On July 10, 2022 the body of 58-year-old Morris Harden Jr. of Augusta was found just off the pavement on Watkins Pond Road in rural Burke County. The Burke County Sheriff’s Office determined Harden died of a gunshot wound. He had last been seen at his Augusta residence on July 9, 2022 and apparently had no known ties to the area where his body was left.

Less than a month later, on August 2, 2022, three men from Augusta were arrested and charged in connection with the killing: 51-year-old Willie Warren Johnson, 61-year-old Carl Grady Rouse, and Albert Killebrew III. Authorities say Harden was shot and killed inside a residence in Augusta and his body was transported and abandoned on the Burke County roadside. Johnson and Rouse were also charged with kidnapping and tampering with evidence; Killebrew faced weapons-related charges including possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. The investigation was described as ongoing.

Did anyone in Augusta or Burke County know Harden or have information about his movements on July 9 and 10, 2022?