An Alabama middle school principal was among four suspects arrested in connection with a triple murder in Georgia a decade ago, authorities announced Friday.
Keante Harris, 45, was arrested without incident on three counts of malice murder in connection with a January 2013 murder in Union City, Georgia, according to the Clayton County Sheriff’s Office.
Harris, an assistant principal at McAdory Middle School in Jefferson County, Alabama, was placed on administrative leave after his arrest. WBMA-TV reported.
Investigators began working on the case 11 years ago when a Union City police patrol found an abandoned 2010 Dodge Charger near Interstate 85.
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Keante Harris, 45, was arrested without incident last week on three counts of malicious murder. (Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office)
Officers found three bodies inside the vehicle, and investigators determined that all three victims were tortured and killed in Clayton County and then abandoned in Fulton County.
The victims were identified as Quinones King, 33, Rodney Cottrell, 43, and Cheryl Colquitt Thompson, 32.
The Fulton County Coroner’s Office said King and Cottrell were found suffocated in the back seat of a Dodge Charger, and Colquitt-Thompson was found strangled to death in the trunk of the car. Announced. FOX5 Atlanta report.
Harris is the assistant principal at McAdory Middle School in Jefferson County, Alabama. The school district announced Friday that Harris has been placed on administrative leave. (Google Maps)
Police say the victims were lured to a home on Magnolia Drive in Jonesboro, Georgia, and forced inside at gunpoint. The victims were then loaded into the back of a Dodge Charger and driven to Fulton County, where their bodies were dumped.
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Three others, identified as Kevin Harris, Kenneth Thompson, and Darrell Harris, were also arrested without incident and charged with three counts of malicious murder each.
Four people were arrested in three states. It is unclear whether the three Harriss are related.
Keentre Harris, Kevin Harris, Kenneth Thompson, and Darrell Harris were all arrested without incident and charged with three counts each of malicious homicide. (Clayton County Police Department)
The Jefferson County School District released a statement Friday saying it was aware of the arrest of Keante Harris, who is on administrative leave.
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“At this time, we are still gathering the facts regarding the details of this situation,” he said in a statement obtained by WBMA-TV. “However, early indications indicate that the charges are not related to this person’s employment with Jefferson County Schools.”
