STAFF REPORT :::
An arrest has been made in the Saturday night murder of 38-year-old Munteshia Brown, whose body was located in a church parking lot. Donald Colquitt, Brown’s boyfriend, has been arrested and will be charged in her death.
According to a press release issued by Spalding County Sheriff Darrell Dix, Brown was found at approximately 9:20 p.m. in the parking lot of Macedonia Baptist Church at the intersection of Old Atlanta and Baptist Camp roads.
“A Deputy had just conducted a traffic stop at the intersection when he heard people yelling at him and trying to get his attention and they directed him to the body. One of the witnesses told the deputy that he had been walking in the area, heard a gunshot, and saw a small black vehicle, possibly a Toyota, speed from the area. As he continued to walk, he saw the body lying in the parking lot and ran to a friend’s house to call for help. He and his friends were all going back to the lot to see if there was anything they could do when they saw the deputy and called out to him,” Dix said. “We immediately called for assistance from WellStar EMS and Spalding Fire. Deputies began checking for vitals on the victim but couldn’t locate a pulse. EMS arrived on scene and could not find any vital signs. They secured the crime scene as Spalding County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigators, Crime Scene Unit, and Spalding County Deputy Coroners Michael Pryor and Dwayne Norris were notified and arrived on the scene.”
Investigators were initially unable to identify Brown, but the use of technology aided in determining her identity and allowing officials to notify her family.
“Initially, as investigators began gathering evidence, they couldn’t locate any identification on the female victim or a phone. In this case we were able to use technology we have invested in to identify the victim. This handheld device allows us to take a fingerprint and almost instantly get an identification based on that print. That’s how we were able to identify the victim as 38-year-old Munteshia Brown. Once she was identified we were able to find her relatives in Barnesville and let them know what had happened,” Dix said. “At that point we were able to link her to her boyfriend, Donald Colquitt and link Ms. Brown to the vehicle that the first witness saw speeding from the scene. The vehicle turned out to be her car. We entered it as stolen and put a lookout on it.”
Officials say technology proved to be pivotal in the apprehension of the suspect in Brown’s murder.
“As the investigation continued, we obtained her phone number and began pinging it since it was not on her when she was found. We were able to track the suspect Colquitt believed to still be in her car, as he crossed Alabama and entered Mississippi. We notified the Eupora Mississippi Police Department to a location where we pinged the phone and they were able to locate Ms. Brown’s vehicle and Donald Colquitt at a McDonalds in their city. Colquitt was taken into custody for the stolen car, which is now secured in evidence at their agency. A Ruger 9mm handgun was found in his possession. He is currently in custody at the Webster County Jail. This afternoon Lt. Carrie Williams- James obtained a warrant on Colquitt charging him with Murder. We will obtain further warrants on him for other crimes related to this case as the investigation continues,” Dix said. “My Criminal Investigators, Crime Scene Investigators, and the Spalding County Coroner’s Office worked through the night to identify Ms. Brown, locate her relatives, and start piecing together what led to her death. It was the teamwork of those folks, the Eupora Mississippi Police, and the Webster County Sheriff’s Office that led us to capture Colquitt.”
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