A 52-year-old Cobb County man didn’t just hide a body in a dumpster behind a business, according to prosecutors. Investigators now believe Garfield Royes Norris killed the man before trying to hide the body.
Late last week, the Cobb County grand jury indicted Norris on five counts, including malice murder, in the death of James Creighton. Creighton’s cause of death isn’t included in the indictment, but investigators believe he was killed sometime between Sept. 21 and Oct. 9, when his body was located.
When Creighton’s body was found behind a Chastain Meadows Court business, it had already begun decomposing, Cobb police said after the discovery.
Norris was identified as a suspect and arrested Oct. 12 on various charges, including concealing a death, theft by conversion, possession of methamphetamine and removing a license plate with the intent of concealing a vehicle’s identity, jail records show. Norris is listed as Garfield Norris Royes in booking records.
“Said accused did conceal the death of James Harold Creighton by wrapping the victim in multiple layers of plastic, tarps, cardboard and ratchet straps,” the arrest warrant for Norris states.
Norris then allegedly took the victim’s black BMW and tried to pass it off as his own with a fraudulent temporary tag and a fake bill of sale, according to police.
Since his arrest, Norris has been held in the Cobb jail without bond.
The next court appearance for Norris has not been scheduled.
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