Marty Gordon
NRVsports@mainstreetnewspapers.com
A Montgomery County grand jury has handed down charges of murder in two separate cases involving abuse or neglect in the deaths of senior citizens.
51-year-old Kevin William Surface of Blacksburg faces charges in connection to the 2023 death of his mother Charlotte Jones Surface, while 55-year-old Shela McMahan Estes, also of Blacksburg, faces similar charges in a separate case involving the March 2026 death of her mother, Mary McMahan.
Both were arrested on Thursday.
In the Estes incident, the Montgomery County Sheriff’s office says on March 4, 2026, Blacksburg Rescue Squad responded to a residence on Merrimac Road for a medical call. The patient was transported to the hospital, where she later died.
Due to the victim’s severe physical condition and concerns of elder abuse, staff at LewisGale Hospital Montgomery notified the Montgomery County Adult Protective Services, which subsequently referred the case to the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office for investigation.
Details from the investigation led to the victim’s daughter and sole in-home caregiver, Shela McMahan Estes of Blacksburg, being indicted on felony homicide and felony abuse and neglect of a vulnerable adult resulting in death.
She was arrested April 29, 2026, and has since been released on bond from the Western Virginia Regional Jail.
Due to the ongoing nature of the investigation, the sheriff’s department said no additional details will be released at this time.
In the Surface case, an investigation by the Blacksburg Police Department into the 2023 event led to his arrest on similar charges. The police department would not comment on the case late last week. Surface faces a charge of felony homicide and felony abuse and neglect of a vulnerable adult resulting in death.
Surface and Estes are both scheduled to be back in court for preliminary hearings on May 20.