FORT SMITH — Two men each pleaded innocent to two counts of first-degree murder in Sebastian County Circuit Court on Wednesday.
Mark Trenton Williams, 61, of Fort Smith and Marion Ray Brown, 54, of Idabel, Okla. appeared in person and without counsel during their arraignment on Wednesday, according to Prosecuting Attorney Daniel Shue. A public defender was appointed to represent both of them. Bail was set at $500,000 cash only.
Shue said the case has been set for trial the week of Sept. 8 before Circuit Judge Stephen Tabor in the Fort Smith District of Sebastian County, with a plea deadline of Aug. 18. First-degree murder is a class Y felony.
The criminal information for both defendants provided by Shue March 26 accuse the two men of causing the deaths of Terry Randell Beall, 40, and Amanda Knecht, 44, on or about Jan. 28.
The Fort Smith Police Department received a phone call on or about March 15 that someone was inside a residence at 400 N. 12th Street, the affidavit for an arrest warrant states. Once there, police found an unlocked door and entered to determine if anyone was inside. The residence was abandoned and contained years of trash and debris from both the previous household and unauthorized homeless inhabitants, according to authorities.
Police discovered the decomposing body of a man at the residence, the affidavit states, and suspected an unnatural death. Police found the body of a woman while still processing the crime scene on or about March 17, authorities said. Officers identified the bodies as Beall and Knecht.
The initial investigation determined that both bodies had puncture wounds, the affidavit states. The medical examiner confirmed that they had stab wounds, opining that Beall and Knecht were each killed by a cut to the neck.
The Fort Smith Police Department’s criminal investigations unit started locating and interviewing all those who were known to have been in or at the residence in the past, according to a news release from department spokesman Aric Mitchell.
During the investigation, Williams and Brown were identified as persons of interest and ultimately named as suspects. Two warrants were obtained with the assistance of the prosecuting attorney’s office after an in-depth investigation and both men were arrested.