A West Virginia man is in custody on charges related to an ongoing death investigation in Bland County, Va. Gilbert Lee Riggs, 58, of Bluefield, W.Va., is being held in West Virginia, pending extradition to Virginia, on one felony count of 2nd degree murder and one felony count of hit-and-run.
Riggs was arrested without incident Thursday night (Nov. 5) by West Virginia State Police at his residence. The charges and arrest developed during the course of the investigation that began Thursday morning with the discovery of a woman’s body off Interstate 77 in Bland County. At 8:42 a.m., the remains were located in a gravel lot near the intersection of Arrowhead Drive and Route 666/Indian Village Trail off of Interstate 77 Exit 58 for Bastian.
The Virginia State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigation’s Wytheville Field Office is still awaiting positive identification of the body by the Office of the Medical Examiner in Roanoke.
Anyone who may have seen anything suspicious in the immediate area or has any information about this incident is encouraged to contact the Virginia State Police at 276-228-3131 or by email at
questions@vsp.virginia.gov.
