By Shannon McFarlin News Director
Henning, Tenn.—Documents from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation reveal that Prison Administrator Debra Johnson was sexually assaulted and strangled.
An affidavit prepared by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) was filed along with the charges against Curtis Ray Watson, which include First Degree Murder, aggravated sexual assault, and aggravated burglary.
The affidavit provides a timeline of events which led to the murder of Ms. Johnson and the escape of Watson from the West Tennessee State Penitentiary in Henning on Wednesday. Ms. Johnson had worked for the state prison system for 38 years and lived in a home on the prison grounds.
Curtis Ray Watson, age 44, has ties to both Henry and Carroll Counties. Watson was sentenced to 15 years in prison after being convicted of especially aggravated kidnapping in Henry County in 2012. He was also arrested by Paris Police on charges of aggravated assault and aggravated rape. He also was sentenced to 10 years in state prison after an aggravated child abuse in Carroll County.
According to the timeline provided by the TBI, Watson was a trusty at the prison. He was released from the prison at 7 a.m. to the work detail for his daily mowing duties. As a trusty, he had access to the prison equipment, including a golf cart and tractor.
Phone records show that Ms. Johnson was alive and on the phone at 8:10 a.m. and Watson was seen by correction officers on the golf cart at Johnson’s house at 8:30 a.m.
According to the timeline, between 9 and 10 a.m., he took the tractor and a reflective vest and drove away. According to the affidavit, prisoners are required to wear a reflective vest while on the detail.
Prison officials realized Watson was missing around 11 a.m. Ms. Johnson did not report for work and her coworkers discovered her body at 11:30 a.m. Prison officials had realized Watson was missing at 11 a.m.
The tractor he drove was recovered at 1:30 p.m. a little over a mile from the prison, along with his prison ID card.
According to the affidavit, Ms. Johnson was found with a cord around her neck and the medical examiner’s office determined that she was strangled and sexually assaulted.
The reward for Watson has grown to over $52,000. Anyone who sees him is asked to call 911 immediately.
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