WASHINGTON — The gun missing from the hands of Washington Nationals outfielder Adam Eaton disappeared in September because the parents of the slain duo Justin and Justin Lohse were hounded by the press, according to a statement from their attorney.
In a press release, Alexandra “Erica” Renner said that she was “pleased” that the gun had been found by law enforcement and that after handing over the weapon to the D.C. Police Department, “they proceeded to make a public announcement without contacting us for consent.”
“The situation was made very difficult for my clients by the frenzied atmosphere that they had to endure as a result of the attacks that the media made upon them both,” Renner wrote.
The Lohse siblings were killed in a murder-suicide on Sept. 16 as they were settling into their home after their wedding. Two days later, a North Carolina law enforcement officer found a stolen .380-caliber Beretta handgun registered to Justin Lohse in a garbage can in the Wilkesboro, N.C., area and arrested Reynaldo Shannon Liggett.
The murder weapons are still missing. Renner said that she was surprised by the way authorities handled the information leading up to their announcement.
“It will be very helpful in letting the public know that Liggett did not commit a crime when he received the gun in Wilkesboro but that he did make a unilateral decision to kill and be killed by someone else,” she wrote.
Renner also sent the statement to a website that was set up to collect donations for the Lohse family.
“Justin and Justin were two young men that had passions and goals far beyond their specific employment, and this tragedy is a painful reminder of what happens when people try to live with their passions and hopes within criminal systems instead of through opportunity,” she wrote.
Anyone who knows anything about the Lohse murder weapons is urged to contact Wilkesboro Police Department Detective Bradley Cheney at 336-399-8103.
The Lohse family has said that they would like to begin reconstruction of the crime and media will be allowed into the crime scene.