Missing Georgia Couple - Police in Georgia have found two bodies - a male and a females' - near a pond where the car of an elderly couple, who went missing after traveling to meet with a Craigslist seller, was found on Monday.
According to Telfair County Sheriff Chris Steverson, the bodies have not yet been identified. However, they were found near the missing Georgia couple's champagne 2003 GMC Envoy, which was submerged in a nearby lake.
69-year-old veteran Elrey 'Bud' Runion and his 66-year-old wife, June, were reported missing since Thursday after they traveled to McRae, Ga to purchase a 1966 Mustang from a seller they met on Craigslist.
They have not been seen or heard from since their trip to meet with the seller, who claimed to have one of the vintage cars.
"It's not the outcome we had hoped for but, obviously, it's the one we have to deal with," Steverson said. "We'll analyze the vehicle, the bodies and hopefully we can come to some conclusion as to how they met their fate."
Reports indicate that authorities have taken 28-year-old Ronnie 'Jay' Adrian Towns into custody. He was reportedly the last person to speak with the missing Georgia couple. Towns, who was wanted on charges of giving false statements and criminal attempt to commit theft by deception, turned himself in.
"We investigated the last communications that the Runion's had," Steverson said. "We traced that to a cell phone in Telfair County. And we've traced that cell phone to the purchaser of it, which was ,Mr. Towns."
Runion and his wife June placed an ad on Craigslist saying they are looking for a 1966 Mustang to buy. A car seller contacted them claiming he had a Mustang to sell. On Thursday, they drove from Marietta, a suburb in Atlanta, to the South Georgia town of McRae, to meet with the person who responded to their ad.
Family members reported them missing when Runion and June failed to show up for their scheduled appointment to baby-sit their grandchildren on Friday.
"He was excited about the car. He had one when he got back from Vietnam," daughter Stephanie Bishop said.
Authorities believe Town, whose family was instrumental in his surrendering, was the last person to speak to the missing Georgia couple. According to reports, he does not own a Mustang, although his family claims he is a good kid from a good home.
"He does not [sell cars]. We feel that the entire communications he had with Mr. Runion was deceptive," Steverson said.
