Assistant principal of an Alabama middle school arrested in Georgia on triple murder charges

CLAYTON COUNTY, Ga. – An Alabama middle school assistant principal sat in handcuffs before a judge Thursday for a hearing in connection with a decades-old triple murder in Clayton County.

Keante Harris, 45, was arrested last week and charged with three counts of first-degree murder.

On January 13, 2013, three people were found in a silver 2010 Dodge Charger that had been abandoned along Interstate 85 at an exit in Union City.

Keante Harris in court (WBRC)

According to the Fulton County Coroner’s Office, 33-year-old Quinones King and 43-year-old Rodney Cottrell were found suffocated in the back seat, and 32-year-old Cheryl Colquitt-Thompson was found dead in the trunk from being strangled.

Investigators determined the three victims were lured to a home on Magnolia Drive in Jonesboro, where they were held at gunpoint. The trio was tortured and killed, investigators say. They were later loaded into the vehicle and taken to Fulton County where the vehicle was unloaded.

The case remained a mystery for more than a decade until Clayton County police issued arrest warrants for Keante Harris and three others identified as Kenneth Thompson, Kevin Harris and Darrell Harris. It is unclear whether the three Harrises are related.

Kenneth Thompson, Keante Harris, Kevin Harris and Darrell Harris (Clayton County Sheriff’s Office)

WBMA-TV reported that Keonte Harris is an assistant principal at McAdory Middle School in Jefferson County, Alabama. The school district said he was placed on leave following his arrest.

“We are currently gathering facts about the details of this situation,” a school district spokesperson said. “However, early indications indicate that the charges are not related to this individual’s employment with Jefferson County Schools.”

Keonte Harris is expected to be extradited to Georgia between Friday and May 28th.

As of Friday morning, he remains listed as an inmate at the Jefferson County Jail.