Marengo County man charged with murder of missing man found in wooded area in Forkland

A Marengo County man who was reported missing was discovered dead in a wooded area in Greene County.

Lazarus Cornell Mitchell, 39, of Gallion was found on Feb. 19 near Weston Circle in Forkland after he was reported missing to the Demopolis Police Department by his family. Mitchell's burned car was found 14 miles away when his body was discovered.

Law enforcement has arrested Jaquan Lewis Lee, 27, of Marengo County and charged him with Mitchell's murder. He is being held at the Greene County Jail. The two reportedly knew each other but a motive has not been released. 

District Attorney Rachel England has stated that Lee was prosecuted for assault in 2022. Additional arrests are possible. 

“This is serious work, and it’s exactly why we needed a major crimes unit in the 17th Judicial District,” England said, noting that this is the unit’s first major active investigation since its formation in 2025. The district has already made arrests in other cases, including child pornography and abuse of a corpse, but this homicide marks the unit’s first large scale, multi-agency effort.

England said she is still working to secure long-term funding for the Major Crimes Unit and believes this case demonstrates its necessity. “Everyone in law enforcement knew we needed this unit for situations just like this,” she said. “The community is now seeing that firsthand.”

She also acknowledged the heavy workload her office continues to manage. England is still working through cases left from former District Attorney Greg Griggers’ tenure, while also handling new cases that have come in since she took office. Griggers now serves as Circuit Judge, presiding over many of the cases England is prosecuting.

England publicly thanked the officers and investigators who have worked on the Mitchell case. She commended Major Crimes Unit members Lt. Paul Johnson, Investigators Roc Jones, Cole Basinger, Wesley Heaton and Leslie Hines and Chief Deputy Vince Hardwick. She also expressed appreciation for Investigator Dion Pritchett of the 4th Judicial Circuit for his assistance.