JAMESTOWN, Tennessee – A Fentress County grand jury this week indicted two women on first-degree murder charges in the 2024 death of 35-year-old Andrew Willis, a man with developmental disabilities, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said Friday.
The women are 44-year-old Deborah “Mae” Viola, Willis’ sister, and 62-year-old Deborah Deloris Laraway, his mother. Agents with the TBI’s Medicaid Fraud Control Division said both women served as Willis’ caregivers. Authorities found and arrested them Friday in Ohio.
Charges
The grand jury charged both women with one count of first-degree murder and one count of aggravated neglect of a vulnerable adult. Viola also faces one count of TennCare fraud and one count of computer offense.
The TBI said agents gathered evidence indicating Viola and Laraway failed to properly feed and care for Willis, and that the failure led to his death in August 2024. Investigators also found that Viola billed the TennCare CHOICES Program for services she did not provide, according to the agency.
Arrests in Ohio
The Franklin Police Department in Ohio helped agents locate both women, the TBI said. Both are in the Warren County, Ohio, jail awaiting extradition to Tennessee.
How the case developed
In July 2026, 8th Judicial District Attorney General Jared Effler asked the TBI to help the Jamestown Police Department investigate Willis’ death. Special agents from the Medicaid Fraud Control Division joined the case at that point.
Jamestown is the Fentress County seat. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation regularly handles Medicaid fraud and exploitation cases through the same division.
The TBI stressed that the charges are accusations, not evidence. Both women are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt and convicted through due process of law.
The source did not say when Viola and Laraway will return to Tennessee or when they will appear in court.
