Tony “TJ” Wiggins, 26, was arrested on suspicion of shooting and killing the three men near a lake in the central Frostproof community in Florida on Friday night, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said. .
Wiggins’ girlfriend Mary Whittemore, 27, and her brother, William “Robert” Wiggins, 21, have been arrested on accessory charges after the fact of a capital crime.
The three victims were planning to fish Friday night, but a truck carrying the suspects followed, and TJ Wiggins finally came out and shot them in a rural area of Frostproof, about 75 miles east of Tampa, Judd said.
“When we find these people … massacred … we think, my goodness, what might have happened there. Now we know,” Judd told reporters on Wednesday.
Details on whether the three suspects had attorneys were not immediately available.
Suspects knew victims were going fishing, authorities say
Surveillance video showed the suspects in the store, and the employee told investigators that the suspects heard Tillman say he was going to fish along with one of the three victims, according to the sheriff’s office.
Detectives on Monday searched a site where TJ Wiggins, a convicted felon, and Whittemore lived in a travel trailer in Lake Wales, Florida, authorities said.
Because investigators found two 7.62mm SKS rifles, two shotguns and ammunition in a safe belonging to TJ Wiggins, he was arrested on Monday initially charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, the sheriff’s office said.
Detectives questioned the three suspects. Finally, Robert Wiggins told investigators that he had seen Tillman at the Dollar General store on Friday night while he was in line with his brother, the sheriff’s office said.
Later, while Robert Wiggins was driving a truck with his brother and Whittemore as passengers, TJ Wiggins ordered him to take a particular road instead of going home, the younger brother allegedly told police.
Then, two trucks passed carrying the three victims and TJ Wiggins told his brother to “make a U-turn and follow the trucks,” the sheriff’s office said.
After following the victims down a certain path, “Robert stayed in the truck with Whittemore, while TJ got out and confronted” one of the men, hitting him and accusing him of stealing their truck, the sheriff’s office said, quoting the brother less.
TJ Wiggins yelled at the other two men, who had gotten out of his truck, the sheriff’s office said, quoting Robert Wiggins.
“Robert told detectives that he saw TJ shoot all three victims. TJ then asked Robert to help him put (one of the victims) in the back of one of the trucks,” the office said. from the bailiff.
Judd said Wednesday that he did not know the details or the veracity of TJ Wiggins’ claim about the alleged stolen truck.
“The only information we have is that TJ is allegedly angry about some kind of truck deal that happened some time ago. We haven’t had a chance to … dig into that,” the sheriff said.
Authorities say suspects ate McDonald’s after murders
After the murders, the suspects went to a McDonald’s fast food restaurant, where they ordered 10 double cheeseburgers and two chicken sandwiches, and went home to eat, the sheriff’s office said. The next morning, Robert Wiggins took his truck to a car wash and cleaned it, according to the sheriff’s office.
Investigators found ammunition during the search for the TJ Wiggins trailer similar to the casings found at the crime scene, the sheriff’s office said. Tests conducted in the Florida crime lab revealed that the ammunition found in the trailer is the same ammunition fired with the Smith & Wesson pistol used in the murders, according to the sheriff’s office.
The sheriff’s office said Whittemore purchased the ammunition in Lake Wales on July 9 when investigators obtained a receipt confirming the purchase. The store’s surveillance video showed Whittemore making the purchase accompanied by TJ Wiggins, according to the sheriff’s office.
TJ Wiggins is in custody charged with first-degree murder; tampering with evidence; possession of a firearm by a convicted criminal; and possession of ammunition by a convicted felon, the sheriff’s office said.
According to the sheriff’s office, TJ Wiggins’ criminal history includes convictions for past serious crimes. He has served two prison terms in Florida on robbery and grand theft charges, according to Florida prison records.
He was recently arrested in March 2020 for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, and was released on bail, the sheriff’s office said.
In addition to the accessory charge, Robert Wiggins is accused of tampering with the evidence, authorities said.
The suspects are scheduled to make their first court appearance at 1 p.m. Thursday.
CNN’s Christina Maxouris contributed to this report.
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