The Franklin News-Post
P. O. Box 250
310 Main Street, SW
Rocky Mount, Virginia 24151
540-483-5113
Fax: 540-483-8013
|
|
 |
|
|
Kenneth Caldwell |
Friday, June 15, 2012
By K.A. WAGONER - Staff Writer
Two Rocky Mount men have been charged in connection with the theft of a gun from a crime scene on Monday, June 11.
Ameche Pettie, 21, is charged with grand larceny of a .40 caliber handgun, and Kenneth Caldwell Jr., 26, is charged with giving false information to a police officer and as an accessory to the larceny, according to Lt. Todd Maxey with the Franklin County Sheriff's Office.
After discovering a body at the Blackwater River Wayside on U.S. 220 about 6:35 p.m., Caldwell called police, Maxey said.
When police responded to the scene, evidence suggested a firearm was involved in the death, but no gun was found, Maxey said. Divers from the Virginia State Police searched the river for the weapon, as well as a canine from the Rocky Mount Police Department.
Investigator Gary Shively later learned that the handgun had been taken from the crime scene before police arrived, Maxey said.
The investigation into the death revealed the wounds to the body were self-inflicted, Maxey said earlier this week.
Grand larceny of a firearm is a felony, punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a fine of $2,500. The accessory charge is also punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a $2,500 fine. Providing false information to a police officer is a Class 1 misdemeanor, punishable by up to 12 months in jail and a $2,500 fine.
Pettie and Caldwell were both arrested and released Wednesday.
A photo of Pettie was not available. |
| |
|
|
|
