US PROSECUTORS looking to bring a death penalty case against 17-year-old sniper suspect John Lee Malvo said fingerprints on the murder weapon and other evidence link him to three slayings and a fourth attack that left a man critically wounded.

Prosecutors seeking a death penalty case against 17-year-old sniper suspect John Lee Malvo said fingerprints on the murder weapon and other evidence linked him to three of the killings and a fourth attack that critically wounded a man.

Investigators have issued a third cryptic message to the Washington serial sniper as hopes faded that two men held in custody were linked to the attacks.

POLICE pleaded with a man believed to be the Washington-area sniper to call them back last night.

Authorities in the US have said they believe the Washington-area sniper might be trying to communicate with them through a message left at the scene of the latest shooting in Virginia.

Washington

A shooting at a restaurant in Virginia, USA, in which a 37-year-old man was injured, has attracted a swarm of law enforcement officers, including a task force investigating the string of sniper shootings in the Washington DC area.