BETHALTO, Ill. – The arrest of a couple wanted in Alabama and Tennessee led to the search of a home in Illinois where three bodies were found.
Brady Witcher, 41, and Brittany McMillan, 28, were being sought in Alabama for a murder and a kidnapping, as well as in Tennessee for a home invasion and a shoplifting incident at a Walmart that involved a gun, police said.
They were found Thursday night holed up at a Days Inn in Hazelwood, Mo., police in Tennessee said.
MOST WANTED ALERT: We’ve added Brittany McMillan and Brady Kane Witcher to our Most Wanted list.
Both are wanted by @clarksvillepd and TBI for Especially Aggravated Kidnapping and Theft of a Motor Vehicle, and in Alabama for Capital Murder.
1-800-TBI-FIND! $2,500 reward! pic.twitter.com/jS0p6ysS17
— Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (@TBInvestigation) December 20, 2019
A half-hour after their arrests, Hazelwood police asked their counterparts in Bethalto, Ill., to check on an address, where the bodies were found, KMOV-TV reported.
Detectives assigned to the Major Case Squad of Greater St. Louis identified the victims as the homeowner, Shari Yates, 59, her son, Andrew Brooks, 30, and Brooks’ friend John McMillian, 32.
The Major Case Squad said in a tweet that it had “subjects of interest in custody” and that it was “actively pursuing their activities and association to the victims.”
The kidnapping charge in Tennessee stemmed from a home invasion in Clarksville that spanned several hours from Wednesday night to early Thursday morning, Clarksville police said.
They said that the victims were a man and his wife and the incident ended with him being stabbed and her being injured when she wrestled a gun from McMillan.
“The victims were able to escape, police were notified and the suspects fled with the victims’ 2012 GMC pickup,” police said.
Al.com reported that Witcher and McMillan were charged in Jefferson County with capital murder in the Dec. 13 shooting death of Kellie Ann Hughes, 31.
Deputies found Hughes’ body in a wooded area after getting a 911 call from another woman who said she was being held against her will, according to the news outlet.
Her phone led the deputies to her location.
Deputies arrived just as the woman who phoned was falling down a flight of stairs with her hands bound with zip ties.
Deputy Chief David Agee said she had visible injuries. She was treated on the scene and then taken to a hospital for further treatment.
The woman then told detectives she had knowledge of a homicide that had occurred and that was possibly the reason she was kidnapped, Agee said. Her information led detectives to search a wooded area off Medical Park Drive near St. Vincent’s East. After an extensive search, they found Hughes’ body in a secluded, wooded area at 1:55 a.m. Saturday.
The area was secured until daylight Saturday when the body could be removed. Alabama authorities issued a BOLO for a man and a woman, as well as a stolen rental vehicle.
Clarkesville, Tennessee police on Friday, Dec. 13 identified Witcher and McMillan as suspects in at least three crimes in that Tennessee city, according to Al.com.
On Saturday, Dec. 14, less than 24 hours after Hughes’ body was found in Alabama, police say the pair were involved in a shoplifting incident at a Walmart in Tennessee in which a firearm was displayed.
A security sensor activated as a male was walking through, alerting a Walmart employee. The employee requested to see the man’s receipt. The man – now identified as Witcher – looked at the employee, pulled a gun from his waistband, held it below the waist and continued walking out of the business.
There was a car waiting to pick the man up, possibly a Nissan Maxima, dark blue or black, driven by a female – now identified as McMillan. The man’s neck and hands were covered with tattoos.
The pair was spotted again at a different Tennessee Walmart about 3:15 p.m. Wednesday. The store’s Loss Prevention told police the man and the woman had exited the store and gotten into a Ford Fusion.
Officers spotted the vehicle in the area of Wilma Rudolph Blvd and Morris Drive. They attempted a traffic stop, but the driver fled so recklessly, placing the public in danger, the decision was made not to pursue.
Around 3:25 p.m., Clarkesville police said, a 911 a call came in about a man chasing a woman into the woods around Fair Brook Place and a shot being fired. When officers arrived, they found the same Ford Fusion which had fled earlier, unoccupied and abandoned.
The area was quickly cordoned off. Officers and K-9, along with a Tennessee Highway Patrol helicopter searched for the couple. They were not located and there was no indication anyone had been shot.
It was discovered the Ford Fusion had been stolen Tuesday night out of Rutherford County. Also, there were items linking the couple to the Sango Walmart incident.
After eluding the police perimeter, the couple made their way to a home on Westfield Court and, about 4 p.m., found an apartment that had been unlocked. Both had guns, made entry and subdued the residents who were then bound and forced into a closet. The victims remained held in the closet until early Friday.
Now the duo is in custody and police detectives are tying it all together.