4 charged with killing professor, sister

NASHVILLE, Sept. 4 (UPI) -- Detectives in Tennessee say that a Vanderbilt University professor and his sister were killed by neighbors who decided to rob them.

Four suspects appeared in court Wednesday, The Nashville Tennessean reported. Two of the group, George Cody, 29, and Gennyfer Hutcherson, 35, live around the corner in Nashville from the house Pierre Colas, 32, shared with his sister, Marie, 27.

Police said Colas might have been targeted because of his habit of sitting on the front porch. He was killed Aug. 26, and his sister died a few days later.

The other suspects, Thomas Reed, 20, and Michael Holloway, 22, had come to Nashville with a group selling magazines.

The suspects allegedly used the Colas' bank cards to buy clothes and other items. Surveillance tapes from Wal-Mart and Walgreens show three men laughing while they shop.

Lawyers for the suspects say police have no proof any of the four were involved with the killings.