Police: Georgia Couple Were Shot To Death After Trying To Buy Car Through Craigslist

Ronnie Adrian "Jay" Towns, 28, has been charged with murder and armed robbery in connection with the deaths of 69-year-old Bud Runion and his 66-year-old wife, June.

A Georgia couple who went missing after setting out to buy a classic car through Craigslist were shot to death, authorities said on Tuesday.

Ronnie Adrian "Jay" Towns, 28, has been charged with the murders of 69-year-old Bud Runion and his 66-year-old wife, June, according to the Telfair County Sheriff's Department. The pair went missing on Thursday near the town of McRae, Georgia.

Towns, a McRae resident, turned himself in on Monday after authorities obtained a warrant and began circulating his photo. He was initially charged with giving false statements and criminal attempt to commit theft by deception, the Associated Press reported. In addition to being charged with the pair's murder, Towns has also been charged with armed robbery.

According to the Runions' family, the couple left their Marietta, Georgia, home on Thursday to look at a 1966 Mustang they had seen on Craigslist. They failed to return home as expected, and their family failed to contact them.

A search and rescue operation began of the McRae area, and on Monday authorities found their SUV submerged in a lake. Two bodies were found at a separate location, and on Tuesday the bodies were positively identified as the missing couple.

The Telfair County Sheriff's office said robbery appears to be the motive in the couple's killing, the AP reported. Authorities also said Towns does not appear to own the classic car that appeared in the Craigslist ad.

A cellphone that made the last known contact with the couple was traced to Towns, authorities said.

Towns' arrest has shocked the small farming community where he grew up, and his family offered their condolences to the Runions' relatives.

On a Facebook page started to find the couple, their daughters and other family asked for prayers.

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"Bud & June had an amazing love. They loved God, and that is evident in how they lived."

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