‘While we looked, Julian didn’t’: Sister of Atlanta man found dead in Birmingham speaks out

BIRMINGHAM, Al. — Alabama police have named an Atlanta man’s boyfriend as a person of interest in his death after his body was found.

Deundray Cottrell, 31, was killed over the July 4th holiday. His family reported him missing nearly two days before police found his body on July 6 in a Birmingham neighborhood not far from where he disappeared.

Birmingham police are looking for his boyfriend, Julian Morris, 31, who is also from the Atlanta area.

Investigators believe Morris was the last person to see Cottrell alive on the 4th of July before he turned up dead days later.

Family members said on Sunday that they suspect he knows exactly what happened.

“Oh, it was definitely confirmed today that my brother was murdered,” said Angelica Cottrell, the victim’s sister.

The victim and Morris drove from Atlanta to Birmingham to celebrate the holiday with his sister and her family.

“My children started to pop fireworks and because my brother had his dog with him, he was gonna run into the house real quick and go and check on the dog,” Angelica Cottrell said.

She said Morris was the one who alerted her that her brother disappeared saying he jumped off her patio balcony.

“He told us that when he jumped, he bounced...got up and jumped the fence and took off running,” she said.

She added that his initial reaction and behavior were bizarre.

“While we looked – Julian didn’t,” she said. “At one point when everybody was searching, Julian had fixed a plate and was sitting there eating, and he looked at me and said, ‘omg the food is so good.’”

Fearing Morris knew more than what he was letting on, Angelica said she told him to leave and find somewhere else to stay.

“Julian knows everything and he made a point to keep reminding me throughout his rants that he was a marine,” she said.

Morris is no longer answering calls.

If you have any information, call Birmingham Police or CrimeStoppers. There is currently a $5,000 reward for information leading to an arrest.