Man found guilty in Bradley County murder plot
Jody Alan Hughes, one of five people charged in connection with the 2015 death of Tyler Andrew Worth, has been convicted of first-degree murder.
Worth, 25, was reported missing on Oct. 15, 2015, by his father, who told police he hadn’t seen his son in four days, according to a previous report by the Chattanooga Times Free Press.
Cleveland police later determined Hughes picked Worth up off of Green Drive and drove him to Hughes Lake Road in Cleveland, where Hughes shot Worth in the back three times, wrapped the body in a tarp, transported it to Copperhill in Polk County and threw it off of a cliff into a ravine.
Worth’s body was recovered on Oct. 17 of that year by the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, Bradley County Sheriff’s Office, the Cleveland Police Department and the 10th Judicial District Drug Task Force and transported to Nashville for an autopsy.
In addition to the murder charge, a jury in the Bradley County Criminal Court convicted Hughes on Wednesday of kidnapping, conspiracy to tamper with evidence and tampering with evidence.
Four other people — Ashley Marie Rutledge, Richard Leroy Jerger, Jeffery Todd Crumley and Gus Roy Hawkins — also face charges ranging from tampering with evidence to accessory after the fact in connection with the killing.
A spokesman for the Bradley County Sheriff’s Office confirmed Wednesday night that all four of the other suspects are awaiting trial.
Bradley County Sheriff Eric Watson released a statement after the conviction praising Brandon Edwards, the lead detective in the case, and District Attorney General Steve Crump for their work. He also wrote briefly about the victim’s family.
“I will continue to pray for the family of Tyler Worth as they continue to mourn their loved one,” he wrote. “For the past several years this family has continuously relived the senseless murder of their loved one throughout the lengthy criminal justice process which ultimately led to the convictions of Jody Hughes.”