A tip about a possible murder landed a man in jail after DeKalb County authorities said he admitted the crime.
Marcus Gordon Ricketts, 22, of Valley Head, was arrested Saturday and charged with murder.
(DeKalb County Sheriff's Office photo)
The DeKalb County Sheriff's Office received a tip about the murder Saturday and sent investigators to talk with Ricketts at a home on County Road 9095, authorities said. The tipster told authorities the victim had possible been stabbed or hit with a blunt object and buried in a 55-gallon drum with loose concrete, according to the sheriff's office.
Ricketts admitted killing someone and took them to where he told them the body was buried behind the home, authorities said. They uncovered the drum a short time later, they said.
The sheriff's office told WAAY 31 the drum was buried about a foot under the ground and it would likely have stayed buried if Ricketts had not confessed.
It took a piece of equipment called a bobcat to get the drum out of the ground.
The victim's name was not released, but the sheriff's office said a missing person report was filed for the person in May. Investigators said they are waiting for a positive identification from the Alabama Department of Forensic Science.
