FAYETTEVILLE — Police say they have identified the man found dead Oct. 16 in an open pit at a Prairie Grove gas station as Bobby Henry.
Capt. Jeff O’Brien with Prairie Grove’s Police Department said Monday he had gotten confirmation from the Washington County Coroner’s Office the man found was Henry, a 61-year-old who had originally been reported as missing Oct. 10 from a home in Lincoln.
Police had said last week they believed the body was Henry from a description given by family members of his appearance and clothing. After the body was found Oct. 16 it was sent to the state Crime Lab for identification and to establish a cause of death.
O’Brien said Monday he hadn’t yet gotten any information on the cause of Henry’s death.
A Silver Alert was issued for Henry on Oct. 10 by the Arkansas State Police, O’Brien said. He was reportedly last seen walking away from a home at 1658 E. North St. in Lincoln.
O’Brien said Lincoln police received a report the same day of a truck stolen from Leming & Son Trucking at 1749 E. North St. in Lincoln, which O’Brien said is across the street from the home where Henry was last seen.
Initially, O’Brien said, there was no evidence to connect the missing man and the missing truck. The truck was found around 10 a.m. Oct. 10 after it was driven through a gate at a Prairie Grove propane business, across a field, and then crashed in a ditch outside the business property.
The location of the crash is apparently just outside Prairie Grove’s city limits. Washington County Sheriff‘s Office deputies found the truck and searched the area Oct. 10 but found no one, O’Brien said. Another search later in the same week also failed to find anyone.
On Oct. 16, O’Brien said, a man had stopped at the Pit Stop gas station and convenience store at 16014 U.S. 62, which is near the intersection of U.S. 62 and Bobb Kidd Lake Road. O’Brien said the man stopped to pick up a vehicle he had purchased from CoPart Auto Salvage and it was common for buyers to transport their vehicles from CoPart Auto Salvage to the abandoned parking lot.
The business has been closed for some time, O’Brien said. The man went around to the north side of the building and stopped near a large open pit where gasoline storage tanks for the business had been removed. The man told police he looked down into the pit and saw a body at the bottom of the pit in about a foot of water.
O’Brien said the Pit Stop is about 800 feet from where the truck had crashed into the ditch. The open pit is 6 to 8 feet deep in places with very steep sides, he said. The body was recovered by Prairie Grove police and sent to the state Crime Lab.
On Oct. 17, O’Brien said he received a call from Tom Smith, the owner of the property. Smith told police he leased the property to individuals who had removed the gas tanks and created the pit. During that process, the ground was found to be contaminated and the state was conducting an investigation which wouldn’t allow him to fill the pit. Smith told police he’ll now work to place a containment fence around the pit.