Georgia authorities obtained new evidence in a nine-year-old double murder case after someone found it earlier this month while magnet fishing. In a press release, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation called the findings "new evidence" in the 2015 case involving the deaths of Bud and June Runion.
According to Monday's announcement, the magnet fisher pulled out a .22-caliber rifle from Horse Creek in Telfair County on April 14. Then, the person went back to the spot two days later and found a bag containing driver's licenses, credit cards, and a cell phone belonging to the victims.
GBI added that the items recovered allowed them to secure two search warrants for a house in the area, which they served on April 17 and April 19, and recovered more evidence.
The Associated Press reported that the Runions were driving to meet with a seller Bud had found through a Craigslist ad to buy a car in January 2015, but were instead murdered. Their bodies were discovered off a county road. A few days later, Ronnie Jay Towns was charged with armed robbery and murder. Investigators said he lured the couple through the website.
Tim Vaughn, the district attorney prosecuting the case, told the AP that the new evidence "makes it an even better case." Although investigators are still trying to determine the rifle was used in the shooting, Vaughn added that it's the same caliber as the gun used to kill the Runions.
