Sheriff: ‘We are not ruling anyone out' in elderly couple's murder

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BARROW COUNTY, Ga. (FOX 5 Atlanta) - It's a crime that continues to scare neighbors in a quiet Barrow County neighborhood. Two grandparents were found murdered in their own home. The Barrow County Sheriff said his office is working around the clock to bring a suspect into custody.

Deputies found the bodies of 70-year-old Willard Ron Hess and 72-year-old Dorothy Hess at their home on Southridge Drive around 11:30 Monday morning. An autopsy revealed they both died from single gunshot wounds. The couple's grandson made the grim discovery.

The relative’s home, once surrounded by police tape, was instead visited by friends and family Thursday morning. The house sits directly across from the home where the Hess were found dead earlier in the week.

"We are not ruling anyone out," said Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith.

Sheriff Smith said the crime scene has been processed, and the investigation is in the hands of a team of investigators

"I’ve got a team of about six investigators all working on this one particular case, doing different things," the sheriff said.

An area of focus continues to be a vehicle, which was captured by a neighbor’s home security camera. It shows a dark vehicle, possibly a Hyundai Sonata. The video shows the vehicle making more than one trip to the home last Friday. Witnesses told police Willard Hess had last been seen on Friday.

"I'm 100 percent confident that car was involved. I am very confident that car was involved in that incident and I feel that it is linked 100 percent to the death of both of these victims," the sheriff said.

Sheriff Smith said tips are coming in to investigators around the clock. Even though no suspect has been named, and no arrest made, the sheriff said an arrest could be made in just days away, if not hours.

Detectives and crime scene technicians have combed over the home for evidence. Investigators said the home was not ransacked, so a motive could not be easily determined.

Anyone with information on the case is asked to please call the Barrow County Sheriff's Office.