Police blotter
Teen's death investigated as possible arson, suicide
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Columbia County authorities said an 18-year-old Evans man apparently took his own life after setting his parents' home on fire Thursday.
"Evidence suggests arson/suicide," Columbia County sheriff's Capt. Steve Morris said. "It remains an open death investigation. It is premature to rule anything out, or in for that matter."
A passerby called in the fire at 997 Windmill Lane about 4:30 a.m. Martinez-Columbia Fire Rescue personnel found the body of Alexander Blake Cooper inside.
Morris said that Cooper, who had previously attended Greenbrier High School, had what "appears to be a gunshot wound to the head. ... A weapon was recovered from the scene."
An autopsy performed at the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Crime Lab in Augusta determined that Cooper died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, Columbia County Deputy Coroner Bonnie Holloway said.
Cooper's parents, with whom he shared the home, were out of state at the time.
The fire started in a front bedroom of the two-story brick home in the Windmill Plantation subdivision, said Honey Shore, a Martinez-Columbia Fire Rescue spokeswoman. Cooper's body was found in another room.
Firefighters quickly got the blaze under control and contained most of the fire damage to the front bedroom.
Martinez-Columbia fire investigators are still trying to determine the cause of the fire. The state Fire Marshal's Office was called in to assist with the investigation, Shore said.
Fourth man convicted in 2008 Grovetown death
An Augusta man was sentenced to life in prison late Thursday after a Columbia County jury convicted him on several charges in connection to the September 2008 home invasion and death of a Grovetown man.
The jury found Patrick Antwon Booker, 20, guilty of burglary, armed robbery, two counts of aggravated assault, kidnapping, two counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime and possession of a firearm by a First Offender probationer. The jury deliberated for more than 10 hours after the three-day trial prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Dana Wolk.
The jury acquitted Booker of malice murder and did not reach a verdict on the felony murder charge. Because the jury did not agree on a verdict on the felony murder charge, Booker can be re-tried on that charge.
Superior Court Judge James G. Blanchard sentenced Booker to life plus 45 years in prison.
Booker, and four others -- Karmbi Octavious Young, 20; Martin Napoleon Holmes, 18; Willie Bernard Butler, 20 and a 15-year-old juvenile, Garland Ray Pittman -- are accused of killing Rickey Gibson, 33, in his home.
Police say the men broke into the home Gibson shared with his girlfriend, Alexis Yates, and their infant son. Yates told police the men held them at gunpoint, put a gun in the baby's mouth, threatened them and shot at her before fatally shooting Gibson.
A jury convicted Young in August. A second jury convicted Butler and Holmes this month. All three also received life in prison.
A trial date for Pittman has not yet been set.
Lakeside graduate died from natural causes
A Martinez teen who died the day after her high school graduation in May succumbed to natural causes, Columbia County's coroner determined Wednesday.
Melanie Anne Elizabeth Garrison, 18, was found unresponsive in her bed by her parents on May 24, the day after she graduated from Lakeside High School.
"She died of natural causes," Coroner Vernon Collins said.
Garrison died from hypertension and cardiovascular artery disease.
Collins said Garrison had spent the night after graduation with a friend and returned home May 24 while her father and stepmother were out.
Lab results were only recently received and Collins signed Garrison's death certificate Wednesday.
Garrison had no drugs in her system at the time of her death, Collins said.
Alligator killer sentenced; second case set for Oct. 28
One of two men charged with killing an alligator will pay $1,350 in fines and serve 160 hours of community service.
Bobby Charles Jones, 51, of Columbia County, was charged with hunting out of season and possessing illegally taken wildlife, both misdemeanors. He and another man killed an alligator in Richmond County, butchered it and dumped the carcass into a pond behind Brown Feed & Seed in Evans.
The remains of a large alligator were found Aug. 23 by store employees. The pond is home to a 9-foot alligator that has lived there for several years.
The carcass was presumed to be the pond's resident, but wildlife authorities later determined that alligator was still alive and that another large one had been killed illegally in Richmond County and left there.
Jones received 12 months probation on both counts, fines and surcharges totaling $1,350, according to the Richmond County State Court solicitor's office. He was ordered to perform 160 hours of community service at an animal shelter and stay away from the private property where the alligator was killed.
Luther Godowns, 65, also of Columbia County, also is accused of assisting in butchering the alligator and dumping its remains, according to law enforcement officers in Georgia's Wildlife Resources Division.
He was charged in Columbia County with possession of illegally taken wildlife and "dumping of egregious litter." His case is scheduled for Oct. 28 in Columbia County Probate Court.
Ex-NFL player pleads guilty to bank fraud
Former professional football player Arthur J. Marshall Jr. pled guilty Wednesday to bank fraud in U.S. District Court in Augusta.
The former Hephzibah High School standout admitted he defrauded two banks in 2007 when he obtained loans to build houses in West Lake subdivision in Columbia County. The charges to which Marshall pled Wednesday concern lots on Firethorn Court, FBI special agent Rebecca Harrison said.
In exchange for Marshall's guilty plea, federal prosecutors agreed to dismiss the remaining 20 criminal counts and to limit any potential for restitution to $2.5 million or less.
Marshall, who has moved to Miami, will remain free on bond pending his sentencing. The date has not been set.
Marshall was indicted in June on charges of bank and mail fraud in addition to money laundering. He was accused of committing mortgage fraud in the purchase of several properties in Columbia and Richmond counties in 2007 and 2008.
The indictment followed Marshall's bankruptcy petition and a series of civil lawsuits, accusing him of deceit in business dealings. About $11 million in debts was listed on his bankruptcy petition.
After Marshall graduated from Hephzibah High, he played for the University of Georgia and graduated in 1991, followed by several pro seasons.
The following account was taken from reports from the Columbia County Sheriff's Office. Additional reports are available at www.columbiacountyso.org:
Man with ax seen in yard
A Martinez man saw an ax-wielding man walking in his front yard Monday.
He said he saw a man wearing dark clothing looking through trash and picking objects from the ground about 3:20 a.m. at his house in the 3800 block of Villa Lane.
The resident said his wooden chair appeared to have been chopped with an ax. Tires on his two vehicles also had been slashed.
The intruder walked into the woods at the end of Forest Creek Way.
Mother tries to take baby
A Grovetown woman was cited with disorderly conduct Tuesday on accusations she tried to take her infant while intoxicated.
Tracie Elaine Bates, 40, tried to remove the child from her residence on Jaime Drive about 9 p.m. Witnesses told police that Bates was extremely intoxicated and that they tried to prevent her from leaving in her vehicle with the baby, which caused an argument.
Witnesses said that Bates tried to get the baby out of a crib in a violent manner and caused the infant's head to bump against the side of the crib.
The father said the child was slightly injured with a bump on the head.
Gold Cross and the county's Department of Family and Children Services were called to the home.
A witness said she was slapped when she tried to protect the baby. Another witness said that Bates swung at her.
Bates initially refused to take a Breathalyzer test. After the incident, Bates, who still wanted to drive her vehicle, registered a blood-alcohol level of 0.164, authorities said.
TV is lifted from store
A flat-screen television was stolen Wednesday from a Martinez electronics store.
Deputies responded to a commercial alarm at Anything Audio, 3906 Washington Road, about 2 a.m. Someone broke glass on the front door with a rock, which was lying beside the door.
The owner of the business confirmed that a television set worth $3,000 was missing and noticed a audio cable and speaker wire lying on the side of the building.
They said the rear gate had been hit by a vehicle.
Copper tubing is stolen
An employee of the Columbia County Water Department reported Wednesday that copper tubing was missing from the building.
Someone took about 300 feet of tubing between 2 p.m. Tuesday and 8:30 a.m. Wednesday. The employee said that the tubing was stored in the back of the building.
The copper was worth about $1,200.