2 more people charged with helping man accused of killing 4 as he evaded
authorities, officials say
[September 04, 2025]
By ADRIAN SAINZ
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Two more people have been charged with helping a
Tennessee man evade authorities after he was accused of fatally shooting
four people, investigators said Wednesday.
Eric Wise Jr., 26, and Michell Ovelis, 31, were indicted Tuesday by a
grand jury on charges of being accessories after the fact in the late
July killings and were booked into the Madison County Jail, the
Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said in a news release.
Details of how authorities suspect they helped Austin Robert Drummond as
authorities searched for him were not released by the TBI. Online jail
records did not show booking information for Wise or Ovelis, and a court
clerk said records did not show if the pair had lawyers Wednesday.
Drummond has pleaded not guilty to four counts of first-degree murder in
the deaths of the parents, grandmother and uncle of an infant found
abandoned in a home’s front yard. A weeklong search for Drummond ended
Aug. 5 in Jackson, about 70 miles (115 kilometers) southeast of the
location of the killings in Tiptonville.
Prosecutors have said they plan to seek the death penalty if Drummond is
convicted of first-degree murder at trial. Drummond’s preliminary
hearing is scheduled for Thursday in Lake County.
In addition to Wise and Ovelis, three other people have also been
charged with helping Drummond by providing him with shelter, phones and
rides as he evaded authorities.
The killings and the ensuing search set rural areas of west Tennessee on
edge for days.
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Officers responded to a call of an infant in a car seat being
dropped at a “random individual’s front yard” on July 29 in the
Tigrett area, roughly 40 miles (65 kilometers) from Tiptonville, the
Dyer County Sheriff’s Office said.
Then, investigators in neighboring Lake County reported that four
people had been found dead from gunshot wounds in Tiptonville.
Officials determined they were the baby’s parents, James M. Wilson,
21, and Adrianna Williams, 20; Williams’ brother, Braydon Williams,
15; and their mother, Cortney Rose, 38.
The four victims hadn’t been seen since the night before their
bodies were discovered in a wooded area, Lake County District
Attorney Danny Goodman has said. Drummond is believed to have
targeted them, the TBI says.
Drummond’s girlfriend is the sister of the infant’s grandmother,
Goodman said.
Drummond has served prison time for robbing a convenience store and
threatening to go after jurors. He was also charged with the
attempted murder of a prison guard while behind bars, and he was out
on bond at the time of the killings, Goodman said.
With a population of about 3,400 people, Tiptonville is about 120
miles (193 kilometers) north of Memphis, near the Mississippi River
and scenic Reelfoot Lake.
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