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2nd Suspect Arrested In Highway Shooting Of Tennessee Nurse
Nashville police suspect James Edward Cowan, 28, had been hiding out at a motel since being identified as a suspect in the death of Caitlyn Kaufman.
Nashville police have arrested the second suspect in the fatal shooting of a Tennessee nurse who was killed while driving to work last month.
James Edward Cowan, 28 was apprehended by authorities on Tuesday, ending a week-long manhunt, after a warrant was issued for his arrest in connection to Caitlyn Kaufman's murder.
Cowan was taken into custody by undercover detectives as he backed into a parking spot at a Nashville apartment complex on Tuesday. He was coming from a motel investigators suspect he’d been staying at for a number of days. Authorities allegedly seized two pistols, half a pound of marijuana, and five grams of white powder during Cowan’s arrest.
Cowan was slapped with a total of 12 charges, including drug possession and trafficking, gun possession, and several parole violations.
A $6,000 reward was previously offered by local and federal law enforcement agencies for information leading to his arrest.
Kaufman was gunned down on her way to work at St. Thomas West Hospital in southwest Nashville on Dec. 3. Her Mazda SUV was found resting against a guard rail on Interstate 440, with her dead inside.
Devaunte Hill was first named as the prime suspect in the deadly shooting. He was arrested by a SWAT team on Dec. 11. A tip from a “concerned citizen” led authorities to Hill. The 21-year-old later implicated himself under police questioning, officials said.
Authorities suspect that Cowan was with Hill at the time shots were fired at Kaufman’s vehicle. The two men reportedly know each other. Cell phone data placed Cowan at the scene, police also previously said.
Kaufman worked on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic. She’d been employed by St. Thomas West Hospital for the past two years, according to her family. Kaufman was the third nurse from the hospital to be murdered in the past four years, WZTV reported. The 26-year-old was originally from Pennsylvania.
“Caitlyn was loved by many and will be sorely missed by all,” relatives previously wrote on a GoFundMe page.
Both Hill and Cowan are being held without bond at a Davidson County detention center, online jail records show.
Cowan has previously been convicted on robbery, drug, gun, and delinquency of a minor charges, according to court documents obtained by Oxygen.com.
No motive has been released by authorities in Kaufman’s slaying.
