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Huntington man is charged in connection with Wiggins' death
Matthew Scott Curtis, 20, is escorted to magistrate court for arraignment Wednesday, March 26, 2008, at the Cabell County Courthouse. Curtis is charged with the first-degree murder in the death of Manard Martez Wiggins.
Purchase this photoHUNTINGTON -- A 20-year-old Huntington man has been charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of Maynard Martez Wiggins.
Scott Curtis was arraigned on the charge Wednesday, about 45 minutes after Cabell County sheriff's officials held a noon press conference announcing his arrest. Curtis was told of his charges and that there would be no bail in his case.
Wiggins, a 24-year-old Alabama native, was found shot to death near an embankment along Four Pole Road in rural Cabell County on Feb. 24 by two walkers.
Cabell County Sheriff's Det. Mike Clark said the charge against Curtis stemmed from information discovered last week through statements and evidence found at the scene.
Officials would not release any details on the crime or what evidence led them to Curtis' arrest. They said that information will play out during the trial.
Chief Deputy Jim Scheidler said Curtis was apprehended five days ago for an unrelated circuit court warrant and has been in the Western Regional Jail since then. That warrant involved Curtis' failure to appear in court for a sentencing in the unrelated case.
The criminal complaint stated Curtis and Taurean Johnson, who was arrested days after Wiggins' body was found and charged with drug possession, "were en route to deliver a controlled substance (Cocaine) to a subject. The defendant shot and killed Maynard Wiggins in the 3600 Blk. of 4 Pole Rd."
The next grand jury meets in May, and Assistant Prosecutor Jane Hustead said she hopes there will be enough DNA evidence to send it to trial.
Wiggins' brother, Eddie, and mother, Bonita Fleming, traveled from Alabama to attend the press conference. They said they were relieved a suspect was arrested.
"Everyone thinks it was all about drugs, and they forget who Maynard was," Eddie Wiggins said. "He was a brother, a father, a son, an uncle. Nobody knows the real person he was."
Both said they hope anyone convicted of the homicide spends the rest of his life in prison thinking about what he has done.
"I want no mercy," Bonita Fleming said. "They showed no mercy on my son. I want them to think about what they did."
