Fears sentenced in Griffin murder

The first of three defendants in the 2020 murder of Charlie Robert Griffin was sentenced Aug. 1 after taking a plea deal in the case.

27-year-old Jestiny Lee Fears will serve 15 years in the Florida Department of Corrections for her role in Griffin’s murder. Fears pled no contest to charges of accessory after the fact to second degree murder and tampering with evidence.

The case began in August 2020 when the Washington County Communications Center received a call in reference to a body lying on the side of Jeffrey Boulevard. The victim, later identified as 28-year-old Charlie Robert Griffin, had been shot multiple times.

Investigators determined Griffin had left his residence with Fears’ co-defendants, Joshua Caleb Cumbie and Jeremy Cole Long. Investigators state Cumbie and Long conspired to rob Griffin prior to meeting him at his home. 

The men reportedly planned to travel to Dothan, Alabama to purchase narcotics but never made it to the destination. According to a report from the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, Griffin, Cumbie and Long went to another residence in the county before driving to a dirt road, where one of the assailants pulled Griffin out of the car, robbed him and shot him several times. WCSO was told by the assailants that Griffin owed the two men money, which was a factor in the killing.

Long is set to be sentenced on Aug. 12 on the charge second degree murder. Cumbie, who is married to Fears, has a trial date in September.