Oklahoma men charged in alleged torture, murder of missing mom from Arkansas
Tara Strozier was reported missing on July 19
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A missing Arkansas mother of three was found dead this week in Oklahoma – where investigators say they believe she was tortured, murdered and left weighted down in a pond.
Three men have been arrested in connection with the death of Tara Strozier, a 40-year-old from Fort Smith, Arkansas, who was last seen alive about 20 miles away across state lines in Cameron, Oklahoma, on July 17, according to the Fort Smith Police Department.
Tara Strozier, a 40-year-old from Fort Smith, Arkansas, was last seen alive about 20 miles away across state lines in Cameron, Oklahoma, on July 17, according to the Fort Smith Police Department. (Fort Smith Police Department)
Strozier was listed as missing on July 19, according to the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation.
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On July 24, deputies from the LeFlore County Sheriff’s Office spotted her car, a black Volkswagen Jetta, abandoned in a Cameron driveway.
The deputies found no sign of Strozier and expected foul play, according to the OSBI, which was called in to assist. On Thursday, July 29, they found her body.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Based on the joint investigation, authorities believe Strozier was tortured at an unoccupied mobile home off Neblett Ridge Road in Cameron before being murdered by the pond near Rock Island," the OSBI said in a statement.
Investigators zeroed in on three suspects -- (from left to right) Alex Nathaniel Davis, 30, Austin Johnson, 23, and Kaelin Hutchinson, 24. (Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation )
Investigators zeroed in on three suspects -- Alex Nathaniel Davis, 30, Austin Johnson, 23, and Kaelin Hutchinson, 24.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"On July 29, 2021, Davis admitted to killing Strozier while Johnson was present," the OSBI said. "After she was killed by the pond, they weighed her body down and threw her into the pond."
Both Davis and Johnson are facing first-degree murder charges. Hutchinson is accused of obstruction of an officer.
Davis faces an additional kidnapping charge, according to authorities.
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All three were being held at the LeFlore County Detention Center.
Further details about the investigation were not immediately available Saturday.