A South Carolina woman and two relatives pleaded guilty last week to participating in a murder and hiding the victim’s body in Atlanta, according to multiple media reports.
The remains of Tara Echavarria were found near the Atlanta Police Training Academy off Southside Industrial Parkway in August, AJC.com previously reported. The discovery prompted the arrests of Cecelia Elaine Knox, 31, Jana Lynn Knox, 39, and Jimmy Lee Knox, 37.
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On Dec. 12, Cecelia pleaded guilty to a count of murder and was sentenced to life in prison, Florence-based news station WBTW-TV reported. The following day, the other two suspects pleaded guilty to accessory after the fact to murder, Myrtle Beach-based news station WMBF-TV reported.
Jana, who also pleaded guilty to a count of unlawful conduct toward a child, was sentenced to 20 years in prison, while Jimmy was given a 15-month sentence, according to the reports.
His sentence was more lenient because he assisted in finding Echavarria’s body, “which was a great comfort to the family,” the 12th Circuit Solicitor’s Office told the news stations.
The solicitor’s office said that Cecilia and Jana got into an argument at a hospital over financial issues on April 21. Jana, who was scheduled for surgery at the hospital, called Echavarria and told her to keep Cecilia away from her child.
Echavarria, who was visiting the two women from California, tried to keep the child away from Cecilia and called 911, the reports said. That’s when Cecilia began to beat Echevarria so badly “that the carpet was covered in blood.”
Cecilia then dragged the injured woman into a bathtub, where she struck Echevarria twice in the back of the head, the reports said. At some point Jana called 911 to tell authorities she was worried Cecilia would hurt her child.
When law enforcement arrived at the Knox home, Cecilia told the child to lie to the deputies and tell them that Echevarria had left the scene, the reports said. After the deputies left, Cecilia and the child picked up Jana from the hospital and returned home to hide Echevarria’s body in their car.
The three then drove to Atlanta to pick up Cecelia’s brother Jimmy and dump the body, the reports said. Jimmy went back home, while the other three went on a beach vacation in Florida they had already planned.
According to the solicitor’s office, “guilt eventually overcame them” and they turned themselves in to law enforcement, the reports said.
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