Mississippi Man Allegedly Killed Grandfather, Hid Body Under Mattress in Woods Before Running Down Deputy: Sheriff

A man in Mississippi has been arrested after he allegedly killed his 77-year-old grandfather and then ran down a sheriff’s deputy while trying to run from authorities in the elderly victim’s vehicle, according to police.

On Feb. 1, deputies responded to a request for a welfare check on the home of C.L. Leverette in the Avera community, according to court documents obtained by WALA.

Frst responders encountered 26-year-old Jalen Leverette on the property, and he allegedly ignored commands from deputies before taking his grandfather’s car and speeding off, officials said.

During a car chase, Jalen allegedly swerved out of his lane in an effort to run over a sheriff’s deputy, but missed, and the deputy fired at the vehicle, according to officials.

Shortly afterwards, another sheriff’s deputy reportedly got out of his vehicle and was trying to place spike strips on the road ahead of the suspect in order to disable his vehicle, court records show.

However, before he could get the device in place, authorities alleged Jalen intentionally swerved the car and ran over the deputy.

Jalen then crashed his grandfather’s car and tried to flee the area on foot while armed with a gun, officials said.

Deputies reportedly fired shots at Jalen, who eventually surrendered to authorities and was taken into custody.

Officials were not able to locate the body of C.L. Leverette for several hours. The victim later was found covered with a mattress and several old tires around in a wooded area close to his residence, police said.

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C.L's cause of death has not yet been determined, but officials believe the victim may have died from blunt force trauma.

The deputy hit by the suspect’s vehicle was identified as Raleigh Dueitt. According to a FreeFunder page, he is currently in the ICU at the University of South Alabama in Mobile.

Jalen Leverette was arrested and charged with one count of capital murder and two counts of attempted murder, officials said, noting additional charges are expected to be filed in the case.

The suspect was booked into the George County Regional Correctional Facility.