Muldrow Man Charged with First Degree Murder

A Muldrow man was charged with first degree murder Thursday in Sequoyah County District Court in Sallisaw. Kelly Wayne King, 54, is charged with the death of Terry Stuart, 62, also of Muldrow. Stuart's body was found in the back yard of his home on Sequoyah Avenue in Muldrow on Monday. According to the probable cause affidavit filed with the charge, King, who was living with Stuart, and Stuart got into an argument over King's drinking problem on June 7. King told investigators in an interview after his apprehension on Monday that when he and Stuart got into the argument, Stuart pulled a knife on him. King said he grabbed Stuart by the arm and broke it. When Stuart fell to the floor, King tried to strangle him. When Stuart made choking noises, King said he got a crowbar and "finished him off." King said he hit Stuart many times. "I unloaded on him," he told investigators. King said he moved the body into the yard and cleaned up the scene. Stuart's body was found in the backyard Monday after a neighbor went to check on Stuart and saw the body, Muldrow police said. While police were at the scene, King drove by in Stuart's Mazda. King saw the police, and fled in the car. That led to a police pursuit along U.S. Highway 64 between Muldrow and Sallisaw. OHP troopers stopped King at the intersection of U.S. Highway 64 and Interstate 40, just as King was about to drive into Sallisaw's 5 o'clock rush-hour traffic. King was taken into custody without incident, OHP troopers reported. They added that he had been drinking heavily. King was interviewed that evening by the district attorney's investigator and Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation agents. King remains in the county jail, held without bond. Stay tuned to KXMX or visit www.kxmx.com for the latest news. By Sally Maxwell, Senior News Director