Police arrested a Fort Smith man after a man was found dead early Saturday morning.
Around 6:45 a.m., police found the body of Brent Allen Morrison, 44, of Fort Smith in the street near Wells Lake Road, according to a news release from Corporal Barbara Williams of the Fort Smith Police Department. Police said it appears he was shot. Morrison's body was sent to the state Crime Lab for an autopsy.
Police talked to witnesses in the area, including John Suleski. After being interviewed by detectives, police arrested Suleski in connection with the shooting and booked him into the Sebastian County jail on charges of first-degree murder and unlawful discharge of firearm in city limits, according to the release. He was being held without bond.
Suleski is a staff sergeant with the 188th Wing of the Arkansas Air National Guard, according to Maj. Heath Allen, a spokesman for the 188th Wing. Suleski is a photojournalist and works in the public affairs office. He has been with the 188th for just over a year and had previously been an active duty Marine.
Wells Lake Road is at Chaffee Crossing, a 7,000-acre section of the former Fort Chaffee that was declared surplus and released to be developed for civilian use. The area where the shooting occurred was sparsely developed and mostly open fields and woods.
Information for this article was contributed by Dave Hughes of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
Metro on 07/12/2015