COLUMBIA, S.C. — After investigators discovered a wealth of tangible evidence linking a former South Carolina police officer to the murder of his neighbor, including bloodstained clothing and a funeral pamphlet with the words “RIP Oscar” and “you should love your neighbor” written on it, authorities said the officer entered a guilty plea.
Just before his trial in Greenwood County was scheduled to start, 43-year-old Justin Rawlins Moody pleaded guilty to murder and was sentenced to 34 years in prison on Monday, according to a statement from Solicitor David Stumbo. Oscar Rubio, 48, was shot in the head and chest and was discovered dead at his Ware Shoals home by his girlfriend in May 2023, according to deputies.
Officers responding to the incident were informed by neighbors that Moody had previously borrowed money from his neighbor and that Rubio and Moody had been fighting recently. Until a deputy he recognized showed up, Moody wouldn’t leave his house.
Stumbo claimed that although Moody told investigators he didn’t kill Rubio, he was quite knowledgeable about what transpired. Stumbo stated that Moody “claimed to be God and could hear the thoughts of other people” when the officers questioned him about how he knew so much.
Evidence discovered
According to prosecutors, deputies discovered the gun that killed Rubio in Moody’s bedroom, blood on pants that were hanging on a kitchen chair, boots in Moody’s house that matched a clear blood footprint at the victim’s house, thousands of dollars in cash that belonged to Rubio, and keys to his car. 
They also discovered the funeral pamphlet that read, “RIP Oscar” and “you should love your neighbor.” Records from the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy show that beginning in 2006, Moody served as a law enforcement officer for at least six different South Carolina agencies.
According to his records, he appeared to quit law enforcement permanently in October 2018 after serving four years in Laurens County, one year in Greenville County, and almost three years in Richland County over two stints.
According to the data, Moody resigned after less than five months and accepted a position with another agency, but none of the agencies reported that he was fired or that he shouldn’t be recruited anywhere else.