OPINION: It's never to late to right a wrong, or bring a criminal to justice

Dec. 3—A Jolo man who died in an explosion at a mobile home in Wythe County.

A 70-year-old woman found dead after a forcible rape.

A Bluefield man murdered from a gunshot wound to the head and discovered in his pick-up truck in Pulaski, Va.

A deceased adult male found nude in Pounding Mill whose cause of death was drowning, but was not near any body of water.

Different scenes.

Different murders.

Different crimes.

And certainly different victims and suspects.

But all share one common element. They are among a bevy of cold cases getting renewed scrutiny by the Virginia State Police.

----Several weeks ago I spent more than three hours interviewing Virginia State Police Special Agent Russell Edwards. He is lead investigator on most of the cold cases in our area of Southwest Virginia.

We spoke of the crimes, potential motives and possible suspects.

Each case is different, but they are all on the radar.

The plan was a series of stories to highlight these murders and missing persons cases and, with hope, bring a resolution and, perhaps, a killer, to justice.

----Our series started last week with a story detailing the case of a missing Tazewell County, Va., hunter.

Eric Smith, a 41-year-old coal miner, left his home on Nov. 8, 2013, to hunt along West Hurt Buggy Road, according to family members. He reportedly took his rifle with him, but left his cellphone and cigarettes inside the house and his wallet in the truck.

He has not been seen since.

Now, nine years later, his case is being investigated as a potential homicide.

Today's story focused on the horrific murder of two Bland County service station workers during an armed robbery of their business.

Darren Walker, 20, of Bland, and Steven Shinault, 25, of Max Meadows, were murdered on the morning of Sept. 14, 1983, shortly after 10 a.m., at the Exxon Service Station in Bastian.

According to the Virginia State Police, "Agents found the bodies of the victims lying face down in the utility room of the store, with apparent gunshot wounds. The autopsy of the victims revealed both were shot three times each by two different caliber firearms."

A cash register at the station had been emptied of all money.

----I was a young teen when the Bland County murders occurred, but I do remember headlines and community chatter about the crime.

Bland was always viewed as a quaint and quiet area — a place for cows to roam and humans to view the landscape in contemplative solitude.

Interestingly, Bland was the next-door neighbor to one of the most high-profile unsolved cases in the region — the Wolf Creek murders.

On May 28, 1978, Jeff Scott and his girlfriend, Karen Noble, were murdered in Giles County, Va. — not far from the Bland County line.

In fact, for years many residents believed the murder of the couple occurred in Bland, and not Giles, County.

----Our current cold case series will continue for several weeks.

Although these cases may have transpired years ago, it does not mean justice can not be brought forth in our current day and age.

Someone may remember a relevant tidbit from the past.

Someone who may have been scared to talk then may now have renewed courage.

Someone with a fact, a detail or evidence can still pick up the phone and call investigators.

It's never too late to right a wrong.

Or to bring a criminal to justice.

Samantha Perry is editor of the Daily Telegraph. Contact her at sperry@bdtonline.com. Follow her @BDTPerry.

— Contact Samantha Perry at sperry@bdtonline.com.