LINCOLNTON, N.C. (AP) - The body of a missing North Carolina woman has been found near a bridge, and sheriff’s deputies have charged a man in connection with her death.
The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office said 60-year-old Steve Allen Avery of Lincolnton was charged with first-degree murder early Friday. He’s in the county detention center without bond.
News outlets report family members hadn’t heard from 59-year-old Mary Walters Cook of Lincolnton since Monday, and a missing person’s report was filed two days later. Cook’s vehicle was found at a restaurant.
Deputies searched Avery’s home on Thursday night. A sheriff’s news release says Avery confessed to killing Cook with a rifle and taking her body off the bridge, where authorities recovered it. Avery’s arrest report didn’t mention whether he has an attorney.
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