Man charged in killings decades apart

NEW ALBANY, Ind. (AP) - Authorities say a southern Indiana man charged with killing a 75-year-old family friend is also to blame for a woman's death nearly a decade ago.

Floyd County prosecutors charged 54-year-old William Gibson III of New Albany with two counts of murder on Tuesday, five days after Christine Whitis of Clarksville was found strangled in Gibson's home.

Prosecutor Keith Henderson said during a news conference that Gibson implicated himself in the death of 45-year-old Karen Hodella of Jeffersonville. Hodella was reported missing in October 2002 and her body was found three months later.

Mike Whitis says his mother and Gibson's mother were close friends for decades and that he can't explain why Gibson would've attacked her.

Gibson is jailed without bond. Court records show he doesn't yet have an attorney.