Moorer charged for taking child from scene
Moorer
A Conecuh County woman has been arrested on charges connected to the double homicide just two weeks ago in the Johnsonville community. Vera Moorer, 27, of Conecuh County, has been charged with kidnapping II and is being held under a $1 million bond in the Conecuh County Jail.
Moorer allegedly was involved in the taking of an 8-year-old child from the scene of the homicide where JaTonio Williams, 31, and Joe "Joe Joe" Rankins Jr., 10, were murdered.
Moorer is alleged to have transported the small child and to later dropping her at the I-65 Repton/Lenox exit at a gas station. She was arrested by the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) officers and Conecuh County sheriff's deputies on Tuesday, June 20, on the kidnapping charge.
Conecuh County E-911 received a call of a shooting on Boone Court in the Johnsonville community at 11:28 p.m. on Friday,, June 16. When officers arrived on scene, they found JaTonio Williams, 31, dead of gunshot wounds. Joe "Joe Joe" Rankins Jr., 10, was also found shot at the scene and transported to Evergreen Medical Center, where he was later pronounced dead.
A 'BOLO' was issued for a missing white Yukon and a second small child. The child was located later at a service station at the I-65 77 mile marker exit and returned to family members. The Yukon was later found on the Benefield Road a short distance from the site of the shooting. The vehicle was taken by the State Bureau of Investigation to be processed for evidence.
ALEA's State Bureau of Investigations took over the investigation from the Conecuh County Sheriff's Department when they arrived on scene and are being assisted by the sheriff's department as the investigation continues.
The victims had pulled up to their home on Boone Court, where the power had been off for some time, and were ambushed by the shooter or shooters. An adult female at the scene was not injured during the shooting.
Authorities are continuing to investigate the murders and will release more information as it becomes available.
