An Arkansas man, aged 25, faces charges of murder following the fatal shooting of a 68-year-old man in a Coal Hill park.
According to the Arkansas State Police, Kenneth E. Michaels’ body was discovered on Tuesday afternoon by a Coal Hill police officer at the city’s park.
Authorities have identified Colton T. Contant as the suspect in the shooting. Witnesses reported seeing him leave the scene, and he was swiftly apprehended by a coordinated effort from Coal Hill officers, state troopers, and Johnson County deputies.
Contant is currently held at the Johnson County jail without bond after being charged with first-degree murder.
Details surrounding the shooting have not been disclosed at this time.
The River Valley Democrat Gazette notes that Contant, along with 24-year-old Abigail L. Sill, faced charges of domestic battery and child endangerment in October. Court records also indicate that Sill was later prohibited from contacting Contant through a no-contact order.
Both are due back in court on December 2. The court records show that Contant and Sill have a 2-year-old child together.
Contant also pleaded guilty in 2022 to second-degree terroristic threatening, obstructing governmental operations and harassing communications charges, according to Crawford County court records. He was sentenced to 12 months in jail with 11 of them suspended and ordered to have no contact with Sill, who was the victim.
