By John Howell
Panola County Sheriff Dennis Darby said that investigators will return to Louisiana this week or next to interview a possible witness in the Jessica Chambers murder investigation.
Darby, speaking to the Batesville Exchange Club Wednesday, provided additional information about phone data analysis and DNA evidence that led to the February 23 indictment of Quintin Tellis for capital murder.
The sheriff likened the investigation to those featured on the “48 Hours” television program.
“We’ve got to go down to Louisiana … to interview another possible witness,” Darby said.
“The night of the murder, when I got on the scene, one of the firemen came up to me. I said, ‘Did she give you a name?’
“He said that he thought she said the name was Derrick,” the sheriff said.
“You had a couple of firemen out there that were just about in shock at what they saw when they got there,” the sheriff said. “They went out there for a car fire, and when they got there and started extinguishing the fire  — I want you to remember now that the fire itself was our evidence; everything inside that car and outside that car was evidence — and they were walking around it, putting water on it and everything.
“Well, this girl came walking down the road and, as one of them said, she looked like a monster. Her skin had peeled off her face … it shocked them and scared them,” Darby continued.
“Of course you’re out there in the dark in a secluded area, and it took us a minute to set this guy down long enough to get anything out of him, you know: ‘What did you see?’”
“It started there,” the sheriff continued.
———
Three Courtland volunteer firefighters had been the first to arrive with their engine to extinguish the burning car on Herron Road on that night — Saturday, December 6, 2014.
“I didn’t see her at first,” one of the firefighters told The Panolian during an interview the day after the fire. “We tried to keep the fire contained,” the fireman said.
When the firemen discovered Chambers, “we started packing her up,” one fireman said, with the limited medical supplies carried on the engine.
“I called the sheriff’s department immediately, I notified P1 (Sheriff Darby), called MedStat and immediately put Air Evac en route” the fireman said.
“I didn’t know if there was someone in the woods who was dangerous,” the fireman continued during the December 7, 2014 interview. “Or (whether) whoever did it was close by.
————
“We’ve got an Eric that we’re fixing to go interview this next week in Louisiana that possibly knows some stuff,” the sheriff said during his Wednesday update on the case. The victim’s voice was hoarse and distorted from the swelling and shock, he said, and the victim may have uttered “Eric” instead of “Derrick.”
“He and this other guy (Tellis) are related somehow, we’re not exactly sure.”
Tellis has been charged by Monroe, LA, authorities with the fraudulent use of a credit card that belonged to an exchange student who was murdered last August in Monroe.
When Louisiana authorities arrested Tellis and connected him with the credit card that had belonged to the dead exchange student, his Courtland addressed prompted them to contact Panola County authorities, according to the sheriff.
“This (Chambers’ murder) was national; when he (a Louisiana investigator) found out this guy was from Courtland, Mississippi, he called us,” Darby said.
“We had interviewed this guy (Tellis) a little while after the murder,” the sheriff said. “He was one of the people out of 150-200 people that we had interviewed; his name was in our data base.” Tellis left for Louisiana “right after the interview.”
Meanwhile, investigators had found Chambers’ cell phone at the scene.
“It was in two pieces; it was beside the car,” Darby said.
“Your phone will get you into trouble,” Darby said. “It’ll tell you what you did a long time ago; it’ll tell you where you were.
“We started putting it together and we started coming up pretty quick with indication that he’s a possible suspect because of his phone records,” the sheriff continued.
“Over a period of time we were able to associate his phone and her phone side-by-side at approximately the same time the murder happened,” he said.
Authorities also extracted DNA evidence from a set of keys found at the crime scene, Darby said.
The sheriff cited expertise from numerous state and federal law enforcement agencies that contributed to Tellis’ Feb. 23 indictment.
“I talked to everybody that I could and they came in. A lot of these people I knew. I wanted to have an association with every agency that I could in case there’s an emergency like this one,” Darby said.
“It took more than one person to burn that girl up; somebody had to hold her,” said Exchange Club member Richard Corson.
“I’ve got to be real careful,” the sheriff replied. “There’s an explanation; it’s going to come out in testimony, but we think it’s one person.
“He left her for dead, and she came back to,” Darby continued.
District Attorney John Champion said Monday that a Governor’s Warrant has been submitted seeking Tellis’ extradition from Louisiana to stand trial in Missisippi.
Meanwhile, Tellis faces a May trial date in Louisiana.
“They’ve already got him for credit card fraud, drugs, and I don’t know what else (that will get him) a life sentence without parole in the State of Louisiana,” Darby said.

By John Howell
Panola County Sheriff Dennis Darby said that investigators will return to Louisiana this week or next to interview a possible witness in the Jessica Chambers murder investigation.
Darby, speaking to the Batesville Exchange Club Wednesday, provided additional information about phone data analysis and DNA evidence that led to the February 23 indictment of Quintin Tellis for capital murder.
The sheriff likened the investigation to those featured on the “48 Hours” television program.
“We’ve got to go down to Louisiana … to interview another possible witness,” Darby said.
“The night of the murder, when I got on the scene, one of the firemen came up to me. I said, ‘Did she give you a name?’
“He said that he thought she said the name was Derrick,” the sheriff said.
“You had a couple of firemen out there that were just about in shock at what they saw when they got there,” the sheriff said. “They went out there for a car fire, and when they got there and started extinguishing the fire  — I want you to remember now that the fire itself was our evidence; everything inside that car and outside that car was evidence — and they were walking around it, putting water on it and everything.
“Well, this girl came walking down the road and, as one of them said, she looked like a monster. Her skin had peeled off her face … it shocked them and scared them,” Darby continued.
“Of course you’re out there in the dark in a secluded area, and it took us a minute to set this guy down long enough to get anything out of him, you know: ‘What did you see?’”
“It started there,” the sheriff continued.
———
Three Courtland volunteer firefighters had been the first to arrive with their engine to extinguish the burning car on Herron Road on that night — Saturday, December 6, 2014.
“I didn’t see her at first,” one of the firefighters told The Panolian during an interview the day after the fire. “We tried to keep the fire contained,” the fireman said.
When the firemen discovered Chambers, “we started packing her up,” one fireman said, with the limited medical supplies carried on the engine.
“I called the sheriff’s department immediately, I notified P1 (Sheriff Darby), called MedStat and immediately put Air Evac en route” the fireman said.
“I didn’t know if there was someone in the woods who was dangerous,” the fireman continued during the December 7, 2014 interview. “Or (whether) whoever did it was close by.
————
“We’ve got an Eric that we’re fixing to go interview this next week in Louisiana that possibly knows some stuff,” the sheriff said during his Wednesday update on the case. The victim’s voice was hoarse and distorted from the swelling and shock, he said, and the victim may have uttered “Eric” instead of “Derrick.”
“He and this other guy (Tellis) are related somehow, we’re not exactly sure.”
Tellis has been charged by Monroe, LA, authorities with the fraudulent use of a credit card that belonged to an exchange student who was murdered last August in Monroe.
When Louisiana authorities arrested Tellis and connected him with the credit card that had belonged to the dead exchange student, his Courtland addressed prompted them to contact Panola County authorities, according to the sheriff.
“This (Chambers’ murder) was national; when he (a Louisiana investigator) found out this guy was from Courtland, Mississippi, he called us,” Darby said.
“We had interviewed this guy (Tellis) a little while after the murder,” the sheriff said. “He was one of the people out of 150-200 people that we had interviewed; his name was in our data base.” Tellis left for Louisiana “right after the interview.”
Meanwhile, investigators had found Chambers’ cell phone at the scene.
“It was in two pieces; it was beside the car,” Darby said.
“Your phone will get you into trouble,” Darby said. “It’ll tell you what you did a long time ago; it’ll tell you where you were.
“We started putting it together and we started coming up pretty quick with indication that he’s a possible suspect because of his phone records,” the sheriff continued.
“Over a period of time we were able to associate his phone and her phone side-by-side at approximately the same time the murder happened,” he said.
Authorities also extracted DNA evidence from a set of keys found at the crime scene, Darby said.
The sheriff cited expertise from numerous state and federal law enforcement agencies that contributed to Tellis’ Feb. 23 indictment.
“I talked to everybody that I could and they came in. A lot of these people I knew. I wanted to have an association with every agency that I could in case there’s an emergency like this one,” Darby said.
“It took more than one person to burn that girl up; somebody had to hold her,” said Exchange Club member Richard Corson.
“I’ve got to be real careful,” the sheriff replied. “There’s an explanation; it’s going to come out in testimony, but we think it’s one person.
“He left her for dead, and she came back to,” Darby continued.
District Attorney John Champion said Monday that a Governor’s Warrant has been submitted seeking Tellis’ extradition from Louisiana to stand trial in Missisippi.
Meanwhile, Tellis faces a May trial date in Louisiana.
“They’ve already got him for credit card fraud, drugs, and I don’t know what else (that will get him) a life sentence without parole in the State of Louisiana,” Darby said.