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Inmate charged in slaying of hospital guard, deputy

CHRISTIANSBURG, Va. — A jail inmate who was the object of a manhunt that enveloped the Virginia Tech campus following the slayings of a deputy sheriff and a hospital security guard was arraigned Tuesday on capital murder and other charges.

William Morva, 24, was held without bond and was arraigned from jail via video conference for security reasons, Montgomery County Sheriff's Lt. Gary Chandler said.

Morva was recaptured without incident Monday afternoon in a thick briar patch near campus and not far from where a county sheriff's deputy was shot and killed earlier in the day.

The deputy, Cpl. Eric E. Sutphin, was among officers searching for Morva, who had escaped from a hospital Sunday morning. Hospital security guard Derrick McFarland was slain and a sheriff's deputy was injured during the escape.

Morva was arraigned on charges of capital murder, assault on a police officer, escape and use of a firearm in a felony. Charges in Sutphin's slaying will be filed later, Blacksburg Police Lt. Joe Davis said.

Morva's brother, Michael Morva, 26, was charged with aiding in his brother's escape, according to Cpl. Kris Weaver.

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