June 29, 2005
A massive manhunt for a double murder suspect in Augusta County has ended. Police say suspect Michael F. Lawson shot himself in the head around 5 a.m. near Hairston in Augusta County. He was wanted for killing two of his in-laws on Tuesday morning.
Lawson had been on the run since he allegedly killed his estranged wife's grandfather and mother outside of their Dooms home around 9 a.m. Tuesday.
Since yesterday, Waynesboro and Staunton Police and the Virginia State Police searched the woods for hours on Tuesday but to no avail.
Police received a call at 1:30 a.m. this morning from a neighbor claiming Lawson had stopped at a friend's house for a drink of water. Canine teams tracked him down, and as police moved in, Lawson fired one shot, killing himself.
