FORT SMITH (KFSM)– The caretaker of a disabled Fort Smith man was arrested on suspicion of murder, according to the Fort Smith Police Department.
Shawn Edward Howard, of Pocola, Oklahoma, was arrested on suspicion of second-degree murder Wednesday (April 8), in connection with the death of Jimmy Don Abner, 57, of Fort Smith.
The arrest warrant issued for Howard states he knowingly caused Abner's death "under circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to the value of human life."
Howard was Abner's sole home healthcare aid through Bost for seven years before his death, according to the warrant.
Abner was reported missing on Feb. 10, according to police. At the time he was suffering from early-onset dementia, Alzheimer's and had the mental capacity of a 5-year-old, the warrant states. On Feb. 12, Abner's body was found in a wooded area off of Cedarville Road in Cedarville, according to the warrant. He was naked except for a pair of socks, the warrant states.
An autopsy showed Abner's cause of death was dehydration and sepsis due to pressure necrosis of the right hip and thigh due to protein calorie malnutrition and the death was ruled a homicide, according to the warrant. When Abner was found he weighed 92 pounds and was covered in bed sores, the warrant states. Medical records show that in Sept. 2014, he weighed 30 pounds more than he did at the time of his death, according to the warrant.
When police interviewed Howard before the discovery of Abner's body, he told police Abner left the house with a man named "Eugene" in a white Nissan pickup truck while Howard was in the shower, but investigators determined "Eugene" didn't exist, the warrant states.
Police also interviewed Ceilia Elizabeth Howard, who was Howard's acquaintance. She told them Howard asked her to tell officers that Abner left with "Eugene" on Feb. 10 and in exchange Howard was going to pay her $4,200, according to the warrant.
When Abner's body was found, Howard told police that when Abner left with "Eugene" on Feb. 9 he was in good health with no bed sores and weighed 134 pounds, the warrant states.
The police then received a handwritten note, supposedly from "Eugene," that stated "Eugene" and Abner went to Joplin, Missouri to get "gay married" and "if you don't stop looking for him, I'll kill myself and him," according to the warrant. The letter was mailed from Oklahoma and was written in cursive handwriting that matched Howard's handwritten statement to police and his monthly Bost paperwork, the warrant states.
Howard was supposed to provide Abner with 24-hour care, seven days a week and had to be relieved by another Bost employee in order to leave Abner's home, according to the warrant. Casino records and video obtained by police showed Howard went to an Oklahoma casino almost every day in January 2015 for several hours, the warrant states. He told police Ceilia watched Abner for him, but Ceilia denies that claim, according to the warrant.
The arrest warrant also states police determined Howard tried to minimize Abner's contact with other people who might notice his injuries. A Bost employee, who was supposed to check on Abner every 30 days, told police the last few times she had been to his home Abner was in a bubble bath and she never asked him to stand, according to the warrant.
Abner's autopsy noted that when his malnourishment reached a point where lethargy and abandonment of normal activities had taken place, Howard, as Abner's sole caregiver, should have provided other medical attention, the warrant states. Howard should have also sought out medical attention for Abner when the victim developed pressure sores and bed sores, which take several days to develop, according to the warrant. Since Abner's basic nutritional and medical needs were ignored, he was a victim of neglect and homicide, the warrant states.
Howard is being held at the Sebastian County Detention Center, according to police. His bond has not been set and he has a court date scheduled for April 15.
To read the full arrest warrant, click here.