the leg and hospitalized in critical condition.
After shooting the officers on October 23, Vance made the first of two videos he streamed live on Facebook. In it, he appeared in a blood-soaked T-shirt.
'It hurts, it sucks. America, you knew this would happen,' he said. 'That I would get my guns and... you're lucky it went down this way.
'I was coming for you. This is more intense than I thought it was going to be, to say the least.
'This truck is about dead. I need to get out of the road. I'm about to steal another car. Like, right now.'
In a second video, he said: 'This ain't a joke. This ain't a prank. This is where it gets interesting.
'If you want to know what happens next, stay tuned to your local news channel.'
The trail then went cold until he was spotted and shot on Sunday.
Police feared Vance, who was reportedly HIV positive, would go on the run and attempt to spread the sexually transmitted disease.
They also said that he had a 'hit list' of people he intended to harm, although most of them were outside Oklahoma. They were given protection by authorities.
His alleged teenage victim told police in July how he had rubbed her back, put his hands in her underwear and began kissing her, an arrest affidavit states.
He had been due to appear in Lincoln County Court on November 7 and may have been referencing the impending charges when he said in his Facebook videos that he had been 'set up.'
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7pa3IpbCmmZmhe6S7ja6iaKaVrMBwrdGtoJyklWKAeYSXbnBtZ4CkuaqvxGaEmqaYqru1ea6ko5qgn6Kubr%2FUrKeem6Rimqqvx5qcpWWGlruksYyorZ6qXp3Brrg%3D