In the quiet community of Moultrie, Georgia, a horrific scene was discovered on November 8, 2004, that would leave a lasting scar on the town. Inside a residence on Highway 37, the bodies of five individuals were found, the victims of a brutal home invasion. Among them was 50-year-old Betty Faye Watts, a Caucasian female who had been shot in the head in a bathroom.
The violence of that day also claimed the lives of her 29-year-old daughter, Katrina Darlene Watts 'Tina' Resendez; her
3-year-old grandson, Juan Carlos Resendez; her 24-year-old son-in-law, Jaime Cruze Resendez; and the family's 30-year-old housekeeper, Liliana Alegria Aguilar. The gruesome discovery was made when four school-aged children from the household returned home to find the adults slain. The house had been ransacked, and investigators believed the assailants were searching for cash. The housekeeper showed signs of having been tortured in an apparent effort to extract information about the location of money.
The subsequent investigation unraveled a connection to drug trafficking, with Jaime Resendez reportedly owing a significant debt. This led authorities to three individuals: Alexander Woods III, Jerry Johnny Thompson, and Wilma Ann Yvonne Stover. Another man, Anthony Davis, was also implicated but was found shot to death in a neighboring county in January 2005, before he could be brought to trial.
The path to justice for Betty Faye Watts and her family was detailed in court proceedings. Jerry Johnny Thompson, who was involved in marijuana trafficking with Jaime Resendez, testified that he had sent Woods and Davis to the Resendez home. According to Thompson, the initial plan was to intimidate Jaime Resendez into contacting his supplier about an $189,000 debt. In 2011, Thompson pleaded guilty to five counts of murder and was sentenced to five concurrent life sentences. His testimony was crucial in the case against Alexander Woods III.
In May 2013, a jury found Alexander Woods III guilty on all counts, including five counts of malice murder, five counts of felony murder, and five counts of aggravated assault. He received five consecutive life sentences for his role in the killings. Wilma Ann Yvonne Stover was also charged in connection with the murders and was to be tried separately, with the prosecution not seeking the death penalty in her case.
