A homeless felon, recently released from prison, was arrested Wednesday in the brutal murder of an elderly homeless man behind a Chevron gas station on Laney Walker Boulevard.
Jeffrey Eutsay, 43, was charged with murder in the death of Charlie Creech, 70. Creech’s body was found wrapped in a blanket and covered with leaves behind the Chevron at Laney Walker Boulevard and 15th Street, authorities said.
Store surveillance video reportedly showed Eutsay gathering leaves before returning to the area where Creech’s body was discovered. Investigators believe the victim was killed with a blunt object, but an autopsy will determine the exact cause of death.
One local resident said he found Creech alive just before paramedics arrived, but the coroner pronounced him dead at the scene.
“It looked like he was hit in the head with a blunt object,” the witness said. “The middle part of his head was split open to the white meat.”
Another neighbor posted online about how heartbroken she was, recalling seeing Creech days earlier lying at a bus stop near the hospital.
Authorities said Eutsay was released from prison just three weeks ago after serving six years of a 10-year sentence for stabbing another man at the Sprint gas station on Deans Bridge Road.
Because of the crime’s proximity to Augusta University and Paine College, campus police responded to assist Richmond County deputies in the investigation.
Sheriff Eugene Brantley issued a statement emphasizing that “every life matters” and that his department is committed to protecting all residents, including the unhoused.
