Man was ‘lured’ to his death ‘in retaliation’ over missing woman, Oklahoma officials say
Four people have been charged in connection to the death of an Oklahoma man who went missing in January.
Victor Battelo, Charles Jordan, Devin Harris and Heaven Jordan have been charged with first-degree murder in connection to the death of 27-year-old Colby Dennis Sheppard, according to court records.
McClatchy News reached out to Battelo’s attorney for comment but did not immediately hear back. Attorney information for Charles Jordan, Harris and Heaven Jordan was not available.
Sheppard was reported missing in January, according to a Jan. 18 Facebook post by the Enid Police Department.
On Aug. 27, Sheppard’s remains were found in a cellar, police said. At the time, Battelo, Charles Jordan and Harris were arrested. Heaven Jordan was later charged, according to KFOR.
According to court records, the four killed Sheppard because they believed he was involved in the 2022 disappearance of his ex-girlfriend, Kendra Battelo, the news outlet reported.
“Mr. Sheppard was lured to that residence by those with the intent to do him severe harm and essentially resulted in his murder,” Cass Rains with the Enid Police Department told KFOR.
Police said in the news release Sheppard was killed “in retaliation for his rumored involvement in Kendra Battelo’s disappearance in 2022.” Although, officials said they have no evidence to link Sheppard to Kendra Battelo’s disappearance.
According to an affidavit, a witness told authorities that Victor Battelo told her he assaulted Sheppard at Charles Jordan’s house, The Enid News and Eagle reported.
She said Victor Battelo told her Charles Jordan lured Sheppard to the house and assaulted him, the outlet reported, citing the affidavit. Then, documents said that “along with his friend, they cut his throat and left him for dead,” the outlet reported.
An inmate told authorities Charles Jordan said he was in charge of getting rid of Sheppard’s body, according to court records, KFOR reported. The witness said Charles Jordan admitted to wrapping Sheppard’s body up in plastic and a blanket, according to the records.
The inmate then described the home where he said Charles Jordan said he dumped Sheppard’s body, KFOR reported. Authorities later found Sheppard’s remains there.
“One tip led us to perhaps bringing some sort of closure to Mr. Shepard’s family and his disappearance,” Rains told the news outlet.
Officials said Kendra Battelo is still missing and the investigation into her disappearance is ongoing.
This story was originally published September 5, 2024 at 4:31 PM with the headline "Man was ‘lured’ to his death ‘in retaliation’ over missing woman, Oklahoma officials say."
