Individual Confesses to Assisting Officer in Disposing of Body in River Following Murder

A Tennessee man who helped an on-duty Memphis cop dump the body of a victim allegedly murdered in a patrol car has pleaded guilty.

Joshua M. Rogers, 33, is facing up to 70 months in prison, equivalent to 5 years and 10 months, after pleading guilty on Thursday, as announced by the U.S. Department of Justice in a statement. Federal authorities report that on January 5, 2021, Memphis police Officer Patric J. Ferguson abducted 30-year-old Robert Lee Howard Jr. from his residence at gunpoint. Ferguson forced Howard into his patrol car and fatally shot him in the head.

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According to prosecutors, Ferguson then sought Rogers’ assistance to dispose of the body. The two moved the corpse into Rogers’ vehicle, using chains, padlocks, and cinder blocks to secure it, before transporting it to the Wolf River in Memphis, where they discarded it.

“The defendant in this case obstructed law enforcement from investigating and seeking justice on behalf of the victim, his family and friends,” Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said in a statement. “I am proud of the great work by the Department of Justice in their prosecution of this case.”

Sentencing is set for Aug. 6.

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As Law&Crime previously reported, Ferguson, 34, is facing state charges of murder, kidnapping, tampering with evidence, abuse of a corpse, official misconduct and official oppression. In May 2024, a federal grand jury issued an eight-count indictment with charges including federal civil rights, kidnapping and weapons offenses.

Both cases remain ongoing. The federal case is slated for a Nov. 3 trial, while Ferguson has a court hearing next month in the state case.

Howard’s girlfriend reported him missing the day after the killing. Authorities recovered Howard’s body on Jan. 10, 2021. Cops arrested Ferguson and Rogers a few days later. A state grand jury indicted them in May 2021. The federal grand jury also indicted Rogers for conspiring to cover up the fatal shooting and destroying evidence.