Suspect pleads guilty to killing TN nursing student

A 37-year-old man suspected in the death of a Tullahoma nursing student pleaded guilty on Monday.

Donnie Jones, of Tullahoma, Tennessee, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder without the possibility of parole for killing 24-year-old Megan Sharpton.

A grand jury had indicted him in the case late last year.

Sharpton was found dead by a passing driver near the Awalt Bridge on July 3, 2012. Police said she was murdered and her body was set on fire to cover up the crime.

Jones was charged with first-degree murder, felony murder, two counts of especially aggravated kidnapping and two counts of aggravated rape.

Jones became the prime suspect in Sharpton's murder after detectives became aware of his lengthy criminal history and that the nursing student would sometimes commute to and from school with Jones' wife.

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