A Columbus man is dead and another in police custody after an apparent stabbing Monday morning at a local motel.
Lowndes County Coroner Greg Merchant confirmed to The Dispatch that 34-year-old Robert Elliott Thomas died from stab wounds after the early morning incident.
Police have arrested Barry Boozer, 41, on suspicion of murder for allegedly stabbing Thomas during an altercation at America’s Best Value Inn on Highway 45.
Columbus Police Department Capt. Brent Swan said police went to the motel at 2:32 a.m. after receiving a call about an alleged incident. Thomas was taken to Baptist Memorial Hospital-Golden Triangle and pronounced dead on arrival.
Swan said CPD investigators and members of the forensic lab crime scene unit gathered enough evidence to arrest Boozer. Swan said Boozer and Thomas knew each other, and Thomas was a visitor in Boozer’s motel room.
The coroner said the body will be sent to the Mississippi Crime Lab in Jackson for autopsy.
Officers booked Boozer into the Lowndes County Adult Detention Center. His bond was set at $200,000.
Boozer was also arrested in March 2015 for possession of methamphetamine and possession of contraband.
He was arrested again last month for possession of methamphetamine. That charge is scheduled to go before a grand jury in February.
Alex Holloway was formerly a reporter with The Dispatch.
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