Man indicted on murder charge in insurance agency owner’s death in Kettering

ajc.com

A 37-year-old Dayton man is facing numerous charges including murder in the March death of his former employer inside the victim’s Kettering insurance agency.

Police arrested Joshua David Dehart last month after investigators said his DNA was found at the crime scene.

RELATED: Kettering police use DNA, arrest man in insurance company owner’s death

Barton Wilson, 74, died March 9 of blunt force trauma due to multiple chop wounds to the back of the head, Montgomery County Coroner Dr. Kent Harshbarger said. He was killed inside his business, Barton Wilson Insurance on Wilmington Pike in Kettering.

Dehart was indicted Friday for two counts of aggravated murder, two counts of murder, two counts of aggravated burglary and two counts of felonious assault.

RELATED: Death of Kettering man in insurance business under investigation as a homicide

Dehart will be arraigned Tuesday in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court. He remains in the Montgomery County Jail under a $1 million bond.

An acquaintance who went to Wilson’s unlocked office the following day, on March 10, found his body, police said.

Kettering police identified Dehart as the suspect through witness statements, video surveillance and physical evidence, county Prosecutor Mat Heck Jr. stated in a release.

Police said Dehart previously worked as a maintenance man for Wilson, who owned rental properties, and was a former tenant.

FIRST REPORT: Kettering police investigate suspicious death at insurance agency

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