Paper: HOUSTON CHRONICLE
Date: SAT 08/25/1990
Section: A
Page: 1
Edition: 3 STAR

Couple slain in lovers' lane mystery

By ERIC HANSON
Staff

A couple reported missing when they failed to come home from a date Wednesday night were found with their throats slashed on a wooded lovers' lane in far west Houston.

The bodies of Cheryl Lynn Henry, 22, and Garland Andrew Atkinson, 21, were discovered about 10 hours apart Thursday and Friday, in an undeveloped area near the 1300 block of Enclave Parkway.

Henry's nude body was found face down under a tree; Atkinson's clothed body was found 75 to 100 yards away, propped against another tree. Both had severe slash and stab wounds to the throat and neck, police said.

"There is a possibility they could have been parked here and someone came up and got them," Houston police spokesman Sgt. Ralph Gonzales said.

The couple's car was found on a cul-de-sac just off Enclave Parkway. Police at the scene said it is a favorite spot for teen-agers and young couples to park.

Although the bodies were discovered just outside the city limits, Houston police are investigating the deaths because a missing persons report was filed with HPD by the sister of the dead woman.

The couple was last seen alive late Wednesday night at a nightclub in west Houston.

The next day, Henry's sister reported Henry and Atkinson missing when neither returned home from their date.

Houston police said a security guard noticed a car parked on the cul-de-sac about 5 p.m. Thursday. When he saw the car still there three hours later, he stopped to check it out.

Police were called and, when patrol officers checked the license plate, they discovered that the car was listed on the missing persons report that had been filed earlier that day.

Officers then began to search for the missing couple in the field near the car. A police dog was brought along to aid in the search, and Henry's body was found at 11:20 p.m., about 200 yards from the car.

Her clothes were found nearby, and police said they believe she was sexually assaulted.

Officers, along with Atkinson's father, continued to search for Atkinson for several hours but suspended the effort until sunrise. Gonzales said police Officer J.J. Wilson remained on the scene throughout the night and started searching at first light.

Wilson found Atkinson's body about 9 a.m.

Gonzales would not say if either victim had been tied up.

Police said the evidence indicated that both victims were killed where they were found.

Police said that Atkinson moved here about a month ago from North Carolina after graduating from college and that the couple had been going out for a few weeks.