Press Release
Toledo, Ohio, Felon Charged With 2005 Murder At Fort Knox Military Base
For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of Kentucky
LOUISVILLE, Ky – A Toledo, Ohio, felon who is currently in prison for an aggravated murder conviction, was charged today by federal Information with one count of murder, which occurred in 2005, on the grounds of Fort Knox Military Base, announced U. S. Attorney John E. Kuhn, Jr.
According to the Information, on or about January 7, 2005, in the Western District of Kentucky, Meade County, Kentucky, the defendant, Ernest Otto Smith, age 49, murdered Cathy M. Barnett willfully, deliberately, maliciously, and with premeditation, on the grounds of Fort Knox, within the special territorial jurisdiction of the United States.
If convicted at trial, Smith could be sentenced to no less than life in prison and fined $250,000.Smith is currently in the custody of the Ohio Department of Prisons, and is an inmate at the Ely, Nevada, State Prison. A date for his initial appearance has not been scheduled.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David Weiser and is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
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The charge of a person by an Information is an accusation only and that person is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
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Updated November 12, 2015
Topic
Violent Crime
Component