Three sentenced to life for Fort Oglethorpe murder
LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN, Ga. (WDEF) — The Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit Superior Court sentenced three individuals to life in prison for murder.
Keishann Rowe, Keonte Ragland, and Deonna Ragland, were found guilty of Felony Murder and Aggravated Assault in connection with the murder of 19-year-old Jaylon Eberhardt in 2021.
On September 23, 2021, Keonte Ragland, his sister Deonna, Rowe, and Malachi Housley were at the Ragland residence.
They happened to notice Eberhardt walking through their apartment complex.
The group allegedly conspired to lure Eberhardt back to the complex and ambush him.
Deonna messaged Eberhardt on Snapchat, inviting him to meet her at the apartment playground.
Upon arrival, she messaged him that she would not be there to meet him.
As he left, Rowe and Housley followed him through the woods, where Housley shot Eberhardt in the back and leg.
After attempting to seek help, Eberhardt died on the doorstep of a law enforcement officer.
The investigation revealed incriminating text messages from Rowe and Housley’s phones.
Housley confessed in June 2023 and was sentenced to life in prison for Felony Murder and Aggravated Assault.
After a week-long trial, jurors reviewed a wealth of digital evidence showing the premeditated nature of the crime.
Rowe, Keonte, and Deonna Ragland were each sentenced to life in prison October 24, 2024.
