The Mississippi teenager accused of gunning down the “sweetest” elderly couple who hired him as a handyman was a suspect in numerous burglaries and car thefts before the double murder, according to authorities.
Cordarius Hobbs, 17, was well known by cops around Simpson County when he was busted for the June 3 slayings of Billy Blair, 74, and his wife, Virginia Carol Blair, 71, at their home he’d helped maintain in Mendenhall, according to an incident report obtained by KSMP-TV.
“Deputies and Investigators believe the suspect could be a troubled juvenile known to us as Cordarius Hobbs who is also suspected of many other home burglaries as well as auto theft in this immediate area,” the Simpson County Sheriff’s Department report said.
Hobbs was hired by the couple to help with work around the house and help maintain the property, Hobbs’ family members had revealed.
The June 3 bloodbath was only discovered when three contractors arriving to install a generator at the Blairs’ home around 10 a.m. discovered their car door open with several guns on the seats, according to the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation.
They called for a welfare check at 11:30 a.m — and officers who arrived around 30 minutes later were met by gunfire, according to the reports.
It sparked a nearly two-hour-long standoff with a gunman believed to be Hobbs, police said.
At some point during the standoff, Hobbs managed to run off, just to be captured, officials said.
Carol Blair’s body was found in a bedroom curled in the fetal position with three gunshots to the back of her head. Her husband was found on his back in the kitchen, with three gunshots to his face.
Hobbs’ grandfather, Billy Newsome, previously confirmed that his grandson was called to work that day, but refuses to believe he could be responsible.
“My grandson used to work for the man — why are you going to rob a man that you work for?” Newsome asked.
“Why are you going to stay there that long and you know the police out there, and then you go and wait until everybody gets there to run? It just ain’t adding up … something just ain’t right here.”
Hobbs’ attorney, Zachary Vaugh, also argued that there’s a lack of direct forensic evidence connecting the teen to the slayings.
“When you have an officer say there’s no one that can identify him at the time of the shooting, I just don’t see how that adds up,” he said.
Hobbs is charged with two counts of capital murder and one count of burglary, in addition to 10 other charges. He was denied bond.
Just days after the Blairs’ murders, the suspected killer’s brothers, Cortavious and Cortavion, allegedly tried to kill a Covington County, Mississippi, deputy after a traffic stop led to both allegedly firing their weapons at officers, The Post previously reported.
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