A 31-year-old man is sitting in the Shelby County Jail on murder charges after authorities say he killed his 77-year-old grandmother in Columbiana.
Richard Alan Howell, 31, of Columbiana, is being held in the jail on $150,000 bond in the killing of his Dinah Davis Northucutt, 77, who was found dead Wednesday night, the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office said Thursday.
Shelby County 911 dispatch received a call of a suspicious person in the 100 block of Highway 97 in the Summerhill community, near Columbiana, around 7 p.m. Wednesday, the agency said.
Sheriff’s deputies respond to the scene and were led to the 100 block of Highway 315 in Summerhill after receiving additional information.
That’s where they found Northcutt dead in her home.
Her death was investigated as a homicide, and the investigation led to Howell’s arrest, the sheriff’s office said.
Anyone with information on the case was asked to call the sheriff’s office at 205-670-6000.
Tips may also be sent anonymously to Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777, or here.
