English found guilty in 2019 murder of Columbia man
LEBANON, Mo. (KMIZ)
A Miller County man accused of the 2019 killing of Aaron Brantley was found guilty of murder and other charges on Friday.
Christopher English, 45, was found guilty of first-degree murder, armed-criminal action and the abandonment of a corpse. A sentencing hearing is set for 1 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023.
The Miller County Sheriff’s Office said in March 2019 that Brantley’s body was found in a wooded area near Brumley. The case was originally at the Miller County Courthouse but was moved to Laclede County after a change of venue.
Brantley, who was reported missing Feb. 9, 2019, died of an apparent gunshot wound, the Miller County Sheriff’s Office said at the time.
According to a probable cause statement filed in William G. Lucas’ and Daniel Cole’s cases, the two men allegedly helped move Brantley’s vehicle and body after English shot him at a property on Blue Ridge Road in Miller County. They also helped burn Brantley’s bloody clothes and cellphone and use bleach in an attempt to clean the crime scene, according to the statement.
They were initially charged with charged with accessory to first-degree murder, accessory to armed criminal action and conspiracy to abandon a corpse.
A hearing in Cole's case is scheduled for 9 a.m. Monday at the Miller County Courthouse.
Lucas pleaded guilty to tampering with physical evidence in felony prosecution in June 23, 2020. He was sentenced to two years in the Department of Corrections.
A probable cause statement filed in English’s case says Brantley’s wife reported him missing Feb. 9, 2019, after he had left to meet with someone named “Chris.” Investigators determined Brantley was meeting English at a bowling alley in Kaiser, the document says.
