The body of a black male has been positively identified as Clio resident Willie David Pugh Jr.
According to a press release by Barbour County Sheriff LeRoy Upshaw, Pugh's body was identified through dental records by the Alabama Department Of Forensic Sciences in Montgomery. An autopsy was performed Wednesday on the body and confirmed the victim died as a result of foul play.
Pugh went missing Jan. 14 on Highway 51 South between Clio and Ariton. Foul play was suspected in his disappearance.
The victim was located in a wooded area on Sutton Dairy Road near Ariton late Tuesday. Upshaw stated that the crime scene was processed by several agencies that came together and worked with each other to preserve all evidence and documentation of the Sutton Dairy Road body dump site.
Agencies consisted of the Barbour County Sheriff's Office, the Dale County Sheriff's Office, the Houston County Sheriff's Office, the Dothan Police Department Crime Scene Division, the Barbour County District Attorney's Office Investigations and Barbour County Coroner Chip Chapman.
Sheriff Upshaw stated that the suspect's residence located on Highway 51 South was intentionally set fire Wednesday night and that the investigators and crime scene personal were called back out, as well as the state fire marshal.
Upshaw praised the Elamville, Clio, Louisville and Ariton volunteer fire departments, which responded quickly to the scene and were able to contain the fire so as to preserve evidence that was located inside the mobile home. Investigators and a fire marshal returned to and processed the crime scene Thursday. The fire marshal ruled the fire an arson.
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