Sweet Jebus on a pogo-stick, not this again.
State corrections records indicate that Frederick Hedgepeth, 25, had absconded from probation on felony fraud convictions before being charged with the murders of a Catawba County couple.
Jerry Wayne Bullin, 72, and his wife, Jo Anne “Jody” Adkins Bullin, 70, were murdered Wednesday night while attempting to sell their car in Salisbury. The car was later found by police in Charlotte, at the home of Hedgepeth’s girlfriend.
WBTV adds:
Investigators say they are puzzled at what could have led to the murder.
“That’s the question I ask myself,” said Sheriff Kevin Auten. “What could go wrong in the selling of a car that caused people to be murdered, it’s hard to understand what could have gone wrong and what really happened.”
Here’s a hypothetical based on the known facts. Hedgepeth was convicted in October 2009 on three felony counts — identity fraud, obtaining property by false pretenses, and uttering a forged instrument. He was given 36 months probation. (Unclear how that happened as at the time of those convictions, Hedgepeth was still on 24 months probation for two previous felony fraud convictions in February 2008, but we digress.)
So we have a five-time convicted felony fraud artist who has skipped out on his probation meeting with an elderly couple to who wish to sell their car. Plus the Bullins’ daughter told WBTV that she received a call from her mother saying that something was amiss about the proposed transaction. You can see where this is headed already.
I’m guessing Hedgepeth attempted to pass off another forgery — assume a cashier’s check — the Bullins objected and threatened to call police. Hedgepeth knows what that means, a bad ending.
And another triumph for the North Carolina criminal justice system.