Tenn. Man, 94, Kidnapped, Murdered, Mutilated

Man was kidnapped, held for $3K ransom, found with hand cut off
By Marie Morris,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 22, 2008 1:18 PM CST
Tenn. Man, 94, Kidnapped, Murdered, Mutilated
These arrest photographs provided by the Hamblen County Sheriff's Office show Brice Whaley, Darrell Nance and Jessica Lane on Monday, Jan. 21, 2008. The three were charged in connection with the death of Willie Lee Morgan, 94, who was found earlier in the day. (AP Photo/Hamblen County Sheriff's Department)   (Associated Press)

A 94-year-old Tennessee man was found dead with his hand cut off after a relative ran afoul of drug dealers who kidnapped him in retaliation, the Citizen Tribune of Morristown reports. "No one deserved to die like he did," the sheriff said of Willie Morgan. "This poor man was supposed to die peacefully on a front porch swing, not like this."

Three suspects are being held, and detectives seeking two juveniles say they are being “stonewalled” by their parents, the sheriff said. They allegedly kidnapped Morgan to blackmail his family into paying a relative's $3,000 debt, then left his body in a field. The suspects had never met Morgan before, the sheriff said, adding, "Small town USA is not so small anymore." (More murder stories.)

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