In the days leading up to Christmas, a sense of unease settled over a Decatur, Georgia, neighborhood. Laura Ann Cooley, a 59-year-old female, had left the home she shared with her mother on December 20th and had not returned. Her brother, Wes Cooley, grew increasingly worried as the days passed without a word from his sister, who was known to come and go but never for this long without contact. The family's worst fears were realized when the county coroner delivered the devastating news.
On December 23rd, 2018, a person walking along Eastwood Drive, in a neighborhood off Candler Road, made a grim discovery. Laura Cooley's body was found lying face-down, the victim of a fatal gunshot wound under her armpit. The quiet street was suddenly the center of a homicide investigation, marking the third time in as many weeks that a woman's body had been found in a similar manner in DeKalb County, though police did not believe the cases were connected.
Investigators quickly began to piece together Laura's final hours. They learned that she was last seen with an acquaintance, 67-year-old Walther Threat. Family members reported seeing the two leaving a home on Eastwood Drive together. Photographs taken between 11 p.m. on December 22nd and 2 a.m. on December 23rd showed Laura in the same clothes she was wearing when her body was discovered, placing her with Threat shortly before her death. A neighbor recalled hearing a loud argument outside her home that night, followed by the sound of a car door closing. Another witness reported hearing a gunshot.
When questioned by police, Threat denied seeing Laura and provided conflicting accounts of his whereabouts. However, the photographic evidence and witness statements painted a different picture. On January 14, 2019, DeKalb County police arrested Walther Threat and charged him with murder in connection with Laura Cooley's death. Authorities believe an argument between the two acquaintances escalated, leading to the fatal shooting. Threat was subsequently booked into the DeKalb County jail.
