MARLINTON, W.Va. — A Pocahontas County man will face charges of murdering his grandparents when he is extradited to West Virginia.
Aaron Bussard, 22, of Marlinton, was arrested Saturday during a traffic stop in Alleghany County, Va. He was driving the Honda Pilot allegedly stolen from his grandparents’ home.
“He was caught in a traffic stop outside of Clifton Forge, Va., and he threatened suicide,” said West Virginia state police Lt. Michael Baylous. “It was a rather lengthy stop where they were able to take him into custody and now he sits in jail awaiting extradition proceedings.”
Reports indicate Virginia deputies used a taser to bring Bussard under control after a lengthy standoff.
Bussard’s grandparents, Tim and Shawn McDaniels, were found dead of gunshot wounds in their Marlinton home on Friday. State police and Pocahontas County deputies had been sent to the residence for a wellness check. Tim McDaniels was 61 and his wife 59.
It didn’t take long for troopers to connect Bussard to the murders.
“I don’t know what turned them onto him so quick, but they discovered he had taken the Honda Pilot that belonged to the McDaniels,” Baylous said. “They were able to obtain a warrant pretty quickly for the car while they were still piecing together the murder scene.”
Troopers also noted Bussard possessed several of his grandparents’ credit cards which had large recent charges. State police obtained warrants for Bussard on two counts of first-degree murder to be served when he’s returned to West Virginia, Baylous said.
The case is a difficult one for the West Virginia state police. Tim McDaniels was a retired trooper who served from 1978-1991 and spent most of his duty in the Marlinton and Elkins detachments. Wounded in the line of duty while responding to a domestic dispute, he was forced to take medical retirement and earned a Purple Heart.
“West Virginia state police is kind of small—in our history there have only been about 3,500 troopers, so we all know each other,” Baylous said. “I’d talked to Tim several times over the past few years over the phone. He was a very nice guy and a very likable guy.”