Three people from Alabama were found dead inside a vehicle in Union City in 2013.
Until this week, the case had remained unresolved.
Between Wednesday and Friday, four people — Keante Harris, Kevin Harris, Kenneth Thompson and Derrell Adams — were taken into custody across three states in connection with the deaths, the Clayton County Sheriff’s Office announced. They are all facing charges of murder.
Keante Harris was confirmed Monday as an assistant principal at McAdory Middle School in Jefferson County, Alabama.
“We have been made aware that Mr. Keante Harris was arrested Wednesday afternoon. At this time, we still are gathering facts about the specifics of this situation,” Superintendent Walter Gonsoulin said in a statement. ”However, early indications are that the charges are not related to this individual’s employment with Jefferson County Schools. Per standard procedure, Mr. Harris has been placed on paid administrative leave. As more facts become available, we will act according to our district’s policy.”
On Jan. 13, 2013, the bodies of Cheryl Colquitt-Thompson, 32, Quinones King, 33, and Rodney Cottrell, 43, were discovered inside a car along an I-85 ramp in Union City, authorities said. An officer patrolling the area stumbled upon the vehicle sitting idly on the northbound exit ramp.
Colquitt-Thompson’s body had been stuffed in the trunk. King and Cottrell were both located inside the vehicle.
“It was determined through the investigation that all three victims were tortured and murdered in Clayton County and dumped in Fulton County,” the Clayton sheriff’s office said.
According to officials, the victims were “lured” to a residence on Magnolia Drive in Jonesboro, where they were forced into the home at gunpoint. They were loaded into a Dodge Charger and taken to Fulton, the sheriff’s office added.
On Wednesday, the sheriff’s office obtained 12 murder warrants for the suspects and immediately began to locate and arrest them. Officials did not say how the four men were tied to the case, and details about their arrests were not released.
It’s at least the second cold case this week to include an arrest. On Thursday, the GBI announced the arrest of Edrick Lamont Faust in the 2001 death of Tara Louise Baker, who was a University of Georgia law student at the time. The 48-year-old suspect has a lengthy criminal history that dates to when he was a teenager.
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