Suspect in recent double murder also linked to decades old murders in Idaho County

murder-investigation

The man accused of killing two people in Idaho and Nez Perce counties has also been tied to an unsolved 1994 double murder in Grangeville.

Richard Ross

56-year-old Richard Ross made his first court appearance Tuesday in connection with the recent murders of 76-year-old Edwina Devin and her 57-year-old son Michael Devin.

Chief Deputy Criminal Prosecutor April Smith made the connection to the 1994 case while asking the judge to not set bond for Ross to ensure that he remains in custody.

The 1994 case refers to the strangulation deaths of Bruce and Lynn Peeples, whose bodies were found inside their Grangeville home after a failed attempt to burn the building to the ground.

Smith said the state originally requested a bond of $1 million based on the violent nature of the charges in the Devin murders, but the additional information about the older case led the state to request no bond be set. The judge agreed and Ross will remain in custody while the case moves forward.

Edwina Devin’s body was found in her home on Cove Road near Grangeville on Sept. 30th. The next morning, first responders found Michael Devin’s remains inside a burning 2007 GMC pickup truck at approximately 3:20 a.m. on Nez Perce Drive east of Juniper Drive in Lewiston. Both had been strangled.

If convicted, Ross faces a maximum sentence of life in prison or death. (Lewiston Tribune)

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