Ricky Lafferty expressed a mix of emotions after the bodies of his daughter, Alex Carter, and her mother, Susan, both of whom had been missing for 24 years, were found buried in a yard in West Virginia.”Finally we’re going to bring my baby home,” said Lafferty.He described his feelings as a mixture of, “Sadness. Happiness. Relief. Just a feeling of melancholy. You’re happy they found her but sad about the circumstances of her not being alive.”The bodies were found in the yard of Larry Webb, a man Lafferty had always suspected. Webb died of a medical episode in the Mt. Olive Correctional Complex hours before the bodies were discovered, a coincidence described as bizarre by Raleigh County Prosecuting Attorney Ben Hatfield.Webb had confessed to shooting Susan during an argument over missing money earlier in the month. He told investigators that he had to kill Alex too, to cover up his crime. The victims were kept in his basement for two days before being buried in his Mabscott yard. Webb was arrested following his confession and transferred to Mt. Olive for medical care.”It was a detailed undeniable, unconflicted confession. The confession aligned with the investigative efforts and the evidence collected by Special Agent King and by Cpl. Stowers,” Hatfield stated.In 2020, FBI Special Agent Jennifer King and Cpl. Ryan Stowers of the West Virginia State Police renewed efforts on the case. Their investigation led to Webb’s indictment for the murder of Alex in the fall, after a search of Webb’s property. Susan and Alex had been living with Webb due to a custody dispute with Lafferty.”In a bedroom known to have been occupied by 10-year-old Alex Carter, they were able to recover a bullet embedded in the wall behind the baseboard. That bullet was collected and sent to the lab and subsequent DNA results confirmed blood on that bullet belonged to Alex Carter,” said Tony Rausa, FBI supervisory special agent.Investigators are now looking into whether the case was mishandled in its early days.”Let’s call that ongoing at this time. Some mistakes I think were made up front that we are looking into currently,” Hatfield added.Lafferty, who was gifted one of Alex’s necklaces by investigators, had a message for all loved ones of those missing and those at the center of unsolved cases.”Never give up. Never give up. I don’t care who you have to write. They may think you’re bugging them or whatever but just never give it up. Never. Because someone is going to listen. Eventually someone will listen.”
Ricky Lafferty expressed a mix of emotions after the bodies of his daughter, Alex Carter, and her mother, Susan, both of whom had been missing for 24 years, were found buried in a yard in West Virginia.
“Finally we’re going to bring my baby home,” said Lafferty.
He described his feelings as a mixture of, “Sadness. Happiness. Relief. Just a feeling of melancholy. You’re happy they found her but sad about the circumstances of her not being alive.”
The bodies were found in the yard of Larry Webb, a man Lafferty had always suspected. Webb died of a medical episode in the Mt. Olive Correctional Complex hours before the bodies were discovered, a coincidence described as bizarre by Raleigh County Prosecuting Attorney Ben Hatfield.
Webb had confessed to shooting Susan during an argument over missing money earlier in the month. He told investigators that he had to kill Alex too, to cover up his crime. The victims were kept in his basement for two days before being buried in his Mabscott yard. Webb was arrested following his confession and transferred to Mt. Olive for medical care.
“It was a detailed undeniable, unconflicted confession. The confession aligned with the investigative efforts and the evidence collected by Special Agent King and by Cpl. Stowers,” Hatfield stated.
In 2020, FBI Special Agent Jennifer King and Cpl. Ryan Stowers of the West Virginia State Police renewed efforts on the case. Their investigation led to Webb’s indictment for the murder of Alex in the fall, after a search of Webb’s property. Susan and Alex had been living with Webb due to a custody dispute with Lafferty.
“In a bedroom known to have been occupied by 10-year-old Alex Carter, they were able to recover a bullet embedded in the wall behind the baseboard. That bullet was collected and sent to the lab and subsequent DNA results confirmed blood on that bullet belonged to Alex Carter,” said Tony Rausa, FBI supervisory special agent.
Investigators are now looking into whether the case was mishandled in its early days.
“Let’s call that ongoing at this time. Some mistakes I think were made up front that we are looking into currently,” Hatfield added.
Lafferty, who was gifted one of Alex’s necklaces by investigators, had a message for all loved ones of those missing and those at the center of unsolved cases.
“Never give up. Never give up. I don’t care who you have to write. They may think you’re bugging them or whatever but just never give it up. Never. Because someone is going to listen. Eventually someone will listen.”
