Inset left to right: Morgan Young and Hunter Anderson (Benton County Jail). Background: A residence where a man was killed in Sulphur Springs, Ark. (Google Maps).
A Missouri woman is behind bars after she hid evidence in a case in which a man was shot and killed in Arkansas, law enforcement says.
Morgan Young, 19, stands accused of hindering apprehension or prosecution, according to court records obtained by Law&Crime.
In the underlying case, Hunter Anderson, 21, stands accused of capital murder, possession of firearms by certain persons, and a probation violation related to the death of 20-year-old Triton Michael King.
Benton County court records show the female defendant was arrested first, on Aug. 14, while the male defendant was arrested five days later. The current charges against both were filed on Aug. 24.
The investigation began on Aug. 13 at a residence on Honey Creek Road in Sulphur Springs, a tiny town located just a few miles due south of the border with the Show-Me State.
Responding deputies found the victim "lying face up in the doorway of the residence" and suffering from multiple gunshot wounds, according to an affidavit of probable cause.
Four witnesses at the crime scene identified Anderson "as the person who shot King," authorities allege in the charging documents.
"Investigators recovered 13 spent shell casings and one live round from the living room area of the residence," one affidavit reads.
Anderson allegedly fled after the shooting and was later arrested in Missouri, according to law enforcement.
During separate interviews, witnesses said King mentioned "carrying a gun" but no one ever saw the victim with a gun, authorities said.
"Before the shooting they were all at the address where the shooting occurred," another affidavit reads. "[The victim] was walking to the porch and back out to the car approximately four times."
At one point, the male defendant left the house before coming back inside and sitting on a bed, the charging document says. Then, Anderson "leaned over and said something" to the wife of the homeowner before he "without warning fired multiple rounds" toward King "striking him several times," the affidavit in his case reads.
The woman was asked what Anderson said to her when he leaned over and she told investigators "she could not hear him because of all the background noise but the only word she heard was 'clip' [s]o, she just acknowledged him," according to the charging document.
After being arrested, Anderson led law enforcement to a pond where he disposed of the gun used in the shooting, the affidavit says.
The other affidavit details the charges against the woman.
Young, for her part, said she did not see the entirety of the incident, but "saw part of it," according to the affidavit filed in her case.
"Immediately after the shooting, she noticed several spent shell casings on the floor near her feet, and one of the casings even struck her," the charging document reads. "Despite not knowing why, she picked up several of the shell casings and placed them in a nearby trash can. Other witnesses present at the residence confirmed seeing Young pick up the spent shell casings and throw them in the trash can."
Natural State law enforcement alleges the shell casings were "potential evidence directly related to the shooting" and King's death.
"Young's actions removed this crucial evidence from the original scene, thereby interfering with the investigation," the charging document goes on. "Young knowingly concealed, removed, or otherwise interfered with evidence related to the investigation of Triton King's death, with the intent to hinder the apprehension, prosecution, or punishment of the person responsible for the crime."
Anderson is being held on $500,000 bail while Young is being held on $25,000 bail. Both are detained in the Benton County Jail.
The male defendant is due back in court on Sept. 8. The female defendant is next slated to appear in court on Sept. 21.