Lucedale Man Held In Agricola Murder

Courtsey of Sun Herald/April 5, 2007
By ROYCE ARMSTRONG

Authorities arrested Jeremy Pitts, 27, of Lucedale late Tuesday afternoon and charged him with the murder of another Lucedale man during an argument.
The George County Sheriff's Department found Matthew J. Rogers, 21, shot to death at a residence on Old Mobile Highway near the Agricola community Monday afternoon.
Police had three suspects in the case, but only one of them was at the scene when police arrived at approximately 2:30 p.m. Pitts and another man had already fled, according to Sheriff Garry Welford.
"Pitts became a suspect Monday afternoon," Welford said. "There were four people present at the time the shooting took place. The victim and three others. All three immediately became suspects."
No other arrests have been made, Welford said, and the investigation is continuing.
Investigators were searching an area near Merrill for the murder weapon Wednesday morning. Welford said Pitts threw the handgun in the area.
The Jackson County Sheriff's Department dive team and members of the Jackson County Narcotics Task Force assisted George County authorities with the search.
The search was difficult and dangerous, Welford said, because beneath the quiet surface water there were fallen trees and logs. Divers were having a hard time getting to the bottom and risked getting hung up on the fallen branches.
The gun still had not been found by late morning.
Welford declined to give the names of the other two suspects or information about the alleged murder weapon. He also did not say how many times or where Rogers was shot.
An autopsy is being performed by the state medical examiner this week.
"At this point we still have a lot of questions," Welford said. "I hope we have a lot more answers by the first of next week."
Pitts is being held in the George County Regional Correctional Facility awaiting an appearance in Justice Court. "This is a tragedy for both families," Welford said.