Capital Murder Charges in Pontotoc County Homicides

PONTOTOC COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – He was their neighbor. Now, 26-year-old Carl Hughes is charged with capital murder in the deaths of a Pontotoc County couple.

A family member found 70 year-old Donald Ralph Baker and his 57 year-old wife, Evelyn, inside their Highway 346 home on Sunday morning.

Pontotoc County Sheriff Leo Mask says the couple died from blunt force trauma.

In addition to capital murder, Hughes is charged with burglary of a dwelling.

Hughes sometimes lived in a trailer on the Baker’s property.  Neighbors report that Hughes moved from Greenwood, Mississippi to Pontotoc County, where he stayed with his father at the trailer.

Investigators believe the two were killed in the same room but they were found in different areas of the home.