CHARLES and Leslie Rupert were newlyweds, deeply in love and passionate about the rehabilitation of ex-convicts. And then, in a flash, their lives were mysteriously snuffed out in February 1975. The University of Arizona grad students were found shot execution-style in a drainage ditch. On Feb. 1, 1975, the couple were driving home after a banquet for the Seventh Step Foundation, an organization that helped ex-cons. The Ruperts left the banquet at 10:45 p.m. and a day later a passing motorist found their bodies. Charles had been shot once in the side of the head and twice in the back with a .38-caliber revolver. Leslie was shot once behind the ear. Their car was found hours later--wiped clean of fingerprints except for what appeared to be the
letter "p" written on the rear window. Cops ruled out robbery. A gas-station attendant near where their sedan was found said he saw a stocky, brown-haired man in his mid- to late 20s pull the car into his station between 1:30 and 5 a.m. Cops believe the pair were murdered by hitchikers but there are a lot of other theories.
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