A judge on Thursday drastically lowered the bonds for three suspects in the disappearance of Cole Thomas in Johnston County 14 months ago. Thomas, 22, was on his way from Minnesota to Florida for Thanksgiving when he was reported missing on Nov. 25, 2016. Friends said he pulled off Interstate 95, got out of the car near North Elm and East Morgan streets in Benson and disappeared.
The two men who were with Thomas later told investigators that, after they had purchased methamphetamine from an acquaintance, Thomas became paranoid and started driving erratically before he stopped the car and ran off.
Thomas is presumed dead ? Johnston County District Attorney Susan Doyle recently called it "a homicide case" ? but authorities have never found his body.
Last July, Julian Valles Jr. of Dudley, Anthony Ridell James Jr. of Mount Olive, Rudolfo DeLeon Jr. of Mount Olive and Jeremy Carpenter were charged with felony concealment of a death. Valles, James and Carpenter also face obstruction of justice charges.
Superior Court Judge Tom Lock said Valles, James and DeLeon have been in custody for about the same length of time as they would if they were convicted on the charges they face, so he lowered James' bond from $200,000 to $30,000, DeLeon's bond from $500,000 to $40,000 and Valles' bond from $750,000 to $50,000.
Lock also gave the three men the option of applying to a Wayne County pre-trial program that, if they were accepted, would put them under house arrest with GPS monitoring.
Carpenter, who was extradited from Minnesota, didn't have a bond hearing Thursday. He remains in the Johnston County jail under a $500,000 bond.
Doyle asked for the most restrictions on Valles, saying he hatched the plan to tell authorities that Thomas had simply run off after the drug deal.
"It might be a very different case and we might actually know where Cole's body is but for this defendant," she told Lock. "This defendant was the main one who started this ball in motion that has created a problem from Day 1 with the investigation."
Doyle also alleged that Valles called DeLeon and James to come to Benson after Thomas, Valles and Carpenter had bought methamphetamine from DeLeon in Wayne County because Thomas had thrown the drugs away. When all five met up in Benson, she said, "decisions were made" that led to Thomas' death.
Thomas' father, Chris Thomas, said he was disappointed but not surprised that three people suspected of killing his son could soon be out of jail.
"I know the investigation is still going on, and I'm hopeful that they'll get it figured out," Chris Thomas said after the court hearing. "When I have one of the co-defendants tell me all four of them had something to do with his death, I don't see the justice in this, but I think this is why our justice system is broken.
"My job is to keep pushing, and I will," he added. "As any good father would do, I'm going to search for my son, and I'm going to find answers one way or another.