Georgia · Cobb County · Crime
Terrell Williams, 44, of Stone Mountain Charged in the Greg Biffle Home Burglary After a Laurel Creek Trail Arrest in Smyrna; Held Without Bond in Cobb County, GA
A man arrested in Cobb County in July has been charged in the January burglary of the North Carolina home of the late NASCAR driver Greg Biffle, Iredell County Sheriff Darren Campbell announced Tuesday. Terrell Williams, 44, of Stone Mountain is held without bond in Cobb County on a separate Georgia case. He is charged, not convicted.
- What did the Iredell County sheriff announce about Greg Biffle's home?
- Who is Terrell Williams, and what is he charged with?
- What happened on Laurel Creek Trail in Smyrna?
- What was taken from the Biffle home, and what has been recovered?
- When did the burglary happen, and why do the dates differ?
- How did investigators say they connected the two cases?
- What did the sheriff say about how the homes were chosen?
- What is the separate fraud investigation, and is Williams part of it?
- Who investigates a case that crosses the Georgia line?
- What is not known yet
- Which newsrooms carried this, and which is the wire story?
- Frequently asked questions
What did the Iredell County sheriff announce about Greg Biffle's home?
A Georgia man arrested in Cobb County in July has been charged in the January burglary of the North Carolina home of the late NASCAR driver Greg Biffle, Iredell County Sheriff Darren Campbell announced at a news conference on Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2026.
The man is Terrell Williams, 44, of Stone Mountain, WSOC-TV reported from Mooresville, N.C. He is charged. He has not been convicted of anything in this case, and nothing on this page should be read as a finding of guilt.
The break-in happened at Biffle's home in Iredell County, North Carolina, weeks after the December plane crash that killed Biffle and his family. WBTV placed the house in Mooresville and dated the crash to Dec. 18, 2025, near Statesville.
WSOC-TV reported that the crash killed Biffle, his wife Cristina, their two children and three other people aboard: Craig Wadsworth, Dennis Dutton and Dutton's son Jack. The Associated Press, in the version CBS News Atlanta carried, noted the crash remains under investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board.
Who is Terrell Williams, and what is he charged with?
Williams is 44 and lives in Stone Mountain, according to every outlet that carried the story. WFAE spells the first name Terrel; the four other reports spell it Terrell, and this report follows the majority spelling.
He is being held without bond in Cobb County, Georgia, on a separate Georgia case. The Associated Press added that jail records did not list an attorney for him.
The North Carolina charge lists differ by outlet, and this report does not merge them:
- The Associated Press, via CBS News Atlanta: second-degree burglary, safe cracking, money laundering and other felonies.
- WFAE: three felony counts of second-degree burglary.
- WBTV: second-degree burglary, safe cracking, money laundering, larceny of a firearm — charges it reported he was expected to face.
- FOX 5 Atlanta: a longer North Carolina list — safecracking; money laundering; obtaining property by false pretense; possession of burglary tools; larceny of firearms; breaking and entering.
- WSOC-TV: multiple felony counts, including second-degree burglary.
WFAE also reported that Williams has pending felony warrants tied to a 2019 breaking and entering case in Mecklenburg County. That detail appears in WFAE's report alone among the five read here.
What happened on Laurel Creek Trail in Smyrna?
FOX 5 Atlanta reported that on July 29, Cobb County police arrested Williams over a home break-in on Laurel Creek Trail in Smyrna, then contacted North Carolina officers about him.
FOX 5 Atlanta reported that the Laurel Creek Trail break-in occurred one week after a deadly domestic shooting at that same property. Williams is not accused of that shooting. None of the five reports read for this article says he was charged in it, connects him to it, or names him in it. The shooting is context for why the Smyrna address was in the news; it is not a charge against him.
WSOC-TV described the Georgia arrest without naming the street, saying only that it involved a separate burglary connected to a high-profile homicide case. WBTV described it as an unrelated crime.
FOX 5 Atlanta also reported that a resident of the Laurel Creek Trail home said he was aware of the connection between the break-in at his house and the burglary at Biffle's residence.
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What was taken from the Biffle home, and what has been recovered?
Every outlet puts the cash at $30,000 or more. Beyond that the inventories diverge, so each version is set out here rather than averaged:
- FOX 5 Atlanta: cash in excess of $30,000, multiple firearms, NASCAR memorabilia, gold and silver coins.
- WSOC-TV: firearms, jewelry, gold and silver coins, NASCAR memorabilia and $30,000 in cash.
- The Associated Press, in the version CBS News Atlanta carried: $30,000 in cash, two Glock handguns, NASCAR memorabilia, gold and silver coins.
- WFAE: $30,000 in cash, NASCAR memorabilia, a pair of handguns.
- WBTV, citing an incident report it obtained: $30,000 in cash and a backpack taken, with two firearms and NASCAR memorabilia also feared missing.
WBTV reported that deputies had been in contact with local race teams ever since the break-in, trying to trace the property and pin down exactly what was missing.
On recovery, the accounts differ in degree. FOX 5 Atlanta reported that search warrants executed in Georgia recovered most of the property stolen from Biffle's home. The Associated Press reported that investigators recovered some of the stolen items, including NASCAR memorabilia. WSOC-TV reported that the stolen items were returned to the Biffle family, and WFAE reported that some of the items were found at Williams' home.
FOX 5 Atlanta and WSOC-TV both reported that the Georgia searches also turned up a law enforcement officer's service weapon stolen three years earlier in western North Carolina. The Associated Press reported separately that Williams is suspected in another North Carolina burglary that happened while a law enforcement officer was in the hospital. No source read here states that those two are the same incident, and this report does not merge them.
WSOC-TV quoted Campbell on returning the property: It's some kind of closure to the family, and that's why we do this.
FOX 5 Atlanta reported that detectives said Biffle's surviving family expressed relief that heirlooms had been recovered.
When did the burglary happen, and why do the dates differ?
This is the one point where the reporting openly splits, so it is stated rather than smoothed over.
FOX 5 Atlanta wrote that the break-in happened on Jan. 8. WSOC-TV reported that Iredell County deputies were called to the home for a reported burglary on Jan. 8. The Associated Press wrote that authorities reported a break-in at the home on Jan. 8. WFAE wrote that it happened the night of Jan. 7. WBTV dated it only to January.
Three outlets and the wire say Jan. 8; one says the night of Jan. 7.
Key facts
- Who is charged
- Terrell Williams, 44, of Stone Mountain, Georgia. Charged, not convicted
- Announced by
- Iredell County (N.C.) Sheriff Darren Campbell, news conference, Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2026
- Georgia arrest
- July 29 by Cobb County police, over a residential break-in on Laurel Creek Trail in Smyrna (FOX 5 Atlanta)
- Custody
- Held without bond in Cobb County, Georgia on the separate Georgia case
- North Carolina case
- Burglary of Greg Biffle's home in Iredell County, near Mooresville
- Date of that burglary
- Jan. 8 per FOX 5 Atlanta, WSOC-TV and the AP; the night of Jan. 7 per WFAE
- Reported stolen
- $30,000 or more in cash, firearms, NASCAR memorabilia, gold and silver coins; jewelry per WSOC-TV
- Key evidence cited
- Property recovered on Georgia search warrants; cellphone and cell tower data; a radio frequency detector
- Extradition
- Requested by Iredell County. No date announced
- Sourcing
- Four independent newsrooms plus an Associated Press wire story
How did investigators say they connected the two cases?
Campbell's account, as the five reports describe it, rests on three things: property, phones and a device.
WSOC-TV reported that the case turned on July 29, when Cobb County investigators reached out to Iredell County deputies following Williams' arrest in the separate Georgia burglary, and that detectives then found property stolen from Biffle's home in his possession. FOX 5 Atlanta reported the same sequence, describing property associated with Williams in Georgia that matched what had been taken from Biffle's home.
On location data, FOX 5 Atlanta reported that phone records and cell-tower analysis put Williams at the Biffle house both on the night of the break-in and in the days before it. WFAE reported that cellphones recovered from Williams' home showed the same. WBTV reported that search warrants for cellphone and GPS data were used to establish it.
The third element is the radio frequency detector. FOX 5 Atlanta and the Associated Press reported that detectives found one in Williams' possession and believe it was used to locate wireless security cameras. WSOC-TV reported detectives believe it was used during the break-in to sweep for cameras and wireless monitoring gear. WFAE reported investigators believe it was used to navigate the home.
The surveillance video did not settle identity. FOX 5 Atlanta reported that security footage captured an intruder inside the residence, but that infrared camera illumination and facial coverings prevented an immediate identification. WSOC-TV reported that the footage showed someone in a mask and a hat and that investigators could not confirm the person pictured was Williams. WBTV reported that Campbell declined to confirm it and said instead: I feel confident that he was there.
WSOC-TV and WFAE both reported that cash taken in the burglary was used the following day to buy a vehicle from a dealership. The two outlets that say where it ended up disagree: WSOC-TV reported that officers later seized the vehicle in Georgia, while FOX 5 Atlanta reported it was seized by North Carolina authorities. FOX 5 Atlanta's account of where the dealership was is garbled in its published text and is not repeated here.
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What did the sheriff say about how the homes were chosen?
Campbell said Williams identified targets from news coverage and social media. WSOC-TV quoted him saying Williams used headlines, social media posts, different things to find out when people were or were not at home.
The Associated Press rendered the same quote with slightly different wording, which is normal when two newsrooms transcribe the same news conference.
FOX 5 Atlanta reported that Campbell said Williams searched social media posts and news headlines to identify properties where nobody would be home.
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What is the separate fraud investigation, and is Williams part of it?
He is not named in it. This needs to be stated flatly, because the two investigations were announced at the same news conference and are easy to blur together.
WSOC-TV reported a separate white-collar fraud investigation involving people close to Biffle, in which an inside plan allegedly targeted the late driver's estate and accounts. WSOC-TV wrote that it was not naming the people listed in the search warrants because they have not been charged, and that Campbell said there is a person of interest.
The Associated Press reported that a search warrant affidavit describes online intrusions into Biffle family banking, Venmo and PayPal accounts, in which contact details on the accounts were altered and money was moved out to accounts the family did not own. WSOC-TV carries the same wording, so on this point the two are one source. Both reported that at least one fraudulent check tied to Biffle's business interests was cashed and that the activity spanned multiple states.
FOX 5 Atlanta described the separate white-collar aspect as spanning multiple states from South Carolina to California.
To be explicit: no report read for this article connects Terrell Williams to the fraud investigation. The person of interest in it has not been named publicly and has not been charged.
Who investigates a case that crosses the Georgia line?
The burglary charge belongs to North Carolina. The Iredell County Sheriff's Office holds the Biffle case and its sheriff, Darren Campbell, is the official who announced the charge.
The custody belongs to Georgia. Cobb County police made the July 29 arrest, and Cobb County is where Williams is held without bond on its own separate case. FOX 5 Atlanta reported that a specific extradition timetable has not been announced while Georgia law enforcement finishes processing the local charges.
WSOC-TV and WFAE both reported that the Iredell County Sheriff's Office has formally requested Williams' extradition to North Carolina so the felony warrants there can be served on him.
The plane crash is a third agency's file entirely. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating it. WSOC-TV reported that an NTSB investigation found the aircraft's altimeter was giving inaccurate readings, and that the board's full report is likely still months away. The Local Alert did not read an NTSB document directly; that account reaches this page through WSOC-TV.
FOX 5 Atlanta quoted Campbell on the multi-state cooperation: It's great to see law enforcement across state lines work a case, come together and get a great conclusion.
WFAE quoted him saying the investigation is still open: We want to make sure we leave no stone unturned.
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What is not known yet
- Whether anyone else took part in the Biffle burglary. FOX 5 Atlanta reported that authorities have not confirmed whether additional accomplices were involved.
- When Williams will be extradited to North Carolina. The request has been made; no date has been announced.
- Who the person of interest in the separate fraud investigation is. That person has not been named and has not been charged.
- Whether the Biffle burglary and the fraud case are connected to each other beyond both involving the same family's property.
- What Georgia charges Williams faces in Cobb County. The reports say he is held without bond on a separate case there without listing the counts.
- Whether Williams has an attorney. The Associated Press reported that jail records did not list one.
- Whether the officer's service weapon recovered in Georgia and the burglary at a hospitalized officer's home are the same case. No source read here states that they are.
- Whether the person captured in the Biffle security footage has been identified. Investigators say they could not confirm it was Williams.
- Exactly which other states the multi-state aspect of the investigation touches, beyond the South Carolina to California range FOX 5 Atlanta described.
- What the NTSB's completed report on the December crash will conclude. WSOC-TV reported it is likely months away.
Which newsrooms carried this, and which is the wire story?
Five reports were read for this article, and they are not five independent newsrooms.
The wire copy is easy to spot: CBS News Atlanta's version carries an Associated Press byline. It is the AP wire story. Any other outlet running that same copy is running AP, not reporting independently, so it counts once.
The other four each carry their own staff byline: Denise Dillon at FOX 5 Atlanta, Hannah Goetz at WSOC-TV, Connor Lomis at WBTV, and Kenneth Lee Jr. at WFAE. Their parent companies differ: FOX 5 Atlanta is a Fox-owned station, WSOC-TV is Cox Media Group, WBTV is Gray Media, and WFAE is a public radio station in Charlotte. Cox also owns WSB-TV and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, so a WSB report on this story would not be independent of WSOC-TV.
One overlap is worth flagging. The paragraphs describing the bank, Venmo and PayPal access appear in near-identical wording in both the WSOC-TV report and the AP wire story, which suggests shared or picked-up material rather than two separate reporting efforts on that specific point.
Only FOX 5 Atlanta names Laurel Creek Trail, and only FOX 5 Atlanta attaches the July 29 date to the arrest itself; WSOC-TV gives July 29 as the day Cobb County investigators contacted Iredell County. That street name rests on one newsroom, and this report attributes it to that newsroom every time it appears. That street name and that date rest on one newsroom, and this report attributes them to it every time they appear.
This story is part of The Local Alert's ongoing Cobb County, GA coverage, which also includes a weapon arrest at Campbell Middle School in Smyrna. A separate Georgia break-in case reported earlier this month: seven racketeering guilty pleas over a Gwinnett County vehicle break-in ring.
Frequently asked questions
Who has been charged in the Greg Biffle home burglary?
Terrell Williams, 44, of Stone Mountain, Georgia, has been charged, Iredell County Sheriff Darren Campbell announced at a news conference on Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2026. He is charged, not convicted, and is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
Where was Terrell Williams arrested?
In Cobb County, Georgia. FOX 5 Atlanta reported that Cobb County police arrested him on July 29 over a home break-in on Laurel Creek Trail in Smyrna. He is being held without bond in Cobb County on that separate Georgia case.
Is Terrell Williams accused of the deadly shooting on Laurel Creek Trail in Smyrna?
No. FOX 5 Atlanta reported that the Smyrna break-in he was arrested over happened one week after a deadly domestic shooting at that same property. None of the five reports The Local Alert read accuses Williams of that shooting or says he has been charged in it.
What is Terrell Williams charged with in North Carolina?
The Associated Press, carried by CBS News Atlanta, listed second-degree burglary, safe cracking, money laundering and other felonies. WFAE reported three felony counts of second-degree burglary. WBTV reported he was expected to face several felonies including larceny of a firearm.
When did the burglary at Greg Biffle's home happen?
The outlets do not agree. FOX 5 Atlanta, WSOC-TV and the Associated Press all place it on Jan. 8. WFAE reported it happened the night of Jan. 7. The Local Alert is reporting both rather than splitting the difference.
What was stolen from Greg Biffle's home?
The lists vary by outlet. WSOC-TV reported firearms, jewelry, gold and silver coins, NASCAR memorabilia and $30,000 in cash. The Associated Press specified two Glock handguns. FOX 5 Atlanta reported cash in excess of $30,000, multiple firearms, memorabilia and gold and silver coins.
Has the property stolen from the Biffle home been recovered?
In part. FOX 5 Atlanta reported that search warrants in Georgia recovered most of the property taken from the Biffle home. The Associated Press reported that investigators recovered some of the stolen items, including NASCAR memorabilia. WSOC-TV reported the items were returned to the Biffle family.
How did investigators say they linked Terrell Williams to the Biffle burglary?
Sheriff Campbell said property taken from the Biffle home was found in Williams' possession in Georgia, and that cellphone and cell tower data placed him at the residence at the time of the break-in and in the days before it. WBTV reported that search warrants for cellphone and GPS data were used.
What is the radio frequency detector investigators found?
A device recovered during the Georgia investigation. FOX 5 Atlanta and the Associated Press reported that detectives believe it was used to locate wireless security cameras. WSOC-TV reported detectives believe it was used to sweep for cameras and wireless monitoring gear.
Was Terrell Williams identified in the surveillance video from the Biffle home?
No. FOX 5 Atlanta reported that infrared camera illumination and facial coverings kept detectives from making an immediate identification. WSOC-TV reported that investigators could not confirm the person in the video was Williams, and WBTV quoted Campbell saying only, “I feel confident that he was there.”
Is Terrell Williams connected to the fraud investigation involving the Biffle estate?
No source The Local Alert read says he is. WSOC-TV and the Associated Press described a separate white-collar investigation into accounts tied to the Biffle family, and WSOC-TV reported that Campbell said there is a person of interest in it. That person has not been named and has not been charged.
When will Terrell Williams be extradited to North Carolina?
No date has been announced. WSOC-TV and WFAE reported that the Iredell County Sheriff's Office has requested extradition so felony warrants can be served. FOX 5 Atlanta reported that no timetable has been set while Georgia law enforcement finishes processing local charges.
How many newsrooms reported this story?
The Local Alert read five reports: FOX 5 Atlanta, WSOC-TV, WBTV, WFAE and CBS News Atlanta. The CBS News Atlanta version carries an Associated Press byline, so it counts as the AP wire story rather than as a fifth independent newsroom.
Sources
- FOX 5 Atlanta — “How a Georgia murder probe solved a NASCAR legend's home burglary,” by Denise Dillon. Its JSON-LD gives datePublished 2026-08-18T22:28:54-04:00 (10:28 p.m. ET) and dateModified 10:31 p.m. ET. Fox Television Stations. Sole source for Laurel Creek Trail, for the July 29 arrest date and for the one-week interval after the shooting at that property.
- WSOC-TV, Charlotte — “Georgia man charged with burglarizing NASCAR driver Greg Biffle's home after plane crash,” by Hannah Goetz, dateline Mooresville, N.C. Its JSON-LD gives datePublished 2026-08-18T21:17:05.921Z (5:17 p.m. ET). Cox Media Group, the same parent as WSB-TV and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
- WBTV, Charlotte — “Arrest made in break-in at late NASCAR driver Greg Biffle's home,” by Connor Lomis. Its JSON-LD gives datePublished 2026-08-18T20:00:20.617Z (4:00 p.m. ET). Gray Media, the same parent as Atlanta News First, WALB, WTOC and WRDW.
- CBS News Atlanta — “Georgia man arrested for burglarizing NASCAR driver Greg Biffle's home following fatal plane crash.” Bylined to the Associated Press. Its JSON-LD gives datePublished 2026-08-18T21:51:39-0400 (9:51 p.m. ET). Paramount. This is the AP wire story, not an independent Atlanta report.
- WFAE 90.7, Charlotte — “Suspect charged in connection with burglary of Greg Biffle's home,” by Kenneth Lee Jr. Its page displays “Published August 18, 2026 at 6:43 PM EDT” while its JSON-LD writes the same clock time as 2026-08-18T18:43:36Z, which mislabels Eastern time as UTC. Public radio, Charlotte. Sole source for the night-of-Jan.-7 date and for the 2019 Mecklenburg County warrants.
Compiled by The Local Alert Georgia Staff from the five reports linked above, each of which was opened and read. Four are independent newsrooms with their own staff bylines; the CBS News Atlanta version is an Associated Press wire story and is counted as AP. No news conference recording, no arrest warrant, no incident report and no NTSB document was read firsthand; everything attributed to Sheriff Darren Campbell reaches this page through those five published reports. Terrell Williams is charged and is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court. He is not accused of the shooting that preceded the Laurel Creek Trail break-in, and he is not named in the separate fraud investigation. Where the outlets disagree — on the date of the burglary, on the property list, on where the seized vehicle ended up — each version is attributed to the outlet that published it rather than blended. The Local Alert is not a law enforcement agency and not a law firm. Corrections and removal requests: see our corrections policy.
Reported and fact-checked as of .
Every source linked here was opened and read at that time. The most recent of them is FOX 5 Atlanta's report, published at 10:28 p.m. ET on Aug. 18, 2026 and last modified at 10:31 p.m. ET. Nothing published after that has been located. This report reflects what was known and confirmed at that moment; it is not updated automatically as the case moves through the courts in either state. For the current status of the charges, contact the agencies named above.
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