WOW.MM do those get the death penalty now? 3 Charged in Texas Slaying, Dismemberment
GILMER, Texas (AP) - Three men have been charged with fatally beating a man, then beheading him and setting his body on fire to prevent him from being identified, police said.
Joe Carroll Nickelbur Jr., 32, was bludgeoned after the men confronted him about ``giving bad drugs to their girlfriends,'' according to witness statements in an arrest affidavit.
The suspects were hiding in the woods when a rancher found Nickelbur's intact body early Monday, said Upshur County Sheriff Anthony Betterton. When the rancher left to call authorities, the men moved the body, cut off the head and set the body on fire, he said.
The head was dumped in a creek about four miles from the body, Betterton said. The body was identified by Nickelbur's numerous tattoos.
Gregory Scott Narramore, 33, his brother, Jeremy Jay Narramore, 29, and Jason Fredrick Baughman, 24, were charged with murder. They remained in custody Wednesday on $1 million bail.
Two of the men confessed, sheriff's Lt. Wayne Young said, but he would not say which ones.
Baughman's attorney, Robert Bennett, said he did not know what his client had told authorities.
``While certainly the crime was horrendous, I think my client's part in it will prove to be less egregious than the circumstances may suggest,'' Bennett said.
David Griffith, Jeremy Narramore's attorney, said he believes the men did not intend to kill Nickelbur during the fight.
``I believe I'll be able to show that my client had the least involvement of any of them,'' Griffith said.
Dwight Brannon, Gregory Narramore's attorney, declined to comment. |
