Oklahoma manhunt: Search for murder suspect Michael Dale Vance Jr. continues

Juliana Keeping Robert Medley by Juliana Keeping, & Robert Medley Published: October 27, 2016 12:00 AM CDT Updated: October 27, 2016 7:16 PM CDT

[Linked Image]
Ronald Everett Wilkson, 55, and his wife, Valerie Kay Wilkson, 54, were identified as homicide victims in a crime
spree that began Sunday. Authorities have accused Michael Dale Vance Jr., 38, in the deaths. Vance is the son of
Kay Wilkson’s cousin, a family member said. Relatives described Ronnie and Kay


LUTHER — A funeral Friday for a slain couple will be unlike any this sleepy town northeast of Oklahoma City has ever seen.

Unless an ongoing manhunt yields the capture of Michael Dale Vance Jr., 38, the wounded man wanted for the couple's deaths, security at the funeral service is expected to include well-armed local, state and federal law enforcement officers.

A hit list hangs over relatives of the deceased, who have publicized the funeral in an obituary and are determined to afford proper burial rites to their loved ones.

"The manhunt that's hanging over us is not our fault, so why should we have to pay for that?" said a relative of the Wilksons, who asked not to be identified.

Valerie Kay Wilkson, 54, and her husband, Ronald Everett Wilkson, 55, were killed in a crime spree that began Sunday in rural Lincoln County and included the shooting of two Wellston police officers and the theft of multiple cars. The suspect is the son of Kay Wilkson's cousin.

Luther Public Schools canceled Friday classes for roughly 800 students to accommodate auditorium services for the Wilksons.

"This is necessitated to accommodate funeral services for the family of the community that suffered a tragic loss this past weekend," said Sheldon L. Buxton, Luther Public Schools superintendent. "The scheduled football game that evening with Meeker will be played here as scheduled."

The FBI and the U.S. Marshals Service joined the search and now jointly lead the manhunt, Oklahoma County Sheriff John Whetsel said.

Vance's whereabouts is unknown.

Oklahoma manhunt: Hotline number could assist in search
"Well, he could be anywhere," Whetsel told The Oklahoman. "You kind of believe that he's smart enough to have stayed off the highways after the initial evening.

"He could be north, south, east or west from Sayre. I don't know if he's still in Oklahoma. He could well be in the Texas Panhandle. That's not that far from Sayre. So that's why it's hard for me to say where he's at."

Vance was last seen about 2:30 a.m. Monday heading east from an Interstate 40 truck stop near Sayre.

The two Wellston police officers injured in the shoot-out, Shawn Stewart and Jim Hampton, continue to recover from their injuries. Hampton fired at Vance, injuring him.

Whetsel says it's possible that Vance has died if he hasn't received medical treatment for his wounds.

The state Medical Examiner's Office released information Thursday about the Wilksons, who were found dead at their home in Luther Sunday night.

Homicide was listed as the manner of death for the couple. His cause of death was multiple trauma. Hers was multiple stab wounds.

An Oklahoma County sheriff's investigator reported earlier Ronald Wilkson had been shot, and cut so severely it appeared an attempt had been made to decapitate him.

Vance was last seen driving a stolen 2007 gray Mitsubishi Eclipse, with Oklahoma license plate 943LQQ. Authorities say he told his sister he has a list of people he wants to kill.

A special hotline, (405) 246-9205, has been set up for tips about Vance.

"All that the South has ever desired was that the Union, as established by our forefathers, should be preserved, and that the government, as originally organized, should be administered in purity and truth." – Robert E. Lee