The next-door neighbor of a man charged with kidnapping a young woman from a store parking lot and killing her contacted police when he saw the man's pickup in a surveillance video, he said. Cameron Migues, 30, said he and his wife laughed when they noticed a similarity between Edwin R. Hall and the man pictured in the video.
But then the video of the truck was released, and "we put two and two together," said Migues, who called a police hot line Wednesday morning. Hall, 26, was charged with premeditated first-degree murder and aggravated kidnapping in the death of Kelsey Smith, 18. Bond was set at $5 million.
Hall was being held at the Johnson County jail and appeared in court via a video feed looking tired and downcast. He spoke briefly, waiving reading of the charges until he could hire his own attorney. If convicted, he faces a minimum sentence of 25 years to life in prison for the murder charge and more than 12 years for aggravated kidnapping, Johnson County District Attorney Phill Kline said Thursday he would consider seeking the death penalty.
Authorities have declined to offer a motive but say there is no evidence that Smith and Hall knew each other. Shortly after Smith's body was found Wednesday in a wooded area in Missouri, detectives were talking with Hall. They said a tip led them to Hall, who has been living with his wife and 4-year-old son in Olathe.
Their neighbor, Migues, said that on Tuesday, his 3-year-old son had been playing in his backyard with Hall's son. "The worst part is I just talked to him Monday," he said. Neighbor Harold Barry, 50, said he was surprised when he heard Hall had been arrested.
Hall recently helped him repair his pickup truck, he said. "If I can go see him, I will see if I can help him out," said Barry, who added that Hall seemed especially close to his son. "He loved his son his so much," Barry said.
"He had his small kid in that truck every time I saw him." Hall, looking tired and downcast, appeared Thursday in court via video feed from jail. He waived reading of the charges until he can hire his own attorney.
His next appearance was scheduled for June 14. The charges came a day after Smith's body was found in the woods. She had been missing since Saturday night, when she went to the Target store in Overland Park to buy a gift for her boyfriend.
Surveillance video showed her being forced into her car around 7:10 p.m., and the car driving off.
It was found in a nearby mall parking lot about two hours later. Police Chief John Douglass said Hall appeared to be the same person shown in the video leaving the Target soon after Smith. He was wearing a white T-shirt, sneakers, shorts and a goatee.
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