In the quiet Jollett area of Elkton, Virginia, the life of 69-year-old Gregory Lee Williams came to a tragic and violent end on June 29, 2023. On that day, the Page County Emergency Communications Center received a distressing 911 call about a 'man down' in the 5600 block of Jollett Road. First responders arrived at the property to find Williams deceased from what was determined to be a gunshot wound, turning the scene into a homicide investigation.
The investigation into the death of
the male victim quickly zeroed in on a primary suspect: 55-year-old Timothy Thomas Comer. Authorities charged Comer with first-degree murder, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, and possession of a firearm as a convicted felon. Following the issuance of these charges, Comer became the subject of an extensive two-week manhunt in the dense terrain of the Jollet Hollow area in southern Page County. The search was a collaborative effort involving multiple sheriff's offices, the Virginia State Police, U.S. Marshals, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
The manhunt concluded on July 13, 2023, when authorities received a tip that Comer had been spotted entering a vacant home in the 4000 block of Jollett Road. After a tense standoff that lasted for more than three hours, a state police tactical team successfully apprehended Comer. He was taken into custody and remains so.
During a preliminary hearing on May 16, 2024, startling testimony emerged. A former inmate testified that Comer had confessed to killing Williams. Evidence presented included the account of a friend who discovered Williams's body and another witness who claimed to have given Comer a ride around the time of the murder, during which Comer was in possession of a green and black handgun. This same handgun was later discovered in the trailer where Comer was hiding, and ballistics testing confirmed it was the weapon used in the murder by matching it to a shell casing found at the crime scene. Subsequently, a judge certified the three felony charges against Comer to a June 5 grand jury in circuit court. The case is expected to go before a jury, though a trial date has not yet been publicly posted.
