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Payne held on murder charges

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On September 27th, officers with the Wood County Criminal Investigations Division traveled to Nacogdoches to execute an arrest warrant for Jason Payne, 38, of Quitman.

The previous day, District Judge Boswell signed two arrest warrants for the murders of Paynes wife, Nicole Payne, and his stepson, Austin Taylor. The murders occurred on December 11th, 2007, at a residence located at 1146 Hwy 37 just north of Quitman. Both bodies were found as a result of an apparent shooting. On the morning of the 11th, Payne called the sheriffs office and reported that his wife and son had been shot.

Nicole Paynes body was found inside the house. During the course of their search, authorities found a cloth in Jason Payne¢s pickup with blood on it. Subsequent testing indicated that the blood was that of Nicole Payne. One of the investigators, Lt. Miles Tucker found a large amount of blood in the house. The 16-year-old stepsons body was found in his bed along with a rifle. The firearm was later found to have no fingerprints on it which has led authorities to conclude that it may have been wiped clean. N January, two holes having the appearance of empty graves were located on property directly behind the Payne residence.

A few months previous to his wifes death, Payne had taken out an insurance policy on his wife in the amount of $100,000 with himself listed as the sole beneficiary.

Payne remains in the Wood County Jail with a $100,000 bond for each warrant.

The arresting officers were Lt. Tucker and Sgt. Investigator Kelly Cole. Sheriff Dwaine Daugherty congratulated his officers for a job well done. He noted that it takes time to gather all the evidence in a crime of the magnitude of a double murder.

Last Updated on Thursday, 23 April 2009 17:51  

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