Double Homicide Suspect Eludes Authorities

A manhunt is going on in Comanche County for 33-year-old Josh Muller. Police say he's armed with an assault rifle and has threatened to get into a shootout with police. News On 6 crime reporter Lori

Monday, July 23rd 2007, 9:38 am

By: News On 6

A manhunt is going on in Comanche County for 33-year-old Josh Muller. Police say he's armed with an assault rifle and has threatened to get into a shootout with police. News On 6 crime reporter Lori Fullbright reports he's wanted for murdering a 12-year-old girl and her 16-year-old cousin in Tulsa Sunday morning.

Police say Comanche County deputies had Josh Muller surrounded in a house overnight, but he somehow escaped. Police say he killed Leah Fuqua and her cousin, Deriko Ross. Another victim is in ICU with wounds to her chest, arm and side.

Muller does not have a criminal history. He works at a trucking company. Police say he snapped all because he thought the girls took his wife's wallet.

Leah Fuqua's family and friends gather around a makeshift memorial where the shooting happened. Her mother says Fuqua had gone through a rough time, had counseling and finally got her life back on track a few weeks ago.

"She was so happy, so ready to start school again. Just got her life right and this happens, it's just not fair,â€ said Fuquaâ€™s mother Teresa Hill.

Hill says she thought Fuqua was at a cousin's house. She had no idea Josh Muller's wife had picked up Fuqua and a 12-year-old friend.

In fact, she says the family had been looking for the girls for hours. Police say Muller's wife took the girls to a bar parking lot to meet someone. While there, she was assaulted, so the girls took off. The wife then realized her wallet was missing and told her husband.

Police say some of Fuquaâ€™s family found her at a parking lot at the same time Muller did. They say he first rammed into the Durango driven by Fuquaâ€™s family, and then he left. The girls jumped into the Durango with the three older kids.

"They were all huddled in the SUV to get safe when the suspect came back with an assault rifle,â€ said Tulsa Police Sgt. Mike Huff. â€œSomebody told the suspect that there were children in the car. He shot it up, multiple shots into the car. It's a terrible tragedy."

Fuqua and her cousin Deriko Ross were killed. The other 12-year-old friend was critically injured. Hill says her daughter didn't even know Muller's wife.

A Leah Fuqua Memorial Fund has been set up at the Oklahoma Members First Federal Credit Union. Contact Isabel Villalpando in member services at 918-663-2050. The address is 10832 E. 31st Street, Tulsa, Oklahoma 74146.

Watch the video: Double Homicide Suspect Still On The Loose

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7/22/2007 - Shooting Leaves Two Dead, One In Critical Condition