Detectives are still searching for the murderer(s) of two women in Millington, a town north of Memphis. The married couple were found dead in their home over the weekend.
Investigators haven’t identified the means by which the two were killed but a spokesperson from the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office has confirmed it was not a murder-suicide and that there are suspects. Spokesman Earle Farrell told Fox 13 Memphis, “Detectives say they have ruled out any of the natural causes. It was definitely foul play involved here. And there are a couple of suspects. People of interest that they are looking for right now.”
Reports from the area vary as to the lives of Rhonda Rene Bishop Dukes and Brenda Dukes. In a Facebook post from WMC Action News from Memphis, the two are identified as ‘well-loved women’ and the accompanying comments seem to confirm it. "Everyone around the area seemed to know and love them," read a report from the WMC Action News website.
Yet Mr. Farrell told the Memphis Commercial Appeal, “Apparently there were a lot of people these women had had run-ins with over the years ... That's why [the investigation is] taking so long.” The article goes on to list bankruptcies and a lawsuit against their employer over unpaid overtime.
He added that investigators are confident the two were not targeted for their same-sex relationship. “We don't have any indication of that," Farrell told the Commercial Appeal. "They were a same-sex couple but in today's world that's not unusual. Detectives have not said anything to me about a motive yet.”
Both were in their 40s, lived in Millington, which is situated in Shelby County north of Memphis (highlighted in red below), but worked at a KFC/Taco Bell location in Atoka, north of the area.
UPDATE: Family and friends of the deceased are offering a $5000 reward for information leading to the capture of suspects in the case. The Memphis Commercial Appeal notes, too, that Crime Stoppers is offering a $1000 reward.