Thirty-four years after a black man was brutally killed in Georgia, police have arrested five people ― including two law enforcement officials ― in connection with his slaying.
Bill Moore Sr., 58, and Frankie Gebhardt, 59, have been charged with murder, aggravated assault, aggravated battery and concealing a body, according to the Spalding County Sheriff’s Office.
Lamar Bunn, a 32-year-old employee of the police department in Milner, Georgia, and his mother, Sandra Bunn, 58, are charged with obstruction. Gregory Huffman, a 47-year-old detention officer with the sheriff’s department, is charged with obstruction and violation of oath of office.
The body of Timothy Coggins, 23, was found on Oct. 9, 1983, in a grassy area of Sunnyside, a small town about 30 miles south of Atlanta.
Law enforcement authorities said they reopened the case in March after receiving new information about it.
The authorities said Coggins’ death was caused by multiple forms of trauma, without providing more detail.
“There is some misinformation out there that his body was hanged, but his body was not hanged,” Capt. Dwayne Jones of the sheriff’s office told HuffPost. “But we do feel as though there is a racial component, but I cannot release our reasoning for that.”
Sheriff Darrell Dix said investigators have “no doubt” the crime was racially motivated.
Timothy Coggins’ niece, Heather Coggins, told HuffPost her family is “extremely ecstatic” about the arrests.
“We’d thought they’d forgotten and that he really didn’t matter,” she said. “When we heard the news, we were just like, ‘Wow, they didn’t forget.’”
Coggins’ activities prior to the discovery of his body have not yet been released. Authorities will only say his body was found about 10 miles from his home.
“Unfortunately, I can’t release that because that’s part of the integrity of the investigation,” Jones said.
Coggins’ niece said the condition of her uncle’s body necessitated a closed-casket funeral.
“Although he had a funeral, it wasn’t exactly a memorial because of everything that happened and the uncertainty,” she said.
“It was very difficult not knowing if they were ever going to come back and hurt our family,” she said. “Not knowing if they were our neighbors. Just the idea of not knowing. People were afraid.”
While she was just 6 years old at the time of her uncle’s death, Coggins said she holds dear the memories she has of him and the stories that family members have shared. Her mother, she said, was his sister – one of four sisters and three brothers born to her grandparents.
“Whenever we were at my grandparents’ house you would pass his picture,” she said. “He was never forgotten by the family. He was an outgoing person, a joker, and a great dancer. Everyone who knew him knew how great of a dancer he was. He never met a stranger.”
Timothy Coggins parents, who both died in recent years, had suspicions about who was responsible, but were never able to prove anything, according to his niece.
“Although we grieved 34 years ago, the grieving process has started over again,” she said. “We still have a lot of unanswered questions, but now we can give him the memorial he deserves. People don’t have to be afraid to come because they’re afraid someone can hurt him. He’ll finally be able to rest in peace.”
Tips? Feedback? Send David Lohr an email or follow him on Twitter.
Sabrina Carpenter went braless wearing the Mirror Palais Anemone Dress in butter featuring illusion tulle adorned with lace appliqués along the neckline and hem
The arrival of the US M1A1 Abrams tanks in Ukraine was hailed as a turning point in the war. Coming in at roughly $10 million a unit, the Nato stalwart was supposed to provide the armoured fist that would punch through the Russian lines. But tactics evolve quickly in warfare, and Russia’s use of surveillance and hunter-killer drones has led to heavy casualties for Ukraine’s tank fleets. This is alarming for NATO. If Russia has found critical vulnerabilities in our armour, our borders are beginni
Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s multi-day trip to China this week caps a particularly busy stretch of meetings between US and Chinese officials. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen was in Beijing earlier this month where she delivered remarks about establishing a floor underneath the US-China relationship and was photographed drinking a beer at a local brewery. On April 5, US and Chinese defence officials held maritime talks for the first time in three years. And on April 16, US Defense Secretar
A Secret Service agent assigned to Vice President Kamala Harris’ detail was removed from their assignment after displaying behavior that colleagues found “distressing,” the agency said.
In the aftermath of a particularly demoralising defeat, former Liverpool manager Gerard Houllier once appealed to the Kop with the observation: “We don’t destroy our heroes today when we worshipped them yesterday.”
Erik ten Hag has told Marcus Rashford he must take his share of the blame for Manchester United’s struggles despite offering the striker his full backing in the face of “months of abuse”.
STORY: Nineteen-year-old Kkavya landed in Bengaluru with dreams of getting a degree in English literature and an exciting job at a tech firm.During a job interview, Khavya, who hails from Kashmir, was told she would have amazing job opportunities in India's Silicon Valley.She was sold the "Bengaluru dream.""What was promised to me when I came to work, they were like, 'Listen, the weather is going to be amazing, you're going to get paid, come work for us for seven hours, go home, take a beer, chill, sleep."After three years in the city, the dream is falling apart, and fast.One problem is the traffic."Do you see the horn? Did you hear it? This is my nightmare."As it was transformed into India's tech hub, the city has struggled to keep up with the massive population influx.Kkavya now spends up to five or six hours on her daily commutes.In the 1990s, Bengaluru rapidly became India's answer to Silicon Valley.It attracted millions of workers and the regional headquarters of some of the world's biggest IT companies.But unrestrained urban expansion has affected Bengaluru's character as a liveable city.With the city poised to vote in the second phase of India's national election on Friday (April 26), Kkavya said she felt frustrated to see that these issues are rarely addressed by local politicians and candidates."We are that sad now, we don't even think that this is something politicians can fix, because they never talk about it. Traffic is our problem, roads are our problem, hospital is your problem. So when I tell my boss that I can't reach on time, it's my problem, not the people who made the roads, not the people who are responsible for the traffic."And she struggles every morning to get water for her daily use. Weak southwest monsoon rains last year failed to replenish depleted groundwater causing shortages.This forced residents to ration water use and pay a much higher price.Water rates at her apartment have gone up by almost four times from about $8.40 per month to more than $27. "Water is expensive as it gets. It is something like we fight for, cause I remember, two days back, this building and the next building had a war over one tank. Because there was only one tank available, and we both wanted it, so basically they paid more and they got it."
A young student started choking on a piece of candy during recess at a school in Bangkok, Thailand, in January of this year. CCTV footage captures the panic as classmates rush to her aid, prompting a teacher to quickly perform the Heimlich maneuver, ultimately saving the child.