Officials have confirmed that they believe they have recovered the remains of Crumpler resident Jimmy Blevins.

Murder charges against Blevins' uncle, Frederick P. Hammer will be forthcoming, Sheriff James Williams said Tuesday.

Hammer has also admitted to the murder of local man Timothy Shatley, authorities said.

Williams stated Tuesday afternoon that they had located human remains at a site in the Clifton community. The remains were discovered four feet underground at an unspecified location.

These remains will be transported to the state medical examiner’s office in Chapel Hill sometime tonight, Williams said.

Williams explained that it may “be a few days” before authorities can confirm that the remains are that of Blevins. Williams, deputies and State Bureau of investigation officials were on the scene in Clifton by 10 a.m. today. They had with them a trackhoe at the site a short way off Highway 88.

Shortly before 2 p.m. an SBI Mobile Crime Scene Lab arrived and entered the site to assist in the investigation.

The effort to locate Blevins made a critical turn last week, Williams said. Williams was joined by Lt. Peyton Colvard, and Detective William Sands of the Ashe County Sheriff’s Office along with Alleghany attorney Donna Shumate to interview the admitted triple murder last week at Powhatan Correctional Center in State Farm, VA.

Hammer is serving five consecutive life sentences (seven total) in PCC for the murders of Frederick and Ronald Hudler, and farm employee John S. Miller on Jan. 24, 2008 on a Grassy Creek tree farm.

The interview with Hammer, Williams said, resulted in the discovery of Jimmy Blevins’ body.

After consulting with his attorney further, Hammer also admitted to authorities that he murdered local man Timothy Shatley.

Shatley was murdered on the night of Nov. 19, 2005 with a large caliber firearm near a bridge at the intersection of N.C. Hwy 16 and Old Creek Field Road.

Despite his confession, Williams explained that he is not convinced that Hammer is responsible for that Shatley’s murder.

“There are things about his statement that troubled us,” Williams explained. “There are always things that we hold back that only we and the murderer would know.”

Williams stated that there were “some vagueness” with his statement.

"We are not quite ready to charge him with that murder," Williams said.

The investigation into the murder of Shatley is ongoing, Williams said.

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