Disturbing new details have emerged in the case of Johnny Rankin Morris, 46, accused of killing two men in Colorado last December with the help of alleged accomplice Hailey Cole, 43. Morris faces charges of first-degree murder, tampering with a body, and evidence tampering after police found the remains of 37-year-old Stephen Walker and 65-year-old Timmy Huston.
The killings were uncovered after a roommate at a sober living home in El Paso County reported finding blood in the garage and noticed both Morris and Walker missing. A strong bleach odor and blood stains were found throughout the home. Police later discovered a blood-covered dumbbell in the garage and a hammer hidden under a couch cushion.
Surveillance footage allegedly showed Cole and Morris driving away in Walker’s vehicle. Days later, the car was found abandoned in Park County, where police also discovered Huston’s body inside a home the suspects had previously lived in.
According to arrest papers, Cole told investigators Morris admitted to killing Walker in the garage with a hammer and dumbbell before wrapping his body in blankets and dumping it in a culvert. She claimed Morris threatened to “bash her brains in” if she didn’t keep driving after realizing Walker’s body was in the back seat.
The pair allegedly then targeted Huston for his vehicle, with Morris attacking him with a hammer, shooting him in the kneecap, and finally killing him with the hammer’s claw. They fled across several states in Huston’s truck before being caught in Mississippi, where Morris allegedly attempted another vehicle break-in.
Both Morris and Cole remain in custody, with trials expected later this year.
