Whether to charge Joshua Latham with the murder of a Vinton woman will be up to a Texas grand jury.

Jefferson County District Attorney Robert Choate said the case is expected to be brought before a grand jury on July 18.

Latham, of Orange, Texas, is a suspect in the April strangling death of Tami Diane Higginbotham.

Latham told authorities where to find Higginbotham’s body, which was found in a hunting area north of Mauriceville, Texas, Choate said.

Latham could be charged with tampering with evidence and non-capital murder, Choate said.

The tampering charge arises because

Latham knew where the body was and knew there was an investigation ongoing, Choate said.

Latham is currently jailed on a probation violation.

Choate said Higginbotham knew Latham.

She told her family she was going to meet him to sell him a cell phone.

Her truck was found at a fishing camp in southeast Texas.

Latham was arrested in Maryville, Tennessee, where he had gone to a relative’s house with his girlfriend and infant child.

It was there that he told authorities where to find Higginbotham’s body, Choate said.

The sell of a cell phone may have been a ruse, the district attorney said.

(MGNonline)

Joshua Latham. (Special to the American Press)