Inset: Payton Wayne Nations (DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office). Background: The area in Rickman, Tennessee where Nations is accused of murdering a mother and son (WSMV).
A Tennessee man, 27, is facing charges after allegedly killing a 43-year-old woman and her 25-year-old son. He was apprehended over the weekend following an extensive search across multiple counties when he was seen attempting to move his car into a lake. The suspect, Payton Wayne Nations, was detained on Sunday and now faces two charges of first-degree murder for allegedly shooting Christina Denise Hawkins and Thomas Hawkins earlier that day, as confirmed by authorities.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) issued a news release stating their involvement alongside the Overton County Sheriff’s Office in the investigation into the deaths of Christina and Thomas Hawkins.
Officials report that the mother and son were discovered deceased outside a home on Freeman Drive in Rickman, approximately 90 miles from Nashville, with both tragically suffering fatal gunshot injuries.
The release stated, “Investigators identified Payton Wayne Nations as the suspect in the shootings of the victims.” Consequently, agents secured warrants charging Nations with two counts of first-degree murder.
On Sunday, around 12:19 p.m., the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office received a tip from a fisherman who spotted an individual trying to submerge a vehicle in a rural section of Center Hill Lake, ABC affiliate WKRN in Nashville reported. The fisherman witnessed the man push the car into the lake before escaping on foot.
A multi-agency search for Nations was launched. After a series of reverse 911 calls asking residents to be on the lookout for the suspect, police were able to obtain surveillance footage of Nations, a description of his clothing, and the directions in which he was traveling.
At about 5:30 p.m. on Sunday, a resident in Silver Point, Tennessee, said his daughter recognized Nations and called 911. Silver Point is about 25 miles southwest of Rickman.
“My daughter looks out the window and she says, ‘Dad, that guy that the cops are looking for — she called him the shooter — is outside,'” Daniel Whitehead told Nashville NBC affiliate WSMV. “Just thinking about something like that, that could happen — it’s pretty terrifying.”
Whitehead told the station that at least 20 law enforcement vehicles responded to his home. Troopers with the Tennessee Highway Patrol and deputies with the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office took Nations into custody without incident and transported him to the Overton County Jail. He is currently being held in lieu of $40 million bond.
Authorities have not disclosed any details about a possible motive for the murders.
