In the summer of 1977, a wave of violence swept through three states, leaving a trail of victims in its wake, including a 66-year-old African American man from Franklinton, Louisiana. Alton Wilson, a local fisherman, tragically lost his life on June 27, 1977, at the hands of two escaped convicts, Paul Ruiz and Earl Van Denton. The duo had broken out of the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester just four days prior and embarked on a brutal crime spree.
The harrowing ordeal for Alton
Wilson and his friend, Ray Jones, began as they were fishing. Their paths crossed with the fugitives, who were in the midst of their violent rampage. The bodies of both Wilson and Jones were later discovered in a submerged pickup truck in a flooded gravel pit near Franklinton. It was determined that they had both been shot. The discovery of the men sent a shockwave through the quiet Louisiana town, as the reality of the escaped prisoners' presence became devastatingly clear.
The investigation into the murders of Alton Wilson and Ray Jones quickly connected their deaths to a wider string of killings. Authorities linked the slayings to the murders of Magazine Town Marshal Marvin Richie and Park Ranger Opal James in Arkansas, confirming that Ruiz and Denton were responsible for the multi-state killing spree. The manhunt for the two fugitives intensified as law enforcement from multiple jurisdictions worked to bring their reign of terror to an end.
The search for Paul Ruiz and Earl Van Denton concluded on July 8, 1977, when they were apprehended in Portland, Oregon. Following their capture, they were charged with the multiple murders they had committed during their escape, including those of Alton Wilson and Ray Jones. The two men were subsequently convicted for their heinous crimes and both were sentenced to death, finally bringing a measure of justice to the families of their victims and the communities they had terrorized.
