2 Arrested In Waynesburg Double Homicide
By: Erika Stanish and Jennifer Borrasso/KDKA-TV
WAYNESBURG, Pa. (KDKA) - Two people have been arrested in connection with a double homicide in Waynesburg.
Judy Hunter, 47, and Kevin Williford, 54, were found shot to death in a home on Morris Street last Monday after the landlord said he hadn't heard from his tenants in several days.
Shawna Smith and Cortland Rogers are now facing charges in the deaths of Hunter and Williford. The boyfriend and girlfriend were arrested and arraigned Tuesday afternoon.
Police chief Thomas Ankrom said the victims and suspects knew each other and said several events led up to the shooting led them right to the suspects.
The chief said the same day they found the victims' bodies, the suspects were involved in an assault separate from the case. He said Rogers and Smith were taken into custody and when his department learned of the homicide, it was easy to connect the suspects to the crime based on evidence left behind, like the gun used and shell casings.
According to the criminal complaint, the suspects were staying with the victims at one point and later went back to confront them, apparently, about missing jewelry and drug money. During interviews, police said the suspects blamed each other over who pulled the trigger. Police say Rogers told Smith, "We can't leave any witnesses."
WATCH: Jennifer Borrasso reports
Police said the victims had been living in the home for about three months. The downstairs neighbors hadn't heard from them in over a week, police said, and the two had been dead "a period of time." The coroner ruled both victims suffered gunshot wounds to the head.
In his 18 years of being Waynesburg police chief, Thomas Ankrom said he'd never seen a homicide, let alone two at the same time.
The victims' friends are still shocked and stunned. They told KDKA's Jennifer Borrasso the two had moved back to the area a few months ago.
"I was kind of devastated, like I just talked to her a week before that and you never know stuff like that's gonna happen," said Mary Martin.
The district attorney said the investigation isn't over and could take several more months. He said he's considering the death penalty in the case.
Bond was denied for both Smith and Rogers. A preliminary hearing is set for March 4.
