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North Shelby County Man Dies In Pickup Truck Fire - Update

Release Date: July 26, 2005

Shelby County Sheriff’s detectives say a man apparently burned to death in his pickup truck earlier this evening in North Shelby County near Shelby Forest.

Deputies were called to the 9400 block of Riverbluff Road about 8 p.m. Investigators say Gary Abbott, 43, was driving recklessly in a field behind his home.

Abbott’s wife, who was not a passenger in the truck, said he lost control of the Ford F-150 truck when it crashed into a metal buggy that had been discarded in the field.

Detectives say the crash caused the truck’s fuel line to break which ignited the vehicle. Abbott’s wife said she tried rescuing her husband but couldn’t since the vehicle was already on fire.

Mrs. Abbott told deputies her husband had been drinking just before he drove his truck into the field.

The Shelby County Medical Examiner will rule on the exact cause of Abbott’s death and verify his identity through dental records.

Update Tuesday, July 26, 2005 12:31 PM

At this time, Linda Anne Abbott, female/white, 36, 9401 Riverbluff Drive, Memphis, Tennessee 38053, is in custody, housed at Jail East, charged with Murder 2. Bond is set at $150,000. She is currently having her video arraignment in General Sessions Criminal Court, Division 13, before Judge Louis Montesi, Jr.

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