Authorities have arrested and charged two men in connection with a murder investigation in Rabun County. Keegan Cleve Phillips of Otto, North Carolina, and Robert Lee Peppers of Lula, Georgia, have been identified as suspects.
The investigation began after the Rabun County Sheriff’s Office received information that a man had killed a person and disposed of the body in Rabun County. The sheriff’s office asked the GBI for help with the investigation on Sunday, August 6. The following day, agents and deputies discovered the victim’s body in the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest in Rabun County, says GBI Public Affairs Director Nelly Miles.
The victim’s name has not been released.
As a result of their investigation, authorities charged the 23-year-old Phillips with murder. They charged the 62-year-old Peppers with concealing a death and unlawful disposal of a body.
Sources tell Now Habersham Phillips worked for Peppers’ tree-cutting service. While the GBI lists Peppers’ address as Lula, Now Habersham has confirmed he owns property south of Clayton in Rabun County. Phillips reportedly lived with Peppers at that residence.
Intense manhunt
While it remains unclear when and where Peppers was arrested, Phillips was picked up by deputies during an intense manhunt Tuesday in Hall County.
According to the Hall County Sheriff’s Office, a Gillsville resident spotted Phillips in the area and notified authorities. Agents from the GBI, Appalachian Regional Drug Enforcement Office, Georgia State Patrol, and sheriff’s deputies from Rabun, Banks, and Hall counties conducted an extensive search of the area.
The multi-agency manhunt alarmed residents who witnessed the heavy law enforcement presence. The Hall County Sheriff’s Office posted the suspect’s description on social media, saying he was “dirty and disheveled.” They warned the public not to approach Phillips and to call 911 if they saw him.
The hours-long search ended when a Hall County K9 Unit located and captured Phillips around 7 p.m. on August 8 on Bryant Quarter Road near Gillsville. He was taken into custody without incident, says Miles.
Phillips and Peppers are both being held at the Rabun County Detention Center.
The investigation continues. Once complete, the case will be given to the Mountain Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office for prosecution.
