Laclede County Jury Trial Ends In Murder Conviction

A jury trial in Laclede County has ended wth the conviction of an Eldon man found guilty of murdering a Columbia man three years ago during a deadly drug deal. The jury began deliberations at 11:10 Friday morning and returned a verdict at 4:08 Friday afternoon.

The jury found 45-year-old Christopher English guilty, Friday afternoon, of first-degree murder, armed criminal action, and abandonment of a corpse. He’ll be sentenced on February 7 of next year.

English is one of three men involved in the murder of Aaron Brant in 2019. His body was found about a month later in a wooded area of Miller County.

William Lucas of Kaiser pleaded guilty to accessory to motor-vehicle tampering and was sentenced to two years in prison. The last man involved, Daniel Cole, also of Kaiser, has a hearing later this month. He’s charged with abandonment of a corpse.