ROANOKE COUNTY, Va. – U.S. Marshals confirm that their search for Franklin County murder suspect Michael Brown turned up a rifle yesterday, but they aren’t saying whether the weapon belonged to the Marine deserter.

Officers  found the gun while searching the Hollins area of Roanoke Wednesday afternoon, but have so far been unable to link it to Brown, the 22-year-old who has been on the run for nearly two weeks.

Authorities found the rifle while searching the backyard of a home on Nell Drive after receiving a report of suspicious activity.

There have been no sightings of Brown since last Thursday.