John Allen Muhammad is scheduled to be executed in Virginia tomorrow for one of the 10 killings he is accused of committing over a three-week span seven years ago that terrorized the Washington, D.C., region. The Associated Press says authorities are unable to say how many people Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo shot and killed. What were called the sniper shootings started before Muhammad and Malvo reached the Washington Beltway, with a number of victims killed or wounded as the duo drove across the country.
Investigators have linked them to some of these prelude shootings, though they have never stood trial for them. In other cases, police have suspicions, but no proof. The question became murkier in 2006, when Malvo reportedly confessed to four shootings, including two killings, that had not been linked to him. If that confession is true, it would mean he and Muhammad are responsible for 27 shootings resulting in 17 deaths in 10 states (Maryland, Virginia, Alabama, Washington, Georgia, Texas, California, Florida, Arizona and Louisiana) plus D.C.