Man charged with murder of woman he allegedly beat, raped and left in field to die
ALBANY, Ga. (WALB/Gray News) - A Georgia man accused of beating a woman, raping her and leaving her to die in a field has been charged with her murder. The victim died after spending days on life .
Police say 63-year-old Johnnie Jones attacked Melissa Law on Aug. 10 and left her to die under a tree in a field in Albany. The victim was allegedly beaten and raped before an off-duty officer found her unconscious and barely alive, WALB reports.
Law spent about a week on life before dying from her injuries. Her family confirmed she died Sunday night at Phoebe Putney Health System.
“The one thing I am glad about is nobody can hurt her anymore,” said Law’s sister, Jessica Cloud.
Cloud said goodbye to her sister for the last time Sunday. This situation has been a nightmare that she never imagined would have happened to her family.
“My mom and I walked downstairs. I leaned over and told my sister I loved her, and if it was time for her to go, to go, that I would take care of our mom. It was at 8:52. We walked right back upstairs at 9:00, about 9:05, and she was gone,” Cloud said.
Investigators identified Jones as the suspect, and he was taken into custody Aug. 12, according to online records. After Law’s death, he was charged with her murder. His other charges include aggravated assault, aggravated sodomy, aggravated stalking, aggravated battery and rape.
According to the victim’s family, Law and Jones had an on-again-off-again relationship.
Law’s family is now turning their focus to her funeral and getting justice. Cloud says she just wants to give her sister a proper farewell and is raising money through GoFundMe.
“We set that GoFundMe up, but me and my mom are homeless. We don’t have anywhere to go when we leave this hospital and we need help,” Cloud said.
Jones is currently being held at the Dougherty County Jail.
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