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Craigslist Crime: Suspect Charged With Murder of Georgia Couple

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Elrey “Bud” Runion, 69, and his wife, June, 66, went on Craigslist looking to finally purchase their dream car, a 1966 Ford Mustang convertible. That dream sadly turned into a nightmare after the missing Georgia couple was found dead on Monday, both shot in the head.

Ronnie “Jay” Towns Jr., 28, who was the owner of the phone that last sent messages to the Runions’ phone, turned himself in to the police and has been officially charged with murder and armed robbery.

According to CBS, Bud had posted an ad on Craiglist looking for the specific type of Mustang, and the suspect responded saying he had one for sale, sending the couple photos. The Runions were later reported missing after leaving their home in an Atlanta suburb to drive 200 miles across the state to buy the vintage car from Towns.

The Telfair County Sheriff’s office Facebook page says they found the 2003 GMC Envoy owned by Mr. and Mrs. Runion submerged in a lake, without revealing exactly where said lake was. Police suspect Towns lured the couple into the woods, attempted to rob the two before killing them.

Shortly before Towns turned himself in Telfair County Sheriff Chris Steverson  told CNN:

Early on in the investigation, we did contact Mr. Towns, and we did interview him and by the information he provided, we found it to be false and deceptive. After we interviewed him, our efforts to contact him were unsuccessful. Today we’ve contacted his family, and they’ve been helpful in locating him.

In a Telfair County court Tuesday, Towns waived his right to a preliminary hearing, and a judge denied his bail.

Ronnie Towns Sr.  told a CNN affiliate WSB on Tuesday that he helped convince his son to turn himself in.

He said, ‘Daddy, I ain’t had nothing to do with this.’ It ain’t Jay. I don’t believe he did it.

This isn’t the first time Craigslist has been in the news for a high profile murder case. The website made headlines when Philip Markoff, the infamous “Craigslist Killer”, was arrested in 2009 after allegedly robbing and killing Julissa Brisman. Markoff later committed suicide in jail while awaiting his trial. There have also been other incidences of Craigslist-related killings, often robberies gone wrong. Check out our “Killers of Craigslist” slideshow here.

Whether or not Towns will be found guilty remains unknown, but it seems like this tragic case has ended up with the correct suspect in custody.

Alexis Evans
Alexis Evans
Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.
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