STAFF REPORT :::
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) and the Spalding County Sheriff’s Office (SCSO), in cooperation with Griffin Judicial Circuit District Attorney Ben Coker’s Office, have reopened the investigation in to the 34-year-old cold case murder of Timothy Coggins.
Timothy Coggins’ body was found on a power line off Minter Road in Sunnyside on Oct. 9, 1983. Investigators at the time gathered evidence from the scene, questioned suspects and witnesses but were unable to make arrests in Coggins’ death.
The case has remained unsolved to this day.
In June 2017, spurred by information forwarded to the GBI through various sources regarding Coggins’ murder, agents and investigators began re-examining the case and all the information gathered at the time of the original investigation.
Investigators began re-interviewing old witnesses, conducting interviews with newly discovered witnesses and gathering new evidence. Investigators from the GBI and the SCSO working in unison have been literally going door to door in their efforts to solve this crime. Based on their findings they believe that they are close to making arrests for Coggins’ murder.
“We have been in contact with a representative from Coggins’ family and they have been briefed on where we are at in the investigation. Unfortunately, both of his parents are deceased, and we wish we would have been able to give them closure before they passed away. The GBI, Spalding County Sheriff’s Office, and District Attorney Ben Coker’s Office will do all we can to ensure that Timothy Coggins and the remainder of the Coggins family receive justice. It does not matter who he was, or where he was from, this man died a horrible death and those responsible for his murder need to be held accountable. I can say without a doubt that if Mr. Coggins was murdered today, in 2017, it would absolutely be classified as a hate crime. 34 years have passed since this horrible crime was committed and those who killed him have believed that they would remain untouched until literally just a few days ago,” said Spalding County Sheriff Darrell Dix. “We understand that over the years, those suspected of being involved in the murder of Timothy Coggins have threatened and intimidated potential witnesses. We believe that there are people with pertinent information regarding this case that are still out there and we are asking them to come forward. We are asking for anyone who may have information about this murder, especially the hours leading up to the discovery of Coggins’ body, to contact the Spalding County Sheriff’s Office at 770.467-.4282 and ask to speak to Lt. Mike Morris or GBI Agent Jared Coleman. Any detail, no matter how small you may think it is, could be valuable in bringing Coggins’ killers to justice.”
