JOHNSON COUNTY (KFSM) – New investigation documents state a Pope County man killed his cousin and burned his remains in the trunk of a car left at a local park.
Nathaniel Talkington, 25, was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of first-degree murder and transported to the Johnson County Detention Center, where he remains without bond. A woman with him at the time, Kristen Horn, was taken into custody for questioning.
Authorities believe the burned body found Saturday in the trunk of a BMW left at Cabin Creek Park in Johnson County is Caleb Matthew Talkington, according to an arrest warrant filed against the suspect.
An eyewitness in the case told authorities Nathaniel said he killed Caleb, but it was an accident, the warrant states.
The warrant states the 1998 BMW 500 was registered to Caleb Talkington and no one has seen or heard from him since last week. The last activity on his phone was from last Thursday night (Oct. 30), the document states.
Caleb’s father told investigators Caleb and Nathaniel recently got into a fight. Caleb’s grandmother told authorities Nathaniel recently threatened to kill Caleb if he was able to get his hands on him, according to the arrest warrant.
Investigators searched the home where Caleb Talkington had been staying in London, Ark., and found a section of carpet missing and oil poured on the porch. The owner of the home said he was missing a kitchen knife and cleaning supplies from the kitchen. He also mentioned there were several burn patches in his yard, the warrant states.
Authorities found several blood samples from the porch area and the area of the home where the carpet was removed, according to the arrest warrant.
Deputies found a body in the trunk of a burned car early Saturday morning (Nov. 1) after responding to a vehicle fire in Knoxville, according to the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office.
A deputy received a report around 1:30 a.m. of a vehicle on fire near the pavilion at Cabin Creek Park. Responding firefighters later pried open the trunk of the BMW that was on fire and discovered a badly burned body, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
The body was sent to the Arkansas State Crime Lab, where the cause of death was determined a homicide, according to the arrest warrant.
