Hall County, Neb. — A 72 year old Missouri man and his 71 year old wife who were stabbed during an attempted robbery at a rest area near Grand Island have been identified. The Hall County Sheriff’s Department says the victims were Gary and Mary Weaver, husband and wife, from Eureka, Missouri. The couple had been traveling through Nebraska in their mobile home when the incident occurred.
Sheriff’s Deputies responded at 7:08 a.m. Wednesday to the westbound Interstate-80 mile marker 316 & 1/2 rest area on a report of a disturbance.
Gary Weaver died at Grand Island Regional Hospital. Mary Weaver was in critical condition Wednesday at the hospital with life-threatening injuries.
The suspect, 22-year-old James Thompson Jr. of Elyria, Ohio, fled the scene by vehicle and was pursued at a high rate of speed and taken into custody by the Nebraska State Patrol.
Thompson faces charges of murder, attempted murder, assault, operating a motor vehicle to avoid arrest, two counts of attempted robbery and five counts of use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony.
He is being held in the Hall County Jail in Grand Island.
Assistance was provided by the Nebraska State Patrol, the Grand Island Police Department, Grand Island Ambulance, Doniphan QRT and Wood River Fire.
