A man recently shot to death in Columbus was already a victim in an ongoing aggravated assault case, Lowndes County Circuit Court documents indicate.
The Dispatch on Friday obtained copies of an indictment that lists 23-year-old Charles Moody Jr. as the alleged victim of an attack in November 2013. The court also served Moody several subpoenas in the case.
Moody died Monday from multiple gunshot wounds on 15th Avenue South, Lowndes County Coroner Greg Merchant confirmed. Police have not named or arrested any suspects in the incident.
A Lowndes County grand jury indicted Johnny Bonner, also known as “Johnny Kuckles,” in the assault case. Court documents said Bonner allegedly slammed Moody to the ground and broke his neck. He was charged with aggravated assault. The trial has been postponed multiple times and is pending.
Bonner, however, was in Lowndes County Adult Detention Center the night of the shooting, according to jail officials.
Capt. Brent Swan of the Columbus Police Department said it would be premature to speculate on suspects in Moody’s murder this early in the investigation.
“We are not naming any suspects at this time,” he said.
He also declined to comment on Bonner’s case but added that Bonner has been in custody since March. That’s when police charged Bonner with five counts of aggravated assault, one count of possession of a weapon by a felon and possession of a stolen firearm from a reported shooting near Martin Luther King Drive and 18th Avenue North, according to previous reports in The Dispatch. There were no injuries in that incident.
Bonner was transferred from the Mississippi Department of Corrections back to the Lowndes County Adult Detention Center Aug. 5, said Karen Stanford, an administrative assistant at the jail.
District Attorney Scott Colom also declined to comment on Moody’s murder and would not discuss whether Moody had been a victim in a pending felony case.
Moody’s father, Charles Moody Sr., told The Dispatch in a phone interview on Saturday he believes his son’s death is connected to the pending assault case.
“I think it was retaliation, but that’s just speculation on my part,” he said. “I’ve just been relaxing and letting the police do their thing investigating it.”
Moody Sr. said he and his family have appreciated the outpouring of support from friends and community members since his son’s death.
“He touched a lot of lives,” he said. “It’s sad to see a good guy’s life end under such terrible circumstances. He’s in a better place, though, and that’s a beautiful thing.”
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