Three Georgia Killings Linked to Craigslist

Law enforcement officials in Georgia believe the suspects in three recent murder cases used a popular online marketplace to lure in their victims with offers of classic cars or new cell phones.

Craigslist is a virtual advertisement space where people can offer cleaning services, look for guitar amps, find places with cheap rent, and any number of legitimate business transactions. Unfortunately, the anonymity provided by the website can also allow crooks to abuse the system and draw unsuspecting victims to secluded areas on the premise of completing a deal. Once the victim arrives, cash in hand, he or she can be robbed - or worse.

On Monday night, Marietta police responded to a call of a car crashed in a yard at 345 Jamaica Cove in Marietta. Officers soon realized that there was a body in the driver’s seat.

The victim, 21-year-old James Jones, Jr, a student at Clark Atlanta University, drove to the 300 block of Jamaica Cove in hopes of purchasing an iPhone 6 he had seen on Craigslist.

The trio that allegedly placed the ad, 18-year-old Jordan Baker, 19-year-old Jonathon Myles and 21-year-old Kaylnn Ruthenberg, laid in wait until Jones arrived then robbed him and shot him, police said.

Baker, Myles, and Ruthenberg have been arrested and charged with armed robbery, aggravated assault and felony murder and are being held at the Cobb County jail.

This latest ”Craigslist killing” came quickly on the heels of an alleged double murder which grabbed national headlines in late January and early February.

On Jan. 26, the bodies of missing East Cobb couple Bud and June Runion were found in a wooded area of Telfair County, near a pond where their missing SUV had been discovered earlier that day. An autopsy on the Runions showed they had been killed by shots to the head.

Telfair County authorities have charged 28-year-old Jay Towns with the Runions’ murder; Towns allegedly responded to a Craigslist want ad for a 1966 Ford Mustang posted by Bud Runion. Instead of selling the Runions a classic muscle car, Towns is believed to have robbed and murdered the couple.

In the wake of the Runions’ murders, police departments across the state rushed to remind residents that their parking lots and headquarters buildings are always open to those who wish to safely complete transactions begun on Craigslist or any other similar website. Police and sheriff’s deputies can even examine the items before the sale is complete to ensure the goods being sold aren’t stolen.