Naman Shrestha
Oxygen’s ‘Sins of the South: Unholy Obsession’ delves deep into the complicated and gruesome murder case of 21-year-old Latrese Curtis, who was found on the side of a highway in 2008. When the investigation led the authorities to three prime suspects, the case ended up getting complicated. The episode also features exclusive interviews with the heartbroken father of Latrese and the officials connected to the case, giving the viewers insightful details about the case.
Latrese Curtis’ Remains Were Found on the Side of a Highway
Born on May 28, 1986, Latrese Matral Jones Curtis was the beloved daughter of Sherman and Cynthia Jones of Raleigh, North Carolina. The entry of their adorable bundle of joy filled the Jones household with giggles and laughter. Lovingly referred to as Trese by her dear ones, she grew up surrounded by the love and care of her parents and siblings. Apart from brothers Justin D. Hammonds, Marlon L. Wheeler, and Jason A. Jones, Latrese also had a sister, Shanicia Jones, all of whom doted upon her equally. However, it was her father whom she was the closest to, so much so that her siblings used to call her “daddy’s little boy in a dress.” From fishing to hunting to learning all the tropes of basketball, the young girl did everything with her daddy dearest; wherever he went, she reportedly followed him like his shadow.
Naturally, things changed as she grew up, but the father-daughter duo never missed an opportunity to spend some quality time together. On the academic front, Latrese was a bright student who excelled at school and always made her parents proud. She attended Bennett College before enrolling at Wake Technical Community College, where she gained a lot of popularity due to her amiable nature, reliable personality and dedication to academics. In her freshman year, her paths crossed with Darin Lee Curtis and her life changed forever. The two seemingly developed an instant liking for each other and began dating. One thing led to another, and the two eloped and ultimately tied the knot on April 27, 2007.
Latrese’s decision did give rise to cracks in her relationship with her parents. Latrese and Darin happily settled into their lives as a married couple. At the time, she was not only pursuing Accounting at North Carolina Central University but also working as a part-time employee at Sears. Everything seemed to be going right in the life of the 21-year-old woman until devastating news knocked on the doors of her family on January 30, 2008. On the fateful morning, the police informed Latrese’s loved ones about the discovery of her remains on Interstate 540. She sustained over 40 stab wounds on her chest, which became the cause of her death.
Three Suspects Emerged During the Investigation of Latrese Curtis’ Murder
While the police officers and investigators were inspecting the scene of the crime, Latrese’s husband, Darin, appeared at the location and told one of the officers that he had reported his wife missing. Moreover, he even spotted her abandoned vehicle a few hundred miles away from the area they were inspecting. As per his claims, he last talked to Latrese the previous night around 10 pm when she had just left the library and was headed home. Darin fell asleep around 11 pm, but his nightmare came true the next morning when he did not find his wife beside him. He kept trying to call her, but on the way to his office, he spotted her car and found traces of blood inside it. So, he returned home and filed a missing persons case.
The couple had a joint cell phone account, which he checked and used to call a number in the log that he did not recognize. An unknown man picked up the call and told Darin that he went to school with Latrese. During the interview with the authorities, he did not show any hesitance in being DNA-swabbed, photographed, and fingerprinted. Since the victim was stabbed multiple times, the chances of the killer having a few cuts and scratches were high. But there were no injuries or wounds on her husband’s body. The case progressed further when the investigators were informed that a State Trooper had found a vehicle in the early hours of January 30 near the site where the body was found.
Upon digging deeper, the authorities learned that the car belonged to a bishop named Robert Lee Adams Reaves. Meanwhile, they also found out who answered Darin’s call for a short while: Steven Randolph. The case got further complicated as Robert was the roommate and mentor of Steven. So, when the police asked the latter to come in for questioning, he agreed on one condition — he would be accompanied by Robert. During the interview on February 1, 2008, Randolph claimed he and Latrese developed a relationship after the latter told him that she was separated from her husband. He stated he last saw her on the night of January 29, when they allegedly met to have sex. Randolph further alleged that soon after she left, he also left the house to go to a friend’s house, where they played video games.
Jealousy Proved to be the Motive Behind Latrese’s Killing
Simultaneously, the detectives were interviewing Robert in the other interrogation room. He claimed that he had gone to the church on the night of the murder and returned home and had no idea how his car was spotted on the highway that night. He told the detectives that he met Steven at a car wash and offered him the spare room in his house for $300 a month. Out of nowhere, he admitted to touching his roommate inappropriately and asking him his thoughts on starting an escort service. Following the weird incident, he stopped charging Steven any rent. Upon photographing Robert’s body, the detectives could see several fresh cuts and wounds, which he claimed were because of moving furniture recently.
On the other hand, Steven did not have any injuries on his body. Once they had collected the DNA samples of all three primary suspects in the case, they were sent to the lab for further examination and comparison to the DNA evidence found on Latrese’s car. However, when the bishop’s alibi did not check out, the police had enough evidence against him and charged him with murder. Furthermore, the accused’s DNA was a match, unlike that of the other two suspects. As they dug deeper into him, looking for more dirt, they discovered he had been convicted of a sex crime involving a minor in South Carolina back in 1987. Additionally, he was charged with sexual misconduct involving another minor in Brooklyn, New York.
Robert Reaves is Serving His Sentence at a North Carolina Prison
In September 2009, the murder trial of Robert Reaves commenced. While the prosecution presented the compilation of all the circumstantial evidence and the DNA evidence, the defense tried its best to discredit them all. According to the prosecutors, Robert’s motive to kill Latrese Curtis was that he “had an obvious attraction to Steven Randolph” and “he felt Latrese was in the way and he wanted to get rid of this obstruction.”
The defendant’s own sister, Willie Mae, became the star witness as she testified that he did not show up at the church on the night of the murder. Much to the relief of the victim’s loved ones, the jury returned with a guilty verdict and convicted him of first-degree murder. Soon, he was sentenced to life in prison without the chance of parole for murdering his roommate’s alleged girlfriend. Currently, he is incarcerated at Nash Correctional Institution in Nashville, North Carolina.
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