Dad accused of fatally shooting man found with missing child

LONOKE COUNTY, Ark. (KARK) – Officials in Arkansas said a man is facing a murder charge after a confrontation turned deadly early Tuesday morning.

According to authorities, deputies with the Lonoke County Sheriff’s Office responded to a home shortly after 1 a.m. after a juvenile was reported missing.

The deputies were told on the way to the home that Aaron Spencer, the father of the juvenile, had found the juvenile in a car with Michael Fosler, according to officials.

Authorities said there was an altercation between the two men which led to Fosler being shot. Officials said Fosler was pronounced dead at the scene.

Deputies said they took Spencer into custody on a preliminary charge of first-degree murder, and he was taken to the Lonoke County Detention Center.

As of Monday, no formal charges have been filed against Spencer, and no additional details have been released.

A woman claiming to be Spencer’s wife claimed they had a no-contact order for Fosler, accusing him of stalking their child.

In an online fundraiser, the woman said Spencer began driving around to search for their child after discovering she was missing. She explained that her husband happened to pass a man driving with their child in his vehicle and chased him.

“The chase ended in an accident. Aaron was able to retrieve our child alive, but in the process, he was attacked and did what he had to do to protect himself and our minor child,” the woman wrote.

She added that they are working to “retain a legal team” to help keep her husband, a combat veteran, “home with us where he belongs.”

“We are private people, so all of this being public has been very difficult,” she wrote on Facebook last week.

Lonoke County Sheriff John Staley told USA Today that Fosler, the man who was killed, was arrested earlier this summer for internet stalking of a child and sexual assault, but was out on bond. He added that his agency was investigating what led to the Oct. 8 incident.