Milledgeville man arrested in homicide case
Jun. 19—Detectives with the Milledgeville Police Department have made an arrest in the homicide case of an Eatonton man, whose body was discovered in the Graham Homes neighborhood of Milledgeville on Saturday morning.
The arrest was made public by local authorities Monday afternoon during a telephone call with The Union-Recorder.
Maj. Linc Boyer, commander of the road patrol division with the Milledgeville Police Department confirmed the arrest of 30-year-old Tabish Nigel Goddard of Highland Avenue, Milledgeville.
The suspect was taken into custody shortly after local and state law enforcement officers descended his residence about 7:30 a.m. Monday, Boyer told the newspaper.
Goddard was charged with one count each of malice murder, aggravated assault, possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
After his arrest, Goddard was taken to the Baldwin County Law Enforcement Center and jailed on the charges.
Police detectives, led by Lt. Everett January, assistant commander with the Milledgeville Police Department Detective Bureau, went to the suspect's residence armed with a search warrant, Boyer said.
"The suspect was taken to the police department for questioning and afterward, he was arrested by Lt. January and charged with the murder of the victim in the case," Boyer said.
The suspect is accused of shooting to death 43-year-old Joshua Corey Jones of the 100 block of Thomas Drive, Eatonton.
Jones, who was described as a self-employed handyman, was discovered laying on the ground unresponsive between two houses under remodel on the 300 block of Evans Avenue shortly before 8:20 a.m. Saturday, Boyer said.
He was pronounced dead at the scene by Baldwin County Deputy Coroner Foster Hurt.
An autopsy will be performed at a Georgia Bureau of Investigation Crime Laboratory to determine the cause and manner of the victim's death.
Police said that Jones was shot at least once.
Asked what led police to make an arrest quickly in the case, Boyer said it was done based on evidence found at the crime scene.
"I can't get into what sort of evidence for obvious reasons," Boyer said. "This was just old-fashioned, boots on the ground, good police work."
Boyer declined to disclose a motive for the shooting.
At 3 p.m. Monday, Boyer said he was back at the crime scene with other local and state law enforcement officers searching for the gun used in the fatal shooting.
A K-9 game warden with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Law Enforcement Division was searching in the area where the victim's body was found Saturday morning.
Game Warden Cpl. Keith Page and a specially-trained dog were involved in attempting to find the possible murder weapon, Boyer said.
The Milledgeville Police Department has been aided in the investigation by Putnam County Sheriff's Office, the Georgia Department of Community Supervision, and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Boyer said the investigation remains open and active.
"There is still some stuff that we are following up on," he said. "And there's still some stuff we're looking for."
He also would not rule out the possibility of additional arrests in connection to the case.
Anyone with information related to the homicide case is asked to call the Milledgeville Police Department at 478-414-4090.
