SUPERIOR COURT
Jones County’s Grand Jury met last week and brought back 29 bills of indictment for a wide variety of crimes, including drugs, firearms, armed robbery, a home invasion, aggravated assault and abandonment of a dead body.
The grand jury was convened Aug. 7 at the Government Center and was presented cases by the District Attorney’s office, Jones County Sheriff’s Office and Gray Police Department.
The jury members considered a total of 29 bills of indictment and true billed each one of them.
In addition to those duties, the jurors reviewed the Child Abuse Protocol report authored by Superior Court Judge Stephen Bradley and appointed Tracy Gattie to the Jones County Board of Equalization.
Three of the four individuals indicted for armed robbery and home invasion were indicted in April, but the inclusion of the fourth defendant in the case prompted the Aug. 7 indictment of all four.
Shaun Mills, Terrell Eugene Mills and Corey Tremaine Wallace were indicted for multiple counts of armed robbery home invasion, multiple counts of aggravated assault, possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
Donnie White was indicted for multiple counts of armed robbery, multiple counts of aggravated assault and possession of a firearm in commission of felony Investigators with the Jones County Sheriff’s Office have tied the suspects in a Jones County armed robbery and a home invasion that took place in January and to a Bibb County homicide that happened in the same timeframe.
Terrell Eugene Mills was arrested Jan. 27, Shaun Mills was arrested March 15 and Wallace was arrested April 20. White was arrested May 15.
Capt. Kenny Allen of the Jones County Sheriff’s Office said in a Feb. 3 interview there were a total of five suspects in the armed robbery and three, possibly four involved in the home invasion. He said investigators are working to identify those remaining suspects.
JCSO Investigator John Simmons said the Jones County armed robbery and Bibb County murder took place within two hours of each other, and the same stolen car was used in the two crimes.
The home invasion was committed Jan. 12.
District Attorney Wright Barksdale said the reason for the indictments of the three in April was to ensure they were indicted before the required 90 days and remove the possibility of bond. The arrest of White prompted his indictment and the reindictment of the Mills brothers and Wallace.
Trafficking
Cedric Walter Whitehead was indicated for trafficking methamphetamine, possession of a firearm during commission of felony, possession of marijuana less than ounce, speeding and driving while license suspended.
Denika Lashae Stanley, who was with Whitehead at the time of his arrest, was indicted for trafficking methamphetamine, possession of firearm during commission of felony and possession of marijuana less than an ounce.
Whitehead was arrested Feb. 12. A report of the arrest by GPD Officer Daniel Pointer stated that he was running radar when he was alerted to a vehicle traveling 62 mph in a 45-mph zone.
Pointer said he conducted a traffic stop on the black Buick Lacrosse and explained to the driver why he was stopped. Whitehead was the driver, and the officer said a check of his license revealed his license was suspended.
Whitehead was asked to exit the vehicle and the odor of marijuana was detected. The officer said he conducted a contraband search on the driver and found a baggy of marijuana in his jacket pocket.
Whitehead was taken into custody, and Pointer said the suspect was placed in the backseat of his patrol car. GPD Officer Paul Hathaway, who arrived to assist, asked the passenger, Denika Stanley, to step out of the car. Pointer said Hathaway advised him that the vehicle smelled of marijuana.
Pointer said a check of Stanley showed no warrants, and she was released from the scene.
A search of the vehicle on the driver’s side located more marijuana in the console, and Hathaway located a backpack in the passenger floorboard. Items found inside the backpack were a quantity of clear baggies, digital scale, marijuana, cocaine and a large bag of suspected MDMA/ Ecstasy pills of various colors.
A further search of the vehicle found a loaded Smith and Wesson handgun under the passenger’s seat. He said all the evidence was gathered and placed in his patrol car. Whitehead was transported to the Jones County Law Enforcement Center and warrants secured for his arrest.
In a supplemental narrative, Pointer said in further investigation into the case revealed evidence involving Stanley. He determined that she was also in possession of the narcotics, and the firearm was within her reach. Warrants were secured for her arrest.
Thomas Daniel Bacon Jr. was indicted on charges of trafficking cocaine, possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute and obstruction of an officer.
A report of his arrest by JCSO Deputy Joseph Franklin Caldwell said he conducted a traffic stop June 14 on Garrison Road on a white 2016 Buick Cascada for suspended registration and no insurance. He informed the driver the reason for the stop. Caldwell said, while speaking to the driver, he detected the order of marijuana and requested backup.
JCSO Sgt. Kasey Carr arrived to assist, and the driver and passenger were asked to exit the vehicle. A search of the inside the Buick resulted in a partially burned marijuana cigarette.
Caldwell said, while speaking to the driver, he heard Carr giving the passenger, identified as Thomas Bacon, loud commands to quit running. The deputy said he ran toward Carr, and Bacon and was able to tackle the suspect. Caldwell said Bacon was flailing his arms and refused to give the officers his hands. The deputy said he noticed the suspect had a plastic bag containing a white powdery substance, believed to be cocaine, in his hand, and there were white pills spilling on the ground.
After several attempts, the officers eventually used their tasers to get the offender into handcuffs, and he was taken into custody. A search of Bacon found multiple denominations of U.S. currency. Caldwell said no other illegal times were found in the vehicle.
He said the driver of the Buick was given a citation for a suspended registration and allowed to make arrangements with her insurance company so she could be released.
Caldwell said he was able to identify the pills in Bacon’s possession as different types of Oxycodone. The bag of suspected cocaine was weighed and was over 28.83 grams, which is a trafficking amount. The cash found on Bacon totaled $8,621, and warrants were secured for his arrest.
Abandoned body
Dafredia Yvette Stephens was indicted on charges of concealing the death of another and the abandonment of dead body. She was arrested July 11 following the identification of the body of a Baldwin County man discovered at the close of 2021.
In a July 13 interview with JCSO Capt. Kenny Allen, he said the body of 74-year-old Fredrick Stephens was found Dec. 27, 2021, on Cheehaw Trail by a public works employee. He said the body of the deceased appeared to have been there for a couple of days.
The first step in the investigation of the death was identification of the body. Allen said a GBI sketch artist produced a rendering of what the deceased looked like in life that turned out to be accurate.
After the sketch was circulated, a phone call was received from a family member. The captain said, after they thought they knew who he was, confirmation was needed. That came as the result of a DNA sample from Stephens’ sister, but it took 18 months.
The captain said investigators started digging into who Stephens was supposed to be staying with after the unofficial identification. He said that included financial records. They discovered Stephens was still receiving Social Security benefits, and his ‘caregiver’ was spending those benefits.
It was discovered that Dafredia Stephens was a signer on his bank account. The captain said, once the identity of the deceased was confirmed, Stephens was arrested on the two charges. Allen said the arrest was made at the bank when Dafredia Stephens showed up to withdraw the funds of the deceased.
Aggravated assault
Seth Damien Christiansen was indicted on the charge of aggravated assault, family violence. He was one of several indicted for the offense of aggravated assault, but what set him apart was the fact that the alleged assault was committed with an axe.
A report of the June 11 arrest by JCSO Deputy Steven Astyk states he was dispatched to a residence on Highway 18 East pertaining to an assault. The deputy said upon his arrival, he witnessed a splitting maul with a wet substance on the blade and a pool of blood with droplets leading to the door.
The officer said he drew his weapon and announced himself. He said behind the door he heard a male voice tell him to come in. He said he found the victim inside, with a head injury, who told him Christiansen, his roommate, had hit him in the head with an axe.
The victim described the assault as Christiansen getting aggressive about fighting with his girlfriend. He said, during the argument, the offender grabbed the splitting maul and began hitting the table. That continued to escalate to Christiansen allegedly hitting the victim and then running.
A complete list of the Aug. 7 indictments can be found on the Open Records page of this week’s edition.
