1 hiker killed during armed robbery in Northern California

RED BLUFF, Calif. (KABC) -- One hiker was killed and another was critically injured after they were held at gunpoint on a trail in Northern California.

The incident happened Friday. Francis "Pat" Gregory, 69, was a prominent civic leader from West Tisbury, Massachusetts. He and his unidentified 76-year-old hiking partner were robbed on a trail in Red Bluff.

Officials say the suspect approached the pair demanding money and their belongings, then shot the both of them. The two were found a couple hours later by another hiker.

Gregory was pronounced dead at the scene. The 76-year-old is expected to survive.

"It's an incredible loss. He was a true giant in our rather small community. We are completely reeling from this news," Cynthia Mitchell, a longtime West Tisbury town official, said of Gregory.

Gregory had been on vacation with his wife, Dorothy, according to Mitchell.

The couple moved to Martha's Vineyard from the Adirondack Mountains in upstate New York in the early 1970s, Mitchell said. Gregory taught math at the West Tisbury school while his wife, a nurse, cared for their two children. In the mid-1980s, the couple opened EduComp, a computer and office supply store in West Tisbury that remains a popular business on the island.

Tehama County sheriff's Sgt. Andy Houghtby said Sunday that investigators were trying to track down the gunman.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.