Georgia white supremacist gang member found guilty of killing 2, dumping bodies in lake
03/21/2024 1:07 pm PDT
TROUP COUNTY, Ga. (TCD) -- A 41-year-old man will spend the rest of his life behind bars after he was recently found guilty of killing two victims who tried to collect money from him in 2021.
According to the Coweta Judicial Circuit District Attorney's Office, a jury convicted Joshua Nutt, who also went by Joshua Bradley, on March 19, of two counts of malice murder, six counts of felony murder, two counts of armed robbery, two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, two counts of use of firearm by convicted felon during commission of another felony, and one count of possession of firearm by convicted felon in connection with the deaths of 46-year-old Marcus Caswell Jr. and 31-year-old Travis Lodato. A judge subsequently sentenced Nutt to serve four consecutive life sentences without parole followed by an additional 40 years without parole.
At Nutt's sentencing, prosecutors revealed the defendant was associated with the Ghostface Gangsters, a "violent and notorious statewide prison and street gang." According to the Anti-Defamation League, the organization is a "large white supremacist prison gang based in Georgia" that originated in California in the 1970s.
On the evening of Aug. 7, 2021, Caswell and Lodato went to Nutt’s home to collect a debt he owed them, but the defendant was not there. When Nutt returned to his residence, he told someone who was with him that he was going to rob Caswell and Lodato and take their motorcycles.
According to the district attorney's office, the victims went back to Nutt's home on their motorcycles the next day to collect the money. Nutt's girlfriend was reportedly outside of the home when Nutt shot Caswell once, hitting him "in the rear of the base of his skull." Nutt shot Lodato several times, including once in the head, the district attorney's office said.
Following the shooting, Nutt stole the victims' jewelry and other items from their bodies. He reportedly spray-painted Lodato's motorcycle and then drove it to the victims' home to break in.
On the morning of Aug. 9, Nutt and an accomplice who has not yet been charged drove the victims' bodies to the Lower Glass Bridge, where Nutt dumped the victims' remains into West Point Lake. A fisherman reportedly found Caswell's body on Aug. 9, and a boater discovered Lodato's remains the next day.
Investigators with the Troup County Sheriff's Office conducted a search at Nutt's home on Lower Big Springs Road on Aug. 12, and they found the victims' motorcycles in a trailer, according to the district attorney's office. Investigators also noticed two pools of blood in the crawlspace of Nutt's residence.
Despite the defendant's attempts to clean up his home, investigators recovered the victims' blood and DNA. Nutt had reportedly ripped off the drywall and tried burning it.
During the search, the sheriff's office saw Nutt's vehicle drive by and a pursuit ensued. Deputies eventually stopped Nutt's truck using stop sticks, and they found Caswell's motorcycle helmet and car keys and Lodato’s chest plate in the vehicle.
In August 2021, Nutt reportedly told law enforcement officials he did not know how the victims died. However, during his trial, Nutt insisted he killed the victims in self-defense.
At the time of his crimes, Nutt was on parole and had previously been convicted of numerous charges throughout Georgia, including armed robbery, entering an automobile, possession of firearm by a convicted felon, violations of the Georgia Controlled Substances Act, trafficking in cocaine, and possession of a controlled substance by an inmate.
John Cranford Jr., the District Attorney of the Coweta Judicial Circuit said, "This defendant is a cold-blooded murderer who deserves to die in prison. He chose to live a life of crime, marked by multiple felony convictions in multiple Georgia counties and by his association with the violent criminal street gang known as the Ghostface Gangsters."
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