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Suspects have first court appearance

• Police were able to recover more than $5,000 of stolen money from the suspects, authorities said.

J.D. Sumner

MOULTRIE — The two men that police believe killed a Moultrie woman and seriously injured her husband during an armed robbery attempt had their first court appearance Wednesday in Colquitt County, authorities said.

Jim Stewart Cloud, 21, who was also know as Jim McCoy, and Craig Dewayne Gandy, 20, also known as Lil’ Smurf, were arraigned Wednesday afternoon at the Colquitt County Jail. Their charges — which include murder, aggravated assault and burglary — were read to them and bond was denied for each, jail officials said.

Investigators believe that the pair stormed into the home of James and Karen Moore just before 3:30 a.m. Tuesday demanding more than $10,000 in cash from the couple before shooting each multiple times.

Police reports indicate that Karen Moore was found dead in her bed, while James, who had been shot at least three times with a .45 caliber handgun, was alert enough to call police and lead them to the residence on the 600 block of Coventry Circle.

Hours later, two men matching Cloud and Gandy’s description were seen walking away from a bridge in rural Calhoun County by railroad workers.

The call triggered a manhunt of the nearby countryside that eventually netted the two suspects,who had traveled nearly 60 miles from the scene of the crime.

Moultrie Police Investigator Alfonzo Cook said Wednesday that the men, who worked for the couple, took more than $13,000 during the robbery.

“We’ve been able to recover $5,171 from the two,” Cook said. “So it looks like robbery was the motive.”

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