An elderly West Virignia man confessed to a 24-year-old cold case and revealed where he hid two bodies, just days before he died from an unspecified "medical episode," according to a report. 

Larry Webb, who was in his 80s, was first indicted on murder charges last October, more than two decades after Susan Carter, 41, and her 10-year-old daughter Alex disappeared. The pair were living with Webb before their deaths - but as recently as last fall he professed his continued affection for the mother and daughter.

"I've looked for them, over the years, I even went to Cleveland and looked for them," Webb, who was suffering from dementia, told WVNS. "I don't know. I just know I loved her with all my heart, and I loved that little girl, too."

Eighteen months ago, however, federal and state authorities discovered a bullet embedded in Alex's bedroom wall. When the bullet was tested for DNA, investigators matched it to Alex. Though he was indicted last year, Webb was not taken into custody until earlier this month.

Webb, who was being held at the Mount Olive Correctional Complex, confessed to the police that he had killed Susan during an argument over money. He then "knew he had ruined his life forever" and killed Alex to cover up the first death, according to WSAZ.

Investigators discovered Alex and Susan's bodies, wrapped in bed linens, and buried in a shallow grave in Webb's back yard. Their bodies were found on the third day of searching - the same day that Webb died in a nearby hospital. 

--with reporting by TMX