Forensic technology led to a 23-year-old Pensacola man recently being charged with the murders of two men in Escambia County in 2023.
Jurhan Porter is being held in Escambia County Jail on two counts of first-degree premeditated murder.
He was first charged on Sept. 6 for the murder of Marvis Bedgood Jr. in December 2023. Deputies then charged him on Sept. 13 for the murder of Billy Frank Slayton in September 2023.
According to an arrest report, Porter first became a suspect in Bedgood Jr.’s case when deputies recovered the missing 21-year-old’s body on Jan. 7.
The body of Bedgood Jr. — who had been reported missing since December 15, 2023 — was found with with numerous bullets buried in a shallow grave in an area locally known as the “clay pits” near Wagner Road.
According to the report, Porter was initially developed as a suspect in the murder due to a family tip, as well as the fact that Bedgood Jr. was buried about 130 yards away from Porter’s home on Pinestead Road.
The report states Escambia County deputies served a warrant at Porter’s home on Jan. 9.
They seized several guns, gun parts and ammunition, according to the report. These were sent to theFDLE crime lab in Tallahassee, along with evidence collected at the scene/from the body.
The report states deputies detained Porter for questioning. He said he knew Bedgood Jr., but only stated he was “speechless” when told that he had been killed.
As the investigation continued, Porter was jailed on Jan. 12 on a revoke bond warrant related to a previous aggravated assault case.
According to the report, in May, deputies interviewed an inmate who was jailed with Porter in January.The inmate said Porter admitted to killing Bedgood Jr. as part of gang activity.
The report states Porter told the inmate he lured Bedgood Jr. to the “clay pits” to go shooting. Porter reportedly said they first started shooting at beer cans before he fatally shot Bedgood Jr. and buried him.
According to the report, investigators noted that this statement aligned with evidence and observations from the scene.
Results from the FDLE crime lab then came back on June 18.The report states tests revealed that projectiles from Bedgood Jr.’s body matched each gun barrel seized from Porter’s home.
According to the report, these FDLE crime lab results also linked Porter to Slayton’s murder.
The report states that on Jan. 4 as investigators were searching the wooded area around the “clay pits” for Bedgood Jr., deputies discovered a deceased man inside a tent at a homeless encampmentin the area. The body — later identified as Slayton — was in a “severe state of decomposition.”
According to the report, an autopsy showed projectiles inside the body consistent with at least two guns.
The report states a projectile recovered from Slayton’s body matched to Porter’s gun that had been analyzed by the FDLE for Bedgood Jr.’s murder case. Upon these findings, deputies charged Porter with Slayton’s murder.
Porter was indicted on Sept. 18 on these charges:
- first-degree premeditated murder in Bedgood Jr.’s killing
- first-degree premeditated murder in Slayton’s killing
- tampering with evidence (Bedgood Jr.’s case)
- possession of firearm by a convicted delinquent (two counts)
Legal Support for Victims of Murder Cases
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