Macon prosecutors argue a missing man was murdered in 2018. Suspect faces trial

A jury will determine whether a Macon man deemed missing in 2018 was killed by an acquaintance, according to court proceedings Wednesday.

Court records show the trial is now in its second week for Raymond Leverett, who prosecutors said was responsible for the death of 53-year-old John Fleming in September 2018.

Though Fleming was initially declared a missing person, the details of what occurred were uncovered over the years, as investigators found clothes, bullet casings, skull and bone fragments, blood stains, and the car he drove – but no body, according to Telegraph archives.

Leverett faces murder, aggravated assault and armed robbery charges, receiving the indictment roughly a year after the alleged murder, according to court records.

C. Alan Wheeler, Leverett’s attorney, told The Telegraph Tuesday the two men were friends and that Leverett didn’t commit a crime.

Suspect insists he was bitten by snake, never saw victim again

Wheeler has argued that the day Fleming disappeared, Leverett was bitten by a rattlesnake and asked Fleming for a ride to the hospital. Fleming dropped Leverett off at a downtown Macon hospital but never returned to pick him up, according to Wheeler at the time.

However, prosecutors argue that Leverett did kill Fleming, as his location could be inferred through his phone pinging on cell phone towers around the Macon Airport, where Fleming’s car was eventually recovered with blood splatters, with skull and bone fragments found nearby, according to court testimony and Telegraph archives.

On Oct. 16, 2023, the FBI confirmed the remains belonged to Fleming, according to court records. Prosecutors also found clothes with the bones they believe could be tied to Fleming, according to previous Telegraph reporting.

Relatives of Fleming previously told the Telegraph that Leverett owed Fleming money and that Leverett messed up one of his cars, according to Telegraph archives.

He had also stolen Fleming’s PlayStation 4 days after his disappearance and attempted to pawn it off in Warner Robins, according to Telegraph archives. He pleaded guilty in that case in 2019.

If Leverett is convicted, he could face life in prison.

Alba Rosa

The Telegraph

Alba Rosa, from Puerto Rico, is a local courts reporter for The Telegraph in Macon, Georgia. She studied journalism at Florida International University in Miami, Florida where she graduated Magna Cum Laude in December 2023. Other than journalism, she likes to make art, write and produce music and delve into the fashion world.