This week, a grand jury indicted a 24-year-old man from Georgia on a series of charges connected to the 2019 death of a 66-year-old retired firefighter at a restaurant on Wilmington Island.
Charles Alexander Jacobson Teeple IV, aged 19 at the time of the incident, faces charges including two counts of felony murder, aggravated assault, and elder abuse, as reported by WJCL.
The police responded to a call at Basil’s Pizza and Deli on December 31, 2019, regarding an assault. Bruce Helmly, a former firefighter from Savannah, reported to the officers that he had been struck in the head by Teeple. Witnesses described the attack on Helmly as sudden and without provocation, as noted by WTOC.
Although Helmly declined medical assistance initially, he was later taken to the hospital after losing consciousness. Tragically, he passed away a week later.
Teeple was initially apprehended on January 2, 2019, on battery charges. However, after Helmly’s death, the investigation led to murder charges being filed in April, according to WJCL.
In 2023, Teeple’s legal representation entered a not guilty plea and sought a jury trial, as WSAV reported. The reasons for the delayed plea and the grand jury’s review of the case this year remain unclear.
