BONNE TERRE, Mo (News First) – Back on October 14th, 1989 in St. Francois County, Jimmie Wade Martin of Bonne Terre was killed after being hit in the head by a blunt object in a bar fight but no arrests had ever been made. That is until now. Last week, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, 69-year-old Wesley Paul Marler of Bonne Terre was arrested after being indicted by a St. Francois County grand jury for first-degree assault related to Martin’s death. 24 years ago, police began looking into Martin’s death again. Seven years later in 2007, law enforcement said they were looking at two suspects but no arrests were ever made until last week.
The highway patrol says the investigation into this cold case was exhaustive. The day of Martin’s death, police found his body lying outside of a home in Farmington. Martin was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead. The indictment says Marler either acting alone or in concert with another knowingly caused serious physical injury to Martin by hitting him in the head with a blunt instrument. Marler is currently being held in the St. Francois County Jail on a $500,000 bond. On Wednesday, Marler will make his first appearance in court.
