Author: Staff Reports

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has reported that Tommy Shane Morton Jr., an inmate who escaped from Carroll County in May and who lives in Coffee County when not in prison, has been apprehended in Coffee County. According to the AJC, authorities arrested Morton earlier today. Morton walked off a work detail in Carroll County in May. The U.S. Marshals Service offered a $1,000 reward for information leading to Morton’s capture. The Coffee County Sheriff’s Office issued a press release in May stating that Morton had local connections and could be in the area. The AJC stated that officers caught…

On July 3, deputies from the Coffee County Sheriff’s Office responded to a Kingfishers Court residence in the Baymeadows Estate area in reference to a stolen 2005 GMC Sierra. Deputies discovered that the vehicle was taken from the driveway of the residence along with a pink electric scooter. The scooter was discovered a few yards down from the residence and returned to the owner. Deputies then requested assistance from the Criminal Investigations Division in locating the stolen vehicle. Detectives responded to the location and processed the scene. Officers issued a BOLO to the neighboring agencies in hopes the…

Josh Wiggins, who stands accused of shooting Danny Chaney (also known as Robert Chaney) at a Ronnie Walker Road address on Wednesday, July 3, 2019, has been arrested and jailed. According to a press release from the Coffee County Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded to a gunshot wound call around 10 a.m. on Ronnie Walker Road east of Douglas. When officers arrived, they found Chaney with a gunshot wound, though they couldn’t tell exactly where he had been shot. An Air-Evac chopper responded and flew Chaney to a trauma center. Witnesses told officers that Josh Wiggins, who lived in…

A Douglas man is on the run and the sheriff’s office needs your help locating him. Jeffery Kyle Corbitt is a white male, 26 years old, and approximately six feet tall and 145 pounds with blonde hair. Corbitt is wanted for aggravated assault (family violence) and aggravated battery (family violence). There are currently active warrants for his arrest. Coffee County deputies are attempting to locate Corbitt. If anyone has information regarding his whereabouts, please call the Coffee County Sheriff’s Office at (912) 384-4227 or Coffee County 911 at (912) 384-7675

On June 20, 2019, officers from the Coffee County Drug Unit and a K-9 Unit stopped a vehicle on Highway 221 North at the 206 Connector. A Broxton police officer also stopped to assist. During the stop, officers discovered that Dereck Shawn Porter, 21, of Douglas, had two counterfeit $100 bills. The bills looked very similar to the real thing. Porter was charged with two counts of forgery in the second degree. He was transported to the Coffee County Jail.

A road check set up by the Georgia State Patrol on McKinnon Road nabbed two suspected drug dealers who racked up a number of serious charges. Valarie Cox, 38, and Joshua Harden, 21, were arrested on June 16, 2019, after they attempted to avoid the road check by turning into a driveway when they saw the road block in front of them. Troopers went to the residence and found Cox and Harden standing on the porch. They arrested both and transported them to the Coffee County Jail. Officers from the drug unit met troopers at the jail and…

Demetrius Brown of Coffee County has been arrested on drug trafficking and weapons charges. On June 13, 2019, the Coffee County Drug Unit executed a search warrant at a residence in Coffee County. A large quantity of ecstasy tablets were recovered from the residence, along with a tablet press, and other ingredients used in the manufacturing of ecstasy tablets. Coffee County Drug Unit detectives arrested Demetrius Brown at the scene and charged him with trafficking in ecstasy, manufacturing MDMA, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

Citizens Christian Academy has a new varsity basketball coach. According to a statement posted to CCA’s Facebook page on June 12, the school has hired Jamie Lingenfelter of Waycross to lead both the men’s and women’s varsity teams. Coach Lingenfelter was born in Coffee County. He is married to Mandy Lingenfelter, who serves Ware County High School as head women’s basketball coach. Before moving to Ware County, Mandy Lingenfelter was head women’s basketball coach at Coffee High School, where she led the Lady Trojans to a region title in the 2008-2009 season and received region Coach of the…

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is investigating an officer involved shooting that took place on June 4, 2019, in Atkinson County. According to a GBI press release, around 10:45 p.m. that night, a call came into the Tri-County 911 Center that an officer from the Lakeland Police Department had shot an inmate that was being transported from Lakeland to the Coffee County Jail in Douglas. According to the release, a Lakeland PD officer was transporting Roy Kyle Mathis, 48, to the Coffee County Jail when Mathis attempted to escape the transport vehicle. The incident occurred in Atkinson County on…

James Robert “Bobby” Reynolds, former mayor of Broxton for 26 years, passed away Saturday, June 1, 2019, at the home of his daughter, Tracy Lott, in Broxton. Mr. Reynolds was born March 31, 1941 to the late Joseph Edgar Reynolds and the late Jackie Highsmith Reynolds Kight. Other than his parents, he was preceded in death by a son, Travis Reynolds. In addition to his duties as mayor of Broxton, Mr. Reynolds also worked as a lieutenant in the Coffee County Sheriff’s Office of 10 years. He was a member of Reedy Branch Baptist Church. Survivors include His wife…