ROSMAN, N.C. —
Dozens of Western North Carolina law enforcement officers continued searching overnight for a man wanted in the shooting death of his wife, deputies said.
Up to 40 Transylvania County deputies, police officers and other personnel worked to find Joseph Barker, who Catawba County deputies said shot his wife Tuesday night.
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Deputies said the woman was found just before 11 p.m. inside a home along Plateau Road just south of Hickory.
The search area is centered along Old Rosman Highway near Highway 178, where Barker's black Camry was found about 5 a.m. Wednesday crashed into a tree, according to Capt. Jeremy Queen.
Deputies release a new photo of Barker on Facebook that updates the DMV photo released yesterday.
"The previous photo from DMV appeared as if the suspect had short hair, but he has longer hair probably pulled back into a ponytail and more often than not wears a baseball-style hat," the post said.
During a 10 a.m. news conference, Queen was asked about Barker's connection to Transylvania County. He said Barker doesn't have one, as far as investigators can find.
"How and why he got here, especially why, we really don't know," Queen said.
Queen said investigators believe Barker has connections to Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Texas, Florida and Illinois, though family and friends. He said investigators are trying to expand the search for Barker as far as possible.
Queen said the Sheriff's Office has received several tips and leads in the last 24 hours, and deputies followed up on all of them, but none panned out.
Deputies were looking for the driver of a red Chevy S-10 pickup truck that was seen traveling in the area at the time Barker's car was found, but that driver was found and is not connected to Barker, Queen said.
