Suspect indicted in 17 deaths arrested

Sep. 12—VALDOSTA — A Lowndes County traffic stop in August led to the arrest of a deported felon from the Bahamas indicted for the deaths of 17 Haitian migrants and an unborn child, the sheriff’s office said Tuesday.

On Aug. 22, a deputy stopped a car at the 11 mile marker north on I-75 for speeding, a statement from the sheriff’s office said.

The driver said he was from the Bahamas and did not have a license; he was arrested for several traffic and narcotics violations, the statement said.

While being booked into the county jail, determined that the driver had given a false name and was actually Travis Jamal Moss, a deported felon from the Bahamas who also had outstanding warrants from Broward and Orange counties in Florida, the sheriff’s office said. Charges of giving false name and date of birth to law enforcement, forgery and fugitive from justice were added to his tally, the sheriff’s office said.

Jail records show Moss was also charged with driving under the influence of drugs/alcohol and seat belt violation.

Ft. Lauderdale police contacted the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office to say the suspect was wanted in their city for a violent sexual assault; Lowndes County investigators also learned Moss was one of three people indicted in connection with the deaths of 17 Haitian migrants and an unborn child in a July 2022 incident at sea, the sheriff’s office said.

Authorities determined that the 2022 incident was a human smuggling operation that sent as many as 40 migrants into the water when the boat hit rough seas after leaving Nassau in darkness, according to coverage by the Virgin Islands Daily News.

Terry Richards is the senior reporter for The Valdosta Daily Times.