Police say grandson stole wallet after Georgia killing

Thursday, May 9, 2013

MARIETTA, Ga. - Authorities say the grandson of a 78-year-old man stole his wallet and then used his truck - with the body still inside - to drive around metro Atlanta on a shopping spree with his girlfriend.

Edward Smith of Lilburn was reported missing Sunday. His body was found Tuesday night on a road in Mableton.

Police say Smith's grandson, 30-year-old Casey Ryan Collins, and 23-year-old Sarah Elizabeth Cook, both face charges of felony murder.

"Cook stabbed Smith twice in the chest with a knife while Collins used a belt to choke Smith," according to arrest warrants obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "After Smith was dead, Collins removed Smith's wallet from Smith's pocket."

The warrants say Collins then removed the dead man's wallet from his pocket, and the two used the pickup to go shopping while the body was still concealed in the truck.

"This is a nightmare. It's a complete nightmare," Smith's daughter, Lisa Stitley, told the Atlanta newspaper. "I can't even begin to imagine. I keep thinking I'm going to wake up."

Even though her father lived in Gwinnett County, he made the trip daily from his Lilburn home to see her and other family members in Cobb County, Stitley said. From there, Smith would sometimes make the trip to Villa Rica to see his 39-year-old girlfriend, she said.

"He was very young at heart," Stitley said. "And was in extremely good health for his age."