Paul L. Williams, 43, of Mount Vernon, Ohio, was found unresponsive in his vehicle at Ariel-Foundation Park on May 2, 2022, and died of a gunshot wound. The death was classified as a homicide. The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation took over the inquiry with assistance from the Mount Vernon Police Department and the Knox County Prosecutor’s Office.

Investigators described the probe as complex, involving hundreds of hours of work by detectives from MVPD, the Knox County Sheriff’s Office, BCI, and the Knox Prosecutor’s Office. Information about the investigation was restricted at points while evidence was gathered, and Williams’s family was kept informed as the inquiry proceeded.

On July 31, 2023, Terry T. Barker, 43, of Mount Vernon, was indicted on aggravated murder and having weapons while under disability in connection with Williams’s death; Barker was in custody on unrelated charges at the time of the indictment. Does anyone who knew Paul or who was near Ariel-Foundation Park on May 2, 2022, have information that could help clarify what happened?