An Arkansas man fatally shot himself Friday inside a motel where his wife’s car was found that day, nearly 200 miles away from where the woman had been reported missing, police said.
Joe Gill, who authorities identified as the husband of missing woman Wanda Gill, and his son, Hunter Gill, were located at Lake Village motel Southern Inn, 1311 S. U.S. 65 82, according to Arkansas State Police.
State police say the husband shot himself inside the bathroom of a motel room Friday as they responded. Joe Gill was taken to the Chicot Memorial Hospital, where the Chicot County coroner pronounced him dead.
Joe Gill’s wife, Wanda Gill, was last seen at work in Mount Ida around 5 p.m. April 26, the Montgomery County sheriff’s office said in a news release.
When Wanda Gill didn’t show up for work the next day, the employer contacted her husband, according to the sheriff’s office. The woman hadn’t mentioned having to miss work, her boss noted.
Joe Gill told the employer that Wanda Gill “was physically not able to work there anymore,” according to the release.
On May 23, the same day authorities received a report from Wanda Gill’s boss, Montgomery County Sheriff David White went to the campsite where she and her husband had been staying. A neighbor told the sheriff that they hadn’t recently seen Wanda Gill’s white 2011 Toyota RAV4.
White was notified days later that Joe Gill was at the campsite he had once shared with his wife. The husband told the sheriff that he and Wanda Gill had argued, according to the sheriff’s office. No signs of a struggle were found at the campsite.
By July 6, Wanda Gill’s employer still hadn't heard from the woman, authorities said. Wanda Gill was then listed as a missing person.
Wanda Gill’s SUV was seen six days later at a location in Arkansas City, the release states. When authorities initially responded Friday, they were unable to locate the vehicle.
The SUV was found later that day at Southern Inn, prompting the Montgomery County sheriff’s office to seek assistance from state police.
State police tried to contact the husband and son at the Lake Village motel, and were eventually able to speak with Hunter Gill outside the building, according to authorities. He was questioned and released.
Chicot County Coroner Skyler King declined to comment on the case and directed inquiries to the Arkansas State Police, citing an ongoing investigation. A call to the Montgomery County sheriff’s office was not immediately returned.
Assisting in the case are sheriff’s offices in Desha, Chicot and Bradley counties as well as the Lake Village Police Department, Monticello Police Department, 10th Judicial Drug Task Force and Arkansas Game and Fish Commission.