Tuscaloosa AA Club Murder Suspect ID'd As Transient Criminal

A manhunt for the man allegedly responsible for a killing at Tuscaloosa's Alconon club last month ended Thursday with the arrest of a transient fugitive also wanted for a double murder in Oklahoma.

Captain Jack Kennedy, the commander of the Tuscaloosa Violent Crimes Unit, updated local media on the investigation into the murder of Russell Andrews Thursday morning. Andrews was found dead at the AA Club five weeks ago, on May 14th, and almost nothing was known about what happened.

Kennedy said the suspected killer had used a false name and had only been in Tuscaloosa for a few weeks before the homicide.

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He also allegedly stole the victim's vehicle and it was last seen on surveillance cameras near the Askansas-Oklahoma border.

Kennedy said that did not deter the VCU, who used electronic and forensic tools, and eventually human eyewitnesses to ID the suspect as Stacy Lee Drake, age 50.

A warrant has been obtained on Drake for Murder for the clubhouse killing.

"Beginning with almost no information and a false name, the shared resources of VCU working together and the processes used in this case to identify Drake should be considered a major success," Kennedy said.

Kennedy said since the victim's vehicle was spotted well outside VCU jurisdiction, they have pulled in the US Marshals Task Force to initiate a nationwide search for Drake, who has not yet been located and arrested.

"On June 18^th Drake was determined to be the suspect in a double homicide in Oklahoma," Kennedy said. "Authorities there are actively searching for him. Information concerning this is widely available online. VCU is providing investigative support and actively sharing information to these agencies."

The suspected killer, Drake, has a long criminal history in multiple regional states, Kennedy said, including robberies, carjackings, and kidnappings and he is now the lead suspect in three homicides.

Kennedy also said Drake has been arrested here before, after a 2010 "crime spree" in Gordo.

Drake was taken into custody in Arkansas Thursday.