 |
| Billy Joe Harris was murdered January 15th |
A missing persons investigation has now turned into a homicide investigation for authorities in Webster County.
Sheriff Roye Cole confirms that investigators were led last week to the body of twenty eight year-old Billy Joe Harris, who was found in a ravine near Rogersville. Harris had been missing since January 15th.
Cole says Harris was shot and killed in a dispute over a truck on the day he went missing. On February 8th, the Springfield police department issued a news release asking for help locating Harris.
The sheriff says a Highway Patrol trooper attempted to pull over a female friend of Harris', Hannah Tilly, who was originally a suspect in the mans murder. Tilley refused to stop and a brief pursuit ensued. After Tilley was apprehended and arrested for outstanding warrants, she told authorities she had been a witness to a murder.
Tilley told investigators that she saw Dewayne Layton allegedly pick up a handgun and shoot Harris in the face in a bedroom of Layton's mobile home at 94 Corner Road in Rogersville.
Tilley told investigators that Dewayne Layton, 43, Kevin Layton, 40, and their uncle, Alfred "Dino" Clevenger, 47, cover Harris' body with a blue tarp and load it onto a "homemade" stretcher and into the bed of Kevin Layton's pickup truck.
Clevenger told detectives he and Dewayne Layton dumped Harris' body near a patch of cedar trees north of Rogersville and that he (Clevenger) put the revolver in a Christmas stocking and buried the alleged murder weapon at the base of a tree in Christian County.
According to the probable cause statement, the men returned to the trailer and removed the mattress that Harris fell onto, the carpet and padding from the bedroom and hallway, and the clothes they were wearing at the time of the murder and burned them.
 |
| Kevin Ray Layton has been charged with second-degree murder (mug shot LCSO) |
Tilley told detectives she attempted to leave, but Kevin Layton allegedly pointed a shotgun at her and she feared for her life. "After several hours," Clevenger took Tilley to Springfield, according to court documents.
-
Clevenger led cops to Harris' remains and the murder weapon on February 22nd, according to court records.
-
 |
| Alfred Dino Clevenger has been charged with murder (mug shot GCSO) |
-
Kevin Ray Layton and Clevenger have been charged with second-degree murder and armed criminal action. Kevin Layton is also facing charges of felonious restraint for holding Tilley against her will and Clevenger is facing additional charges of tampering with evidence.
-
 |
| Authorities need your help finding Dewayne Allen Layton (mug shot MDOC) |
The alleged trigger man, Dewayne Allen Layton, Kevin's brother, has been on the run for about 3 weeks and is possibly headed to California. He is also facing second-degree murder charges and armed criminal action connected to Harris' death.
Harris was the father of an 11 year-old daughter and a 1 year-old son.
Sheriff Cole says Dewayne Layton is dangerous. If you have any information on his whereabouts you're asked to call the Webster County Sheriff's Office at 417-468-2222 or 9-1-1.
0 comments:
Post a Comment