A man accused of using Craigslist to lure a Marietta couple to Middle Georgia in order to rob and then kill them nearly 10 years ago may avoid the death penalty.
Ronnie “Jay” Towns, of McRae, will appear in court for a hearing Tuesday morning, when he is expected to plead guilty in exchange for life without parole. He is accused of killing Elrey “Bud” and June Runion in January 2015. Prosecutors had already said they planned to seek the death penalty if Towns was convicted.
The couple, who were in their 60s, drove 200 miles to Telfair County, about an hour southeast of Macon, with the hopes of buying their dream car — a 1966 Ford Mustang — their family has said.
Investigators said Towns contacted them after Bud Runion placed an ad on Craigslist seeking a red ’66 Mustang convertible, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution previously reported. Officials have alleged that Towns tricked them into thinking he would sell them that exact vehicle and even went as far as supplying a photo of it, but there was no car.
After the couple had been missing for four days, police used cellphone data to find them. They had been shot in the head and hidden along a dirt road not far from where Towns’ parents lived, officials said previously. Authorities also found the couple’s 2003 GMC Envoy sunk in a pond not far from where the bodies were located.
Towns was arrested the same day the bodies were discovered. Cellphone records showed he was the last person to talk to them, authorities have said.
In April of this year, a man who was magnet fishing in a creek discovered new evidence in the case, including a .22-caliber rifle and a bag containing the Runions’ driver’s licenses and credit cards, along with what authorities believe was the couple’s cellphone, the AJC reported.
Magnet fishers use a large magnet to scour bodies of water for metal debris, often as a hobby.
Both the prosecution and defense declined to comment Friday.
The Runions had lived in Cobb County for more than 30 years and had recently become grandparents.
June, 66, was a longtime elementary school teacher and had been working as a preschool instructor at Johnson Ferry Baptist Church. Bud, retired from AT&T, collected old bicycle parts, restored them and built new bikes for underprivileged children at Christmas. He was 69.
— Staff writer Joe Kovac Jr. contributed to this article.
About the Author
