Sunday, July 3, 2011

BREAKING: Mother Of Auburn FB Signee Bray Murdered, Father Turns Himself In To Police... ((UPDATED))

((HT: WTVM-TV Columbus))

LaGrange, Georgia Police have responded to a car accident and found a female driver with a gunshot wound to the head. The gunshot wound is believed to have been received before the accident occurred.

The victim, Tonya Bray, was transported to the West Georgia Medical Center where she was pronounced dead.

Jeff Jones has turned himself into police and admitted to being the person who drove up to Bray's car and shot her. Police are telling WTVM-TV in Columbus that the two have been in an 18 year relationship and have children together, but they cannot confirm if Jones and Bray were married. Jones is being held in the Troup County ((GA)) Jail, where he has been charged with murder.

Police say Jones explained that he drove up beside her car and shot her before her car veered off the road and crashed.

Tonya and Jeff are the parents of Auburn freshman Quan Bray. Bray was one of the more highly touted prospects in the country upon his signing with the Tigers. Here's his laundry list... thanks to Auburn University and their website...

Listed as the nation's No. 5 athlete by ESPN.com/Scouts Inc. and the No. 40 player overall on the ESPNU 150 ... Named the nation's No. 5 all-purpose back, the No. 8 player from the state of Georgia and the No. 109 player nationally by Rivals.com ... Rated as the No. 6 athlete in the nation, the No. 8 recruit in Georgia and the No. 76 player overall nationally by 247Sports ... Ranked No. 18 nationally among running backs by Scout.com ... Named to the PrepStar Dream Team as the No. 106-ranked player in the nation ... Named a SuperPrep All-American, and the nation's No. 16 running back and the No. 10 recruit from Georgia by SuperPrep ... Selected to play in the 2011 Under Armour All-America game following his senior season ... Ranked No. 18 on the Atlanta Journal Constitution's Fab 50 ... Ranked No. 45 in the Mobile Press-Register's Super Southeast 120 ... Rushed for 1,300 yards and added another 300 receiving as a senior ... Accounted for 2,128 yards and 28 TDs of offense as a junior.

More as we know more...

1845 UPDATE: Alan Riquelmy of the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer caught up with LaGrange ((GA)) Police Captain Dale Strickland. Strickland puts the time of the incident at 9:45 this morning and maintains that there was a car chase between Bray and Jones down a city street that ultimately led to the car accident and the discovery of the body.

“When the officer got there, they found a female occupant,” Strickland said. “We went up to the vehicle and the officer found the female unconscious and she had a gunshot wound.”

Here's WTVM's coverage from Monday...
Taylor Barnhill is in LaGrange


Here's the statement from Auburn head coach Gene Chizik:

"Our thoughts and prayers are with Quan and his entire family during this extraordinarily difficult time. This is a terrible tragedy, but the Auburn Family will support Quan in every way possible throughout the grieving and healing process ahead. Quan is a great young man with a bright future, and we will be there for him every step of the way."

TUESDAY UPDATE: Tony Adams piece in the Ledger-Enquirer still yields few ideas as to the why...

LaGrange police today still had no idea why Jones — the father of Quan Bray — allegedly shot Tonya Bray as she was driving on Ragland Street Sunday morning. Witnesses saw a green car chasing the woman’s vehicle, then apparently pulling up beside it and firing several shots at it, striking Bray, whose vehicle then wrecked.

“The two had been together for some 18 to 20 years and had separated within the past three months, we were able to determine,” LaGrange Police Capt. Dale Strickland said today of Jones and Bray. He did not know what may have caused the alleged incident that led to the shooting.

“I’m not sure what happened. I just know that I got a call this morning,” Former Shaw ((GA)) High school head coach Charles Flowers said Sunday. Flowers is the brother of Tonya Bray.


More when we know more...

No comments:

Post a Comment