Questions surround the mysterious circumstances of a well-liked police chief’s sudden death in a Florida hotel room this weekend.
As Crime Online previously reported, Lucky Miller, the chief of the Mannford Police Department in Oklahoma, was found dead in a Pensacola hotel room on Sunday night. Miller, 44, had been at the hotel to attend a public safety conference scheduled for this week.
Escambia County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Amber Southard told Tulsa World that Hilton hotel security had responded to two reports about the officers, who were in Florida for a public safety conference, on Sunday evening. Security was first called with a report that the men were being disruptive, and the hotel later called police to say that the men were in a “physical altercation,” Southard told the newspaper.
By the time sheriff’s deputies arrived to the hotel, Miller was dead of unknown causes. Authorities did not find a weapon on the room where the police chief was found.
Michael Nealey, a detective on the Mannford police force, was reportedly booked into jail early Monday morning and is facing homicide charges.
MANNFORD POLICE CHIEF KILLED: Our sources have confirmed Mannford Police Chief Lucky Miller was killed in an incident in Florida last night. We’re working to gather more information, but have learned Mannford Police Officer Mike Nealey is in jail in Pensacola on a murder charge. pic.twitter.com/2DkJa27bvz
— Amy Slanchik (@amyslanchik) November 11, 2019
Those who knew the officers are struggling to comprehend how one might have killed the other.
“They were the best of friends, both on the force and off,” Mannford Mayor Tyler Buttram told the Washington Post. “Their families knew each other very well.”
The mayor told Tulsa World that both officers were well-liked.
“Lucky was a great man, but I’ll be honest, so was Officer Nealey … Where one was, the other one was. They were always together,” Buttram said.
result of a physical fight.
“Not one single person can fathom the thought of any of this. It’s so confusing.”
The sheriff’s spokesperson told Tulsa World that alcohol was involved in the altercation, and that Miller appears to have died as a result of a physical fight.
Miller had reportedly been chief since 2007, and leaves behind a wife and three children.
This is a developing story. CrimeOnline will provide further updates when more information is available.
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