Averal Burnett
PURVIS, Mississippi -- A former law enforcement
officer already jailed on a forcible rape charge has now been arrested on two
counts of attempted capital murder.
Lamar County District Attorney Hal Kittrell
said Averal Burnett allegedly gave money to a former inmate at Pearl River
County Jail to kill two people who were tied to the rape case.
Kittrell told The Hattiesburg American the case
evolved after the former inmate allegedly tipped off Picayune Police Department
to the scheme.
Burnett, 47, had been denied bond on June 16 on
the rape charge.
Kittrell said because Burnett had once worked
in Lamar County, he was moved to Pearl River County.
Burnett would be tried on the rape charge in
Lamar County and for attempted capital murder in Pearl River County.
"They are two separate and distinct
cases," Kittrell said.
Burnett could face up to life in the prison on
the rape charge. The attempted capital murder charge could carry up to a life
sentence if decided by jury. If it went to a judge, the sentence would range
from no less than 20 years up to "one day less than life."
Kittrell said Burnett had 22 years in law
enforcement, the majority with Hattiesburg Police Department and less than a
year with Lamar County Sheriff Department