Tennessee 'associates' of quadruple murder suspect arrested
Giovonte Thomas, 28, and Tanaka Brown, 29, were both charged with accessory after the fact to 1st Degree Murder in connection with the manhunt for Austin Drummond. Brown also faces one count of tampering with evidence, the agency said.
Drummond, 28, remains on the run Monday after he allegedly killed four people last week in Tiptonville, a town located roughly 125 miles from Memphis. Police said an infant later found on the front lawn of a random individual's house is related to all four victims, identified as family members of Drummond's girlfriend.
"Getting Austin Drummond in custody is a priority. Anyone with information about where we can find him should call us immediately. You will remain anonymous," U.S. Marshal Tyreece Miller said in a statement last week before the reward for information leading to Drummond's arrest was increased to $17,500.
It is unclear how Thomas and Brown allegedly helped Drummond, but the TBI described them as "associates."
"Thomas was already being held in the Madison County Jail on an unrelated charge for Failure to Appear. He will be transferred to the Lake County Jail to be arraigned on the new charges," the TBI added.
Brown is being held at the Lake County Jail without bond.
Drummond is charged with four counts of first-degree murder, one count of aggravated kidnapping and weapons offenses.
The TBI said he "should be considered armed and dangerous."
Last Friday, the Jackson Police Department said it found a vehicle driven by Drummond abandoned along a dead-end road in Jackson, a city about 70 miles southeast of Tiptonville.
The victims – James M. Wilson, 21, Adrianna Williams, 20, Cortney Rose, 38, and Braydon Williams, 15 – were discovered in Tiptonville on Tuesday.
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