Authorities said Monday they charged an Arkansas man with murder weeks after deputies found the body of a 65-year-old man inside the car he was driving during a traffic stop, which saw him crash through a fence while fleeing.
The Garland County sheriff’s office said 58-year-old Keith Ashlock now faces first-degree murder charges stemming from the April 30 traffic stop in Hot Springs. Authorities said Ashlock smashed through a fence and climbed to the roof of the Hamilton Pointe Condominiums before deputies eventually arrested him.
Sheriff’s officials said they found the body of a person inside the Cadillac Ashlock drove and identified him on Monday as Jimmie Fryar, a Montgomery County resident.
A sheriff’s office statement announcing the murder charges didn't include details about how Fryar died nor how they suspect Ashlock in his killing.
Authorities initially charged Ashlock, a Pine Ridge resident, with multiple fleeing from police misdemeanors.
Records show Ashlock has several prior burglaries and impaired driving convictions, and he’s also listed as a level-three registered sex offender in Arkansas.
His inclusion on the registry stemmed from sexual assault convictions when he lived in Southern California in the 1980s, according to court records. The assaults involved him exposing his genitals to girls.
Ashlock remained in the Garland County jail on Monday with bond set at $200,000.
His attorney didn’t immediately return a message seeking comment on the charges.