MACON, Ga. — A Georgia prison inmate is charged with murder for allegedly organizing a deadly shooting from his prison cell.
Bibb County deputies announced Thursday they believe Keith Beddingfield is connected to the shooting death of Pinal Kumar Patel on Jan.20 in his south Bibb County driveway.
The shooting sent Patel's wife and daughter to the hospital, and many of Patel's regulars at Shurlington Package Store were shocked at what happened. Patel was a beloved manager there, where regulars called him 'Mr. Pete.' Many of them were surprised to hear about the latest developments, too.
Beddingfield was serving time at Valdosta State Prison at the time, serving a life sentence for the 2018 murder of Jarvis Brown near the Mercer University campus.
According to Beddingfield's arrest warrant, investigators tracked calls and text messages back to a phone at the prison. They tied that phone to Beddingfield. They believe he was calling and texting other suspects, directing them how to follow the Patels home.
This is not the first time text messages have led to a break in the case. In February, investigators allegedly found messages on Terrell Mills' phone describing what led to the shooting.
According to Mills' warrant, Mills sent a text message to another suspect telling him, "Lay low." According to Beddingfield's warrant, his phone number was found in Mills' phone.
Mills was arrested on January 31, less than two weeks after the shooting. Shaun Mills was arrested on March 10 in connection with the case.
Deputies say another man, Donnie White, was also taken into custody for being present at the shooting. They say White told them about someone on the phone directing them as they followed the Patel family home. Investigators believe the man on the phone was Beddingfield.
Beddingfield is now in Macon State Prison, serving out his sentence. He's charged with felony murder. Terrell Mills and Shaun Mills both face felony murder and two aggravated assault charges.
If you have any information on the case, call Macon Regional Crimestoppers at 1-877-68-CRIME.