Bloody print leads to arrest
Posted on Wednesday, November 8, 2006
A bloody fingerprint left on an envelope led Little Rock police to the suspect in the Saturday night killing of a 50-yearold man, who was videotaped the day before cashing his Social Security check accompanied by the suspect.
On Monday, police arrested Artenius Blueford, 21, of 5001 W. 65 th St., Apt. A 220, on a warrant charging him with capital murder in the slaying of Sam Miller.
Police said Miller was shot in the groin or upper thigh area inside his apartment at 4811 Arbor Place Cove.
Blueford, who was sentenced to three years’ probation on an attempted burglary charge in February of 2005, had been listed as an absconder by his probation officer. On Tuesday, he pleaded innocent on the capital murder charge in Little Rock District Court and was ordered held on $ 250, 000 bail.
Little Rock police detective Steve Moore outlined the investigation in an affidavit supporting the warrant for Blueford’s arrest.
Moore wrote that when officers went into the apartment, they found a large amount of blood on Miller’s lower body and also on the couch and floor.
Investigators talked to one witness who said she heard a voice from inside Miller’s apartment saying “Sit down and shut up.” “It appeared that there had been a struggle inside the apartment,” Moore wrote in the affidavit. “There was a glass coffee table in the living room that was broken and there were other pieces of furniture turned over.” Also inside the apartment, investigators found an envelope containing Miller’s payment to Entergy.
“The envelope had been torn apart and there was a fingerprint on it in blood,” Moore wrote.
The fingerprint was matched to Blueford, police said.
On Saturday, detectives interviewed an employee of Bonner’s Grocery on 65 th Street and were told by an employee that Miller had come into the store on Friday and cashed his Social Security check.
“There was a younger black male with Miller, which was very unusual because he always came by himself,” the detective wrote.
“The store had video footage of Miller and the second subject, who strongly resembled Blueford.” Police arrested Blueford on a warrant charging him with absconding from his probation and questioned him about Miller’s slaying, the affidavit states.
During the interview, Blueford admitted he went with Miller to cash his check, and later said that he was at Miller’s apartment when another man came in, shot Miller and made him go through the injured man’s pockets looking for money.
“After he left, Blueford said that he left the apartment while Miller was laying bleeding in the middle of the glass,” Moore wrote. “He did not call for any help or go back to check on Miller.”
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