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Man Charged For Killing Christian Camp Counselors Nearly 14 Years Ago
Shaun Gallon was arrested for allegedly killing his brother. The investigation led to a break in a cold case.
Prosecutors have charged a man for the murders of two Christian camp counselors in California from nearly 14 years ago.
Shaun Gallon, 39, is the suspect for the 2004 deaths of Jason Allen, 26, and Lindsey Cutshall, 22. The two were counselors at a camp near Sacramento who went on a three-day sightseeing trip to the coast and never came back. They were found dead in their sleeping bags on a secluded beach at the mouth of the Russian River in northern California in August 2004.
Gallon was arrested in March 2017 for allegedly murdering his brother in their home in the small town of Forestville, according to the Sonoma County Sheriff Steve Freitas.
Gallon had been a person of interest since early in the investigation of the campers’ murders, according to Freitas, but investigators never had enough evidence to charge him.
Officers questioned Gallon about the murders of Allen and Cutshall again during the investigation of his brother’s murder, and this time he ended up handing over information that only the killer could have known, Freitas said in a news conference.
Investigators found physical evidence that corroborated Gallon’s statements, the sheriff said, but declined to elaborate.
“We are extremely pleased that our children’s murderer is in custody where he belongs,” read a joint statement from the victim’s parents, Bob and Delores Allen and Chris and Kathy Cutshall. “We praise the Lord for his capture and we trust in the due process of the law.”
Gallon allegedly shot Cutshall and Allen—who hailed from Fresno, Ohio and Zeeland, Michigan—with a .45-calibre Marlin rifle while they slept, according to the Sacramento Bee. Investigators also say he used a rifle in the 2017 murder of his brother.
Gallon is also charged with attempted murder for allegedly building a bomb that was designed to kill another Sonoma County man, according to the Napa Valley Register.
The Sonoma County District Attorney’s Office is planning on trying him for the three murders and attempted murder in a single case. Gallon’s next court date is set for June 19.
[Photos: Sonoma County Sheriff's Office]
