A man and a woman have been charged in connection with the murder of her ex-husband, who was shot while driving on Hwy. 489 April 3.
Newton County Coroner Danny Shoemaker identified the victim as Clay Jim, 51, of Conehatta. He was driving his Cadillac Escalade northbound on Hwy. 489 when he was shot about one mile south of Newton-Conehatta Road, which caused the driver to lose control of the vehicle and crash into the woods on the west side of the road.
First responders were called to the scene at 8:17 p.m. April 3. The victim was pronounced dead at 8:50 p.m.
On Thursday, April 9, Charles Burkes, 30, of Forest turned himself into the Scott County Sheriff’s Department and was charged in Newton County with murder by the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation.
Veronica Stewart, 38, was also arrested Friday, April 3, and charged with murder accessory before the fact.
Sheriff Joedy Pennington said the suspects and the victim knew each other.
“Ms. Stewart and Mr. Jim were divorced,” Pennington said. “Mr. Burkes was her boyfriend. They apparently had an altercation earlier in the day, and it continued into that night.”
Pennington said investigators believe the suspects were allegedly following the victim’s SUV in an unknown vehicle, and three shots were fired into the victim’s vehicle from a .45-caliber pistol.
“We believe the cause of death was from the gunshot wound, not the crash,” Shoemaker said. “It was called in as an MVA (motor vehicle accident), but when we started investigating, we noticed that the victim had been shot.”
Shoemaker said Jim was in the driver’s seat of his SUV when first responders arrived on scene.
Pennington said no one else was injured in the incident. The Mississippi Highway Patrol and the Newton County Sheriff’s Department investigated the incident.
Pennington said both suspects are still in jail, as bond was denied for Burkes and Stewart’s bond was set at $300,000.
Pennington indicated that Stewart could face additional charges as the investigation continues.
“We’d like to thank the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians for their assistance with this case,” Pennington said.
