McFALL, MO, Mar. 1 – At least two members of the original Charles Manson “family,” a man and a woman, vanished from a McFall mini-commune only hours ahead of police with arrest warrants.

Sheriff Ben Rainey said the man, known locally as Billy Cole, and the woman, who used the name Linda Baldwin, apparently were tipped off to the impending arrest.

Sheriff Rainey and Deputy Pallas Wright had spent most of last week cooperating with Los Angeles county Deputy Bill Gleason on the investigation.

Los Angeles authorities had traced Cole and Miss Baldwin through information that came out in the trial of another Manson family member, now in California courts.

Sheriff Rainey, Deputy Wright and Deputy Gleason went to McFall to make the arrests Sunday, but found their suspects had left late Friday night.

Cole and Miss Baldwin apparently left in a hurry because many personal items were left behind.

Sheriff Rainey said Cole, about 37, is wanted under the name of William Joseph VanSickle on a California warrant charging forgery.

The sheriff said Cole has used at least “…half a dozen other aliases,” and California authorities feel he is the key to much missing information about the Manson family’s activities before and after the Tate-LaBianca murders.

Cole at one time used the title Rev. Billy Cole here, and was the self-appointed head al the Youth for Life church, a church he attempted to organize.

Miss Baldwin’s real name is probably Claudia Lee Smith, authorities say, and she is wanted by California police on a felony charge. She also uses a long list of false names.

Cole and Miss Baldwin, although sought on felony warrants are wanted mostly by California police as witnesses in further investigation of Charles Manson, his “family,” and the group’s activities.

A third member of the Manson family, Patricia Joan Baldwin, sometimes known as Little Patty, is also known to have lived with the McFall group, but has not been seen there for several weeks.

Little Patty, however, is not wanted by Catifornia authorities except, perhaps, as a witness.

Sheriff Rainey said he and his deputies have been keeping a close watch on the McFall commune since it appeared more than a year ago.

“We haven’t had a bit of trouble from theses people and now we know why. They didn’t want to get into any activities that might have caused them to draw attention or to be arrested,” he said.

The sheriff and his deputies also kept watch on the McFall mini-commune because several young people from Gentry county communities dropped in for visits or parties

The McFall group lived in a small house on the south edge of town and spent most of their time raising organic vegetables.

The group would usually number from eight to 10, headed by Cole and Miss Baldwin, with the remainder of the group usually from Kansas City.

“The faces in the group would change from time to time,” Sheriff Rainey said, “but Cole and Miss Baldwin were there all the time since the summer of 1970.”

McFall residents considered the commune an oddity, but accepted the young people and many persons referred to them as “…our hippies.”