An Alabama education official has been arrested in connection with the torture and murder of three people more than ten years ago in Georgia, Fox 5 reports.
On Wednesday, 45-year-old Keante Harris, an assistant principal at McAdory Middle School in McCalla, Alabama, turned himself in to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.
Harris was arrested on a fugitive from justice warrant out of Clayton County, Georgia.
Authorities say Harris and several others – Kevin Harris, Derrell Adams and Kenneth Thompson – have been accused of three counts of murder/malice as part of an investigation into the discovery of three bodies.
On January 13, 2013, police in Union City, Georgia, were patrolling Interstate 85 when they found a 2010 Dodge Charger on an exit ramp. The car seemed to have been left behind, and inside the officers discovered three deceased individuals.
Investigators believe the victims had been enticed to a home in Jonesboro and compelled at gunpoint to enter, where they were subsequently tortured and killed, according to WVTM-TV.
The victims, who perished from lack of oxygen and strangulation, were 33-year-old Quinones King, 43-year-old Quinones King and 32-year-old Cheryl Colquitt-Thompson.
It was not immediately clear what prompted police to make progress in the case.
Jefferson County Schools Superintendent Walter Gonsoulin said Keante Harris is now on paid administrative leave.
“At this time we still are gathering facts about the specifics of this situation,” Gonsoulin said in a statement before Harris was charged with murder, according to WBMA-TV. “However, early indications are that the charges are not related to this individual’s employment with Jefferson County Schools.”
He added: “As more facts become available, we will act according to our district’s policy.”
A social media page linked to Harris indicated that he started working for Jefferson County Schools in 2018.
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[Feature Photo: Keante Harris/Clayton County Sheriff’s Office]