JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Two of the four suspects charged with the kidnapping, robbery and murders of a disabled couple have been extradited, and one made her first appearance before a Duval County judge Thursday.
Tiffany Cole and Alan Wade were being held in Charleston, S.C., on suspicion of credit card fraud. Authorities said Cole fled there after she and three other men allegedly buried Carol and Reggie Sumner alive. Jacksonville sheriff's officers discovered the Sumners' bodies in a shallow grave in Charlton County, Ga., just north of the Florida-Georgia line.
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The Sumners, both 61, had been missing since July 8. The couple's daughter, Rhonda Branson, of South Carolina, called police when she was unable to reach her parents by telephone. Branson drove to Jacksonville, where she found the couple's dog inside the house. She also found food on the stove, and the couple's medication and cell phone still in the house.
An off-duty Baker County officer found the couple's 1993 Lincoln Town Car in Sanderson, Fla., and authorities conducted an extensive search near the Sumners' home in St. Nicholas and near the area where the car was recovered.
Cole, Wade, Michael Jackson and Bruce Nixon are charged with robbery, kidnapping and two counts of murder. Nixon, of Macclenny, Fla., was being questioned by police when they said he told them where the bodies were. He is being held in the Duval County jail. Jackson is still awaiting extradition.
Previous Stories:
- August 12, 2005: Missing Couple Murder Suspects To Be Tried In Florida
- July 20, 2005: Medical Examiner: Missing Couple Buried Alive
- July 17, 2005: Police Recover Bodies Believed To Be Missing Couple
- July 16, 2005: Police: Missing Couple Believed Dead
- July 13, 2005: Missing Couple Feared Victims Of Foul Play