Jackson County man indicted on two counts of first-degree murder

JACKSON COUNTY, Fla. ( WMBB ) – A grand jury has indicted a Jackson County man on 2-counts of first-degree murder.

The grand jury returned the 3-count indictment on Friday against 46-year-old Jerry Lee Upshaw, Jr.

Besides the two counts of first-degree murder, Upshaw is also charged with 1-count of solicitation to commit first-degree murder.

The charges are in connection with the October 2021 deaths of Stephon Gaines and Nicholas Hollis. Gaines and Hollis were last seen together around October 19th, 2021 before disappearing, officials said.

Last year investigators discovered some human remains in a field off of Jackson Road and Woodcrest Road in the town of Jacob City. The remains were confirmed as Gaines and Hollis.

At the same time, authorities charged 22-year-old Jeremiah Castro and 20-year-old Wiltay Young with the murders. They are still in jail and have yet to go on trial.

Prosecutors believe Upshaw hired Castro and Young to carry out the killings. He is already being held in the Jackson County jail on human trafficking charges.

Upshaw has a long criminal record, including arrests on drug charges, and an arson charge for allegedly hiring someone to burn down his own house so he could collect insurance money.

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