Wednesday, May 14, 2003
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Wednesday, May 14, 2003 |
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Drugs may be key to murders By JOHN MUNFORD
Illegal drug activity is high on their list as Fayette County Sheriff's detectives follow leads to find out who murdered two men at a north Fayette residence and why. "It's a lot of legwork and you can't have a lot of loose ends," said Lt. Mike Hattaway of the Fayette County Sheriff's Department. "You just try to put the pieces of the puzzle together." Detectives indicated last week they were focusing on drug activity that occurred at David Mangham's residence in the Princeton Chase subdivision just off Ga. Highway 314. Mangham and Francis Michael Fowler of Ellenwood, who Mangham hired occasionally to perform auto body work, were both found shot to death in the residence, detectives said. The bodies of the 48-year-old men were discovered last Monday and detectives believe the two men had been dead for approximately 10 days. Both Mangham and Fowler were involved in illegal drug activity, according to Lt. Col. Bruce Jordan of the Fayette County Sheriff's Department, the lead detective on the case. Jordan said last Thursday that the case would not be quickly resolved, particularly since the investigation will reach into "areas of Atlanta where people don't like to cooperate with police." Dr. Ralph M. Cooper, the former associate pastor to single adults at New Hope Baptist Church, recalls Mangham as a very "loyal" person and a close friend. "He would always be there, 'Can I help you with anything?' or 'Is there anything I can do for you?'" said Cooper, who served at the church from 1983 to 1989. "You could just count on him." Cooper said he was puzzled about who might have wanted to kill Mangham and troubled that neighbors didn't hear the gunshots that killed him and Fowler. "It conjures up pictures of silencers and mob hits," Cooper said. Mangham attended several mission trips led by the church, and he often paid the way for others who otherwise wouldn't have been able to go, Cooper recalled. "That's the kind of person he was," Cooper said, adding that he found it hard to believe Mangham could have been involved in illegal activity. Mangham was fond of keeping himself in good physical shape in addition to restoring cars, which he was very talented at, Cooper said. "He was very big on physical fitness and taking care of himself," Cooper said. "He was just solid muscle." Mangham also owned a land-clearing business, and he would often call Cooper at his Riverdale home and offer him some firewood. Cooper recalled one day they used their chainsaws to cut some firewood off land that was being cleared. Cooper said his chainsaw wasn't getting as much done as Mangham's. "He said, 'I'll tell you one thing about working with wood: it's all hard,'" Cooper recalled with a laugh.
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