Two people arrested for an armed robbery in Adel have now been charged with the Friday night murder of James “Buster” Statum, a Sparks game room owner.

According to a press release from SAC Russell Mansfield of the Douglas office of Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Jason Treadway, 28, of Adel, has been charged with malice murder, felony murder, armed robbery, aggravated assault and burglary. His wife, Billie Jo Treadway, 27, also of Adel, has been charged with aggravated assault and tampering with evidence.

At approximately 7:53 p.m. Friday, Cook County and Sparks police officers were called to the game room on Adams Street in Sparks, where Statum’s body was discovered inside the building. The GBI Douglas office was contacted and requested to assist in the investigation.

An autopsy conducted at the GBI Crime Lab in Atlanta indicated that Statum died as a result of multiple stab wounds.

The investigation is on-going and no other details are being released at this time. According to the press release, the South Georgia Drug Task Force, the Adel Police Department, the Tifton Police Department, the Tift County Sheriff’s Office, the Lenox Police Department, the Hahira Police Department, the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office and the Georgia State Patrol all provided assistance in the investigation.

According to a Tifton Police Department incident report, the couple was located in a local hotel early Saturday morning and turned over to Cook County Investigator Brent Exum and two GBI agents.

Anyone with information concerning the investigation is urged to contact the Sparks Police Department at (229) 549-8211, the Cook County Sheriff’s Office at (229) 896-7471 or the GBI Douglas Office at (912) 389-4103.

To contact senior reporter Angie Thompson, call 382-4231.