Found Deceased GA - Bud, 69, & June Runion, 66, McRae, 22 Jan 2015 #2 *Arrest*

[Backwoods]

Thing that jumps out at me is that at 5:30 they stopped at the antique store lost and even the folks at the store didn't know where the meeting place/road was.

How did they end up finding it then? Maybe JT turned his phone off for "safety" and waited for them, but as it got late and the couple still wasn't there he turned it back on and called them? Otherwise how did they find the road on their own and how long had the killer been there waiting to see if they showed up? Hours?

I would think they were heading towards JT's home/trailer, did he talk to them on the phone and say "I will meet you on the road and you can follow me" and that is where it all happened?

This sounds very plausible to me. I have been going over in my mind, why they would drive all the way down to Jacksonville Scotland Road, and then be killed 3 miles north. It just didn't make any sense. I think that you're right though. I believe that the Runions finally reached JT on his cell, and he told them to drive to County Road 145 to meet him.

I agree that this is one way it could have happened. IIRC, LE did not want to release whether the last call on the Runions' phone was an incoming or an outgoing one, and something like this could be part of the reason why.

Another way it could have been is that the road the Runions asked directions to was not the final destination in the instructions they'd received earlier from the "seller" -- it was just the one they had trouble finding. Maybe they had additional instructions, from there, directing them to the dirt road where they were found.

Or, as I hypothesized earlier in the threads, the "seller" (and I'm not completely convinced yet that it was Jay they talked to, though it sure MAY have been) may have given the intersection as a place to meet and told them, "I'll meet you there and then you can follow me from there -- my long old driveway (maybe he called it) is kind of hard to pick out from among all the dirt tracks and drives and logging roads if you don't know the way. especially in the dark."

Cripes! In the dark! I hate even thinking about the scenarios.

A little O/T but: A close relative just told me today that last NIGHT, way in the night, he accompanied a friend to one of the Carolinas (I didn't catch which) to buy a car from a Craigslist ad for the friend's wife. I said: "Y'all must be crazy!" He said all went well but did say all concerned seemed a wee bit nervous...until finally somebody actually said something (referencing this case) about how Craigslist transactions can be "a little scary". I'll say! My relative and his friend did follow some "safety tips" like one of them staying in the car with a phone at hand while the other got out and talked to the guy, etc. -- but if someone walks up with a gun pointed at you, well, how much is that gonna help?

 

[jking]

There are people who are very smart and well educated but do extremely stupid things when it comes to crime. Doesn't mean they want to get caught, they just don't know how to cover their tracks.
This guy doesn't strike me as very smart to begin with, so why is it surprising if he didn't cover up well?
I don't get it.

I don't get it either. I have no problem believing that he planned this and did this. I would be very surprised if anyone else was involved.

 

[dancinunderthemoon]

There are people who are very smart and well educated but do extremely stupid things when it comes to crime. Doesn't mean they want to get caught, they just don't know how to cover their tracks.
This guy doesn't strike me as very smart to begin with, so why is it surprising if he didn't cover up well?
I don't get it.

I get that, this one IMO left WAY too many trails, I don't understand why that s hard to understand, Being facitious about him wanting to be caught but on the surface, it makes you ask that

Apparently not smart, most psychopaths are smart and i've said many times if you've read the posts, they have a shallow sense of right and wrong so they will leave trails because they don't see or think of things the way an average person with conscious would

This one just seemed over the top, just commenting as i see it and not trying to ensue a debate or cause distress

 

[dancinunderthemoon]

I don't get it either. I have no problem believing that he planned this and did this. I would be very surprised if anyone else was involved.

I'm not saying he didn't do it, just commenting on the very shallowness of it, as I'm allowed, I dont' understand the distress LOL

 

[wicket]

I think with all the cellular footprints, car or truck tracks, dna, what the Sheriff might be lacking in forensics GBI will be able to fill in. This is high profile and all over the news. Folks will be meeting Craigslist customers in Police Stations before this is all over. My thoughts are they will be able to break through the suspect's armor and if he needs a fix for his drug habit that will weaken his resolve further. Maybe I'm wrong but I do not see his family getting him a high-priced lawyer.

 

[jking]

I'm not saying he didn't do it, just commenting on the very shallowness of it, as I'm allowed, I dont' understand the distress LOL

No distress

It looks to me like he had a drug problem and that is why he wasn't thinking straight enough to try and cover his tracks better. It just seems like an awful lot of work for someone else to do to try and frame him. I can't imagine him keeping quiet if someone else was involved, but that's just an opinion.

 

[jjenny]

I don't get it either. I have no problem believing that he planned this and did this. I would be very surprised if anyone else was involved.

Exactly. There was this other craigslist killer, who was supposedly a brilliant medical student. He decided to make some money by robbing escorts in hotel rooms. Killed one of the escorts in the process of robbery.
Left lots of evidence and got caught rather quickly. Then killed himself while awaiting trial.
Presumably way smarter then this dude here, yet obviously not a clue on how to cover up his tracks.
Why exactly do people expect this particular dude to be different?

 

[southernmimi]

Not sure IQ plays much of a role in crime. Some of the criminals who did the most damage over the longest period of time have not been intellectually gifted (Ottis Toole). There has to be some combination of street smarts, animal instinct and pure luck. I don't know Jay Towns, but he seemed to be very focused on one thing and forget to think.

 

[cjm11]

Has it been said when the next court appearance will be or what it will entail?

 

[dancinunderthemoon]

Exactly. There was this other craigslist killer, who was supposedly a brilliant medical student. He decided to make some money by robbing escorts in hotel rooms. Killed one of the escorts in the process of robbery.
Left lots of evidence and got caught rather quickly. Then killed himself while awaiting trial.
Presumably way smarter then this dude here, yet obviously not a clue on how to cover up his tracks.
Why exactly do people expect this particular dude to be different?

Yes that was a popular case, the craigslist killer, he left a trail but it took awhile longer than this one, this seemed to be RT first murders, set it up where anyone could follow him to the crime scene, he messed with the wrong people for sure, his daughters were on it in a flash, and the fact that the Runions stopped to ask for directions was luck on their side or something bigger, otherwise might still be looking for them

 

[dancinunderthemoon]

No distress

It looks to me like he had a drug problem and that is why he wasn't thinking straight enough to try and cover his tracks better. It just seems like an awful lot of work for someone else to do to try and frame him. I can't imagine him keeping quiet if someone else was involved, but that's just an opinion.

I agree, maybe that's so, drugs, he seemed awful calm when turning himself in and in court tho, i'd have thought he wouldn't be so calm if needing a fix, who knows, sure left his little bread crumb trail or maybe just luck that they asked for directions, no one else knew where they were going specifically IIRC

 

[Sonya610]

A little O/T but: A close relative just told me today that last NIGHT, way in the night, he accompanied a friend to one of the Carolinas (I didn't catch which) to buy a car from a Craigslist ad for the friend's wife. I said: "Y'all must be crazy!" He said all went well but did say all concerned seemed a wee bit nervous...until finally somebody actually said something (referencing this case) about how Craigslist transactions can be "a little scary". I'll say! My relative and his friend did follow some "safety tips" like one of them staying in the car with a phone at hand while the other got out and talked to the guy, etc. -- but if someone walks up with a gun pointed at you, well, how much is that gonna help?

There really isn't much one can do to prevent a random robbery/murder like this. If the plan was to kill them at the start then at best the victims could only leave a bread crumb trail of evidence that helps locate their bodies. Course if the would be killer KNOWS they have that info then that provides an incentive to choose a softer target.

And the cell phone thing, lol. How is that going to help if things go bad? I guess you can tell the police your story AFTER it happens or the phone could save them time searching for your body, but seriously, why do people think cell phones will protect them against bullets/knives/fists? I guess they hear it so often they start to believe it even though it is ridiculous?

Just found another craigslist shooting in Dekalb County a year ago....guys posted an ad to buy cell phones for cash and then met the "seller" at 11 pm. Seller tried to rob them, victim pulled his own gun and in this case the victim was shot to death. http://www.wsbtv.com/news/news/local/police-seek-link-craigslist-robberies/nZcQn/

 

[McMunn]

While searching for any updates on this case, I found this article out of Cleveland, TN. This story has more info than most of the other stories that I have read, since one of the daughters is from that area. http://clevelandbanner.com/stories/a-link-to-cleveland-murdered-couple-has-family-here,1445

 

[5CentsWorth]

While searching for any updates on this case, I found this article out of Cleveland, TN. This story has more info than most of the other stories that I have read, since one of the daughters is from that area. http://clevelandbanner.com/stories/a-link-to-cleveland-murdered-couple-has-family-here,1445

That really is a great article.

From the article: Owens told the Banner that Steverson has been a great source of stability in such a trying time, and has been on-call for the family since day one.

“He (Steverson) can’t help what happened, but he is really helping the girls bring this to conclusion and bring this man (Towns) to justice,” Owens said. “I would be surprised if Sheriff Steverson has had 12 hours of sleep in the last four or five days. Every time we’ve talked to him, he’s been awake and alert. We’ve talked to him at 3 in the morning, 6 in the morning. He’s a hero. They are heroes.”

 

[McMunn]

That really is a great article.

From the article: Owens told the Banner that Steverson has been a great source of stability in such a trying time, and has been on-call for the family since day one.

“He (Steverson) can’t help what happened, but he is really helping the girls bring this to conclusion and bring this man (Towns) to justice,” Owens said. “I would be surprised if Sheriff Steverson has had 12 hours of sleep in the last four or five days. Every time we’ve talked to him, he’s been awake and alert. We’ve talked to him at 3 in the morning, 6 in the morning. He’s a hero. They are heroes.”

Another quote from the article: “The sad thing about this young man (Towns) is, Bud and June were genuine good people and they would’ve given him whatever he needed. They run a benevolence ministry. It’s unfortunate that the people who would have given anything he needed, he (Towns) took from us.”

 

[Backwoods]

While searching for any updates on this case, I found this article out of Cleveland, TN. This story has more info than most of the other stories that I have read, since one of the daughters is from that area. http://clevelandbanner.com/stories/a-link-to-cleveland-murdered-couple-has-family-here,1445

Some of us were wondering earlier in the threads if the FBI was involved in this case and IIRC we hadn't known for sure. This article says yes.

From your link, McMunn:

...The Runions’ disappearance prompted a massive search from local and state authorities, personnel from surrounding counties, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and even the FBI. ...

 

[dancinunderthemoon]

Invited to watch the service

http://vimeo.com/118738527?from=facebook

 

[Backwoods]

bbm in the quote:

[h=3]GBI collects potential evidence in Runion case[/h]...investigators ran a large scale search at the Telfair County landfill and the property of Ronnie Towns last week.

...Rogers says investigators collected several pieces of potential evidence, including guns and what they believe are the personal belongings of the Runions. The items were sent to the GBI crime lab in Atlanta for testing....

more at: http://www.nbc26.tv/story/28026616/gbi-collects-potential-evidence-in-runion-case

 

[McMunn]

bbm in the quote:

GBI collects potential evidence in Runion case

...investigators ran a large scale search at the Telfair County landfill and the property of Ronnie Towns last week.

...Rogers says investigators collected several pieces of potential evidence, including guns and what they believe are the personal belongings of the Runions. The items were sent to the GBI crime lab in Atlanta for testing....

more at: http://www.nbc26.tv/story/28026616/gbi-collects-potential-evidence-in-runion-case

If this evidence turns out to be the Runion's belongings, then JT is an even dumber criminal than I previously thought.

 

[jking]

If this evidence turns out to be the Runion's belongings, then JT is an even dumber criminal than I previously thought.

He had to be on drugs, or just completely oblivious to the fact that people would be looking for the missing couple. Could he have been dumb enough to think they wouldn't tell anyone where they were going and why?