Body of Arkansas mother-of-three, 40, who was kidnapped and tortured in empty mobile home is found weighted down in an Oklahoma pond: Three suspects arrested
The body of a woman reported missing in Arkansas last month has been found weighed down in a pond in eastern Oklahoma, leading to the arrests of three men in connection with her kidnapping, torture and murder.
Tara Strozier, 40, a mother-of-three, was discovered dead last Thursday in the pond in Rock Island on the Oklahoma-Arkansas state line, about 15 miles southwest of Fort Smith, Arkansas, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation announced.
Law enforcement officials have not said how Strozier died.
Alex Davis, 30, Austin Johnson, 23, and Kaelin Hutchinson, 24, were jailed in connection with the death.
Tara Strozier, 40, a mom-of-three, was reported missing in Arkansas on July 19. Her body was found in Oklahoma pond on July 29
Davis was arrested on first-degree murder and kidnapping warrants after allegedly confessing to killing Strozier, Johnson on a murder warrant and Hutchinson for obstruction, according to the OSBI.
Strozier was reported missing by her family on July 19 in Fort Smith and the LeFlore County Sheriff’s Office asked the OSBI for assistance after her vehicle, a black Volkswagen Jetta with Florida license plates, was found abandoned five days later in in a private drive in Cameron, Oklahoma, about 4 miles southwest of Rock Island.
Investigators believe that Strozier was tortured at an abandoned mobile home off Neblett Ridge Road in Cameron, killed and her body weighted down then left in the pond, where it was found last week.
Alex Davis, 30 , was arrested for murder after he allegedly admitted to killing Strozier. Davis said second suspect, Austin Johnson, 23 , was present during Strozier's killing
A third suspect, Kaelin Hutchinson, 24, has been arrested on an obstruction charge
Investigators believe that Strozier was tortured at an abandoned mobile home in Oklahoma before her body was weighed down and thrown into a pond
At the time of his arrest, Davis was said to have admitted to killing Strozier while Johnson was present. After she was murdered by the pond, the OSBI said the suspects attached weights to her body and threw her into the water.
Investigators have not said how Strozier knew the suspect, nor have they revealed a possible motive behind the killing.
Davis, Johnson and Hutchinson were booked into the LeFlore County Detention Center.
According to her Facebook page, Strozier was divorced. She is survived by her three children.