UPDATE 3:20 P.M. 5/31/23 ROANOKE COUNTY, Va. (WFXR) — The Roanoke Police Department says the McAfee Knob incident is being investigated as a murder-suicide, after two bodies were found in a parking lot near the trail on May 26. 

RCPD believes 62-year-old Lewis Lambert Jr. killed the juvenile male and then died by suicide in the parking lot.

Lambert was also identified as a person of interest in an arson investigation that occurred on the morning of May 26. Investigators are continuing to learn more about the incident.

WFXR News will update you as more information becomes available.

If you’re thinking about suicide, are worried about a friend or loved one, or would like emotional support, the 988 Lifeline is available 24/7 across the United States. It is available for everyone, free, and confidential.

Call or text 988 or visit 988Lifeline.org.

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UPDATE 4:05 P.M. 5/26/23 ROANOKE COUNTY, Va. (WFXR) — The Roanoke County Police Department (RCPD) says they are not searching for any suspects after two dead bodies were found in the parking lot of McAfee Knob Trailhead on May 26.

Around 6 a.m. on Friday, officers say they responded to Catawba Road after hikers found two bodies. On the scene, officers located two males with gunshot wounds. Investigators believe one man died from a self-inflicted wound.

RCPD identified one of the men as 62-year-old Lewis James Lambert, Jr., from Roanoke. Investigators say the second body was of a juvenile male.

WFXR News will update you with additional details as they are released.

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ROANOKE COUNTY, Va. (WFXR) — The Roanoke County Police Department (RCPD) has launched a death investigation after hikers found two men dead in the McAfee Knob Trailhead parking lot on May 26th.

Details about the incident are limited at this time, however, RCPD says around 6 a.m. officers responded to the trailhead parking lot on Catawba Road, where the bodies were located.

Investigators say it is too early to determine if foul play was involved, and there is no danger to the public at this time.

Medical examiners have taken the bodies to conduct a full autopsy.

As the investigation continues, parking at the trailhead will be reduced, and police encourage hikers to use the shuttle.