The suspects in an Alabama shooting earlier this month that left seven dead were captured over the weekend in Oregon.
According to documents filed this week in Morgan County Circuit Court, the suspects — John Legg, 19, and Frederic “Rick” Rogers, 22, — and at least three of the victims were members of a club they founded called “Seven Deadly Sins.
Legg and Rogers were upset about “perceived disobedience toward the club” and went to the Valhermoso Springs, Alabama, home on June 4 to “wipe the slate clean,” AL.com reported.
Morgan County Coroner Jeff Chunn identified victims as James Wayne Benford, 22; William Zane Hodgin, 18; Roger Lee Jones Jr., 20; Tammy England Muzzey, 45; Emily Brooke Payne, 21; Jeramy Wade Roberts, 31, s; and a 17-year-old girl whose name has not been released because she was a minor.
Legg and Rogers were arrested during a traffic stop on Sunday in Stayton, Oregon, KGW8 reported. The pair left Alabama and drove 2,500 miles to the Salem area — where Rogers has family — after the shootings, authorities said. Twenty-five agencies were involved during the two-week manhunt for the pair.
They face capital murder charges in Alabama and are awaiting extradition in Marion County Jail in Oregon.
AL.com reported that an unnamed female witness — a witness to the case, but not the crime — said there had been “several previous incidents” before the shooting. The affidavit quoted the witness saying she “received a message via cellphone from Rogers that read ‘everything has been dealt with’ and ‘if anyone asks you we’re going on vacation.'”
The message also asked the witness “to take care of ‘ducky,’ their 3-legged cat which was owned by Ricky Rogers,” according to the affidavit.
The witness, who contacted detectives last week, told investigators she “lived at the ‘club house’ of the ‘7 Deadly Sins,” according to the affidavit. The members of the club were Rogers, Legg, victims Jones, Roberts, and Benford, 22, and a sixth man who was not named.
“The witness stated that several previous incidents had led up to the (killings),” according to the affidavit. “… The witness stated that on the night of (June 4) John Legg and Ricky Rogers became upset, particularly Legg over the perceived disobedience toward the club and the theft of several of his personal firearms a few hours before the homicides. The witness stated that Rogers and Legg stated something to the effect of ‘We’re going in there by force and wipe the slate clean.’ The witness stated that Rogers and Legg continued to state that the ‘club’ would be dismantled by the end of the night.”
Details from the Marion County Sheriff's Office in Oregon:On June 21, 2020 at 12:30 pm deputies from the Marion County…
Posted by Morgan County Sheriff's Office on Monday, June 22, 2020
Neighbors of the house where the shooting took place called 911 around 11:30 p.m. on June 4 to report gunshots, as CrimeOnline previously reported. Police found a small fire burning at the house and the seven victims as well as a dead dog inside.
“Incredibly heinous, talking cold-blooded,” Morgan County Sheriff’s Office Mike Swafford said at the time. “Our theory right now is whoever did this, came in here for a reason, did it and left.”
Swafford said Monday that the department was considering options for returning Legg and Rogers, as well as the vehicle they were driving, to Alabama. He said they would need four deputies and two vehicles to drive the pair back.
“We’re looking at an option of flying, too,” Swafford said. “Whatever makes more economical sense.”
[Feature Photo: John Legg and Frederic Rogers/Marion County Sheriff’s Office]
