Suspect’s suicide closes Trion man’s murder case

The investigation into a Chattooga County, Ga., man’s 2013 murder in Alabama has been closed following the suicide of the prime suspect in the case.

A neighbor found Vincent Edward Hughes, 52, of Trion, shot to death in April 2013 on County Road 103, about 10 miles southeast of Mentone, Ala., the Cherokee, Ala., sheriff’s office said at the time.

Authorities initially detained several of Hughes’ acquaintances and executed search warrants to look for evidence.

Hughes’ brother was a suspect early in the investigation, Cherokee County Sheriff Jeff Shaver said Wednesday.

“There was just not enough evidence to charge him,” Shaver said. The brother is not being named since his death was the result of a suicide, the sheriff said.

With that death, the Hughes family has lost two of its own to gun violence, he said.

“I believe [the family] suspected it all along,” Shaver said. “They’ve been through a lot.”

In a statement this week, CCSO chief investigator Josh Summerford said the scene was in the Cloudland area of northern Cherokee County, just inside the state line.

Investigators from the sheriff’s office, district attorney’s office, the Alabama Bureau of Investigation, and Jacksonville State University’s Center for Applied Forensics participated in the investigation, officials said.

“Investigators never gave up on this murder case and gave me periodic updates,” Cherokee County District Attorney Mike O’Dell said. “Upon notification the suspect died from an apparent suicide in Georgia, prosecution was no longer possible, thus closing the case.”

“I hope the official closing of this case can provide the family some closure and help them heal,” Shaver said.