More details concerning a shooting death in Quinton on Thursday were given by the Walker County Sheriff’s Office Monday afternoon during a press conference.
Sheriff Nick Smith confirmed the two men arrested in the killing of Matthew Douglas Perrigin, 32, of Quinton were a father and son — Corey Ryan Mahaffey, 36, and his son, Kaison Ryan Mahaffey, 16. The two were arrested and charged on counts of capital murder during a robbery, capital murder aiding and abetting, and two counts of first-degree assault. Both are being held in the Walker County Jail on a $1 million cash bond for each.
During the press conference at the Walker County Jail, Major Crimes Investigator Carl Carpenter said Thursday at 5:20 a.m., 9-1-1 call centers in Walker and Jefferson counties received calls about a shooting incident. West Jefferson Fire Department and the Walker County Sheriff’s patrol division responded to 80 Hill Drive in Quinton.
“They found one victim deceased on the scene and two victims who had been wounded and were immediately transported to UAB Hospital,” Carpenter said. “I would describe that one of the victims had life-threatening injuries, but he is now in stable condition. The other victim was released shortly after being at admitted at the hospital.”
Carpenter said the incident involved the robbery of a vehicle. The two victims who survived were not identified by law enforcement officials.
“Witnesses were immediately on the scene, while other witnesses left the scene with the suspects when their vehicle crashed. The witnesses provided details that identified Kaison and Corey Mahaffey as being the suspects,” he added. “They provided us with a lot of great information.”
Carpenter said the search for the suspects was intense and continued over two days. He said Thursday night information was obtained that Kaison Mahaffey was at an address in the Empire community. The Sheriff’s Office warned the public through a Facebook post that a perimeter was set up in the 2000 Block of Coon Creek Road.
Smith said he reached out to Corey Mahaffey via Facebook Messenger on Friday morning.
“He had been making posts on Facebook, so I attempted to reach him through there,” Smith said. Corey Mahaffey responded Friday night, saying he was at a home in Hartselle and would turn himself into authorities.
Kaison Mahaffey was finally located late Friday night at a home in Empire. He was taken into custody without incident by the Sheriff’s Office SWAT team and members of the U.S. Marshal’s Service.
Carpenter said the investigation is ongoing.
“We have a lot of questions we still have to answer,” Carpenter said.
Carpenter added that “everyone involved seemed to have some kind of acquaintance with someone else. Now, how close that is, we haven’t got all that hammered out. We still have some interviews to do.”
Carpenter also said the investigation points to a semi-automatic handgun as the murder weapon, but that weapon has not been recovered.
“If anyone has any information that they can help us with, please contact the Sheriff’s Office and let us know,” he said.
Kaison Mahaffey also had a warrant from Blount County on an attempted murder, where he is also being charged as an adult from a shooting in that county a few weeks back. Carpenter did not have any details on that incident, but knew the warrant for that incident was signed the same day as the shooting in Walker County.
Smith and Carpenter gave condolences to the Perrigin family.
Loyd Perrigqn, Matthew’s father, thanked the Sheriff’s Office for their hard work.
“We want them to know how much we appreciate the work they put into this. That means so much to our family,” he said after the press conference.
Smith thanked the Walker County District Attorney Bill Adair and his office, Walker County Coroner Joey Vick, the U.S. Fugitive Task Force, Blount County Sheriff’s Office, Tuscaloosa Police Department, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Canine Patrol and Aviation Units, Walker County and Alabama Law Enforcement Agency aviation units, the Department of Correction Canine Services, Sumiton Police Department, Warrior Police Department, Hartselle Police Department, Morgan County Sheriff’s Office, Regional Paramedical Services, and several volunteer fire departments.
“Without the help of those agencies, (the arrests) would not have happened as quickly as it did,” Smith said.
The full press conference from Monday may be viewed on The Community Journal Facebook Page.
