A second suspect has been captured and charged with capital murder in the killing of an Indianola man earlier this month.
Quandarius G. Williams of Indianola was arrested by U.S. marshals in Bastrop, Louisiana, on Tuesday and charged in the slaying of Desmond Baker.
Baker, 27, was found shot and lying on the road by farm workers in rural western Leflore County on the morning of June 7, near County Roads 537 and 538.
Leflore County Sheriff Ricky Banks said this morning that federal marshals were assisting his department and, with the assistance of local law enforcement, brought Williams into custody.
“I sent some deputies down there to see if he will give a statement or if he will waive extradition to Mississippi,” Banks said.
On June 19, Renee Marie Canada, 19, of Blaine, an unincorporated area of Sunflower County, turned herself in to Leflore County officers and was charged with capital murder. She remains in the Leflore County Jail on $1 million bond.
Williams’ bond is also set at $1 million in Mississippi.
The capital murder charges stem from the fact that the murder was the result of a robbery. “Supposedly, robbery was the purpose of them doing what they did,” Banks said.
An autopsy report has not yet been released on Baker, but Banks said he observed one gunshot wound to the head. The body was left on the road wearing only “shorts,” according to Banks. No vehicle was found at the scene.
Baker was airlifted to University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson on June 8 and was taken off life support June 12.
Banks said that Williams and Canada are reportedly in a relationship and both suspects knew Baker.
According to the Morehouse Parish, Louisiana, Sheriff’s Department, U.S. marshals discovered Williams and his vehicle on Tuesday at an apartment building in Bastrop. The building was evacuated and placed on lockdown. Williams was arrested without incident.
He is currently in the Morehouse Parish Detention Center.
This is the second homicide in Leflore County in 2017.
• Contact Kathryn Eastburn at 581-7235 or keastburn@gwcommonwealth.com.
