Kriti Mehrotra
When 91-year-old Edward Franklin Vaughan was found heinously beaten outside his Judsonia, Arkansas, apartment in April 2017, it left the entire community baffled to the core. That’s because no one could have ever imagined anyone wanting to harm the quietly kind and loving man in such a way, as explored in A&E’s ‘Interrogation Raw: Justice for a War Hero.’ Thankfully, though, based on witness statements as well as partial confessions, investigators were able to bring this attack turned homicide case to a satisfactory close not long after.
Edward Vaughan Died From His Injuries at a Hospital
Born on July 16, 1925, in Toones, Tennessee, Edward Franklin Vaughan was a proud member of the “greatest generation” and even bravely served in the Army during World War II. The Bronze Star Medal recipient was reportedly honorably discharged following deployments in active combat zones, where he behaved rather heroically and valiantly at every step of the way. From what we can tell, he subsequently established himself as a property investor, as he bought and sold real estate for a few years before retiring for good in Judsonia, Arkansas.
According to records, Edward didn’t have any immediate family, but he was still a pillar of society owing to his authenticity, care, generosity, kindness, and wisdom – he was loved by many. Amongst them were his neighbors, friends from his Clearwater Missionary Baptist Church, as well as people he had met along the way, which is why the events of April 10, 2017, were shocking. It was around 7:50 am when one of his neighbors, Tabitha Smith, dialled 911, reporting that the 91-year-old war veteran had been badly assaulted.
When officials arrived at the scene, they found Edward with blood coming out of his ears, injuries to his head, and lacerations to his face, making it clear that the attack on him was very intentional. He was fortunately lucid at the time and could “easily” recall what had happened to him, following which he was transported to St. Vincent Infirmary in Little Rock because his wounds were severe. He was treated for severe head trauma, but alas, it was too much to handle for his body, and he sadly passed away 15 days later on April 25, 2017.
Edward Vaughan’s Killers Were Identified Almost Immediately
As per Edward Vaughan’s own account to the primary responding deputy, his assailants were two young men who had shown interest in purchasing his pickup truck, which he had recently decided to sell. They hadn’t been able to agree on a price despite a bit of back and forth, the 91-year-old said, so the men abducted him, placed him in his vehicle, and drove him to the countryside to assault him. He asserted they had put a blanket over his head, zip-tied him, attacked him, and then brought him back a few hours later without saying anything.
Edward’s accounts were backed by three neighbors. On one hand, Tabitha told detectives she hadn’t seen his truck when she left home at 6:30 am, but it was back when she returned at 7:45-7:50 am. On the other hand, two others vehemently stated they had seen/heard 21-year-old James “Jake” Miller and 25-year-old local resident Tommy Trosper at the victim’s residence sometime before then. A search thus began for the two young individuals, who were well-known to officials owing to their alleged history of petty crimes, assaults, and property thefts. They also confirmed the suspects’ identities with the war veteran the next morning while he was being treated at St. Vincent Infirmary.
Tommy was arrested in a stolen vehicle in a neighboring city just prior to noon on April 11, 2017, following which he was processed on related minor charges before being called in for an interrogation. That’s when he revealed he alone wanted to purchase the truck but didn’t want to give Edward the price he demanded, so he allegedly taped the latter making a sexual proposition as blackmail. He admittedly hoped it would result in a reduction in the asking rate, and when that didn’t happen on the fateful morning, things spiraled out of control. He claimed he had asked his friend Jake to tag along with him, unaware the latter would allegedly decide to assault the “old man” – he vehemently, repeatedly maintained he had no hand in the attack in any manner.
Tommy Trosper and Jake Miller Are Serving Time in Separate Arkansas Prisons
Tommy was subsequently charged with one count each of battery and kidnapping, for which his bond was set at $250,000 because investigators were certain he was the mastermind behind the attack. They then went on to question a common friend of the two suspects, since the detained individual had claimed that his property was where they had taken Edward after dragging him into the truck. Chris Torres wholly cooperated with officials, telling them he had asked the duo to leave the moment he realized they had abducted someone and were planning on assaulting him – he confirmed the timeline of events. As if that’s not enough, he also revealed Jake was hiding out in an abandoned trailer not far away from his estate, leading to the latter’s arrest too.
When Jake was interrogated, his account was much different than Tommy’s as he asserted that they were both responsible for the attack because the latter desperately wanted Edward’s truck. He stated he had no idea things would go as far as they did, but he had blindfolded as well as slapped the 91-year-old once or twice while his friend zip-tied and beat him up. The young man further added that Tommy had suggested getting rid of or disposing of their victim at one point, as if he was planning on taking his life. However, they thankfully stopped for some reason while at Chris’ property, following which the 25-year-old fled the scene and the 21-year-old cut off Edward’s bounds before driving him home. Jake then revealed he fled the area thanks to a cousin, whom he had called after dropping off the war veteran at home.
He was consequently also charged with one count each of battery and kidnapping, only for it to be updated to murder following Edward’s death on April 25. Tommy’s charges were updated too, but he continued to maintain his story of having no hand in the assault, even though he alone stood to gain from it. In the end, before their cases could go to trial, they both pleaded guilty to one count each of first-degree murder and kidnapping, for which they were sentenced to 20 and 40 years, respectively. Therefore, today, at age 33, Tommy is incarcerated at the high-security Varner Unit in unincorporated Lincoln County, where he is expected to remain until at least he becomes eligible for parole on October 9, 2039. As for Jake, at age 30, he is incarcerated at the Wrightsville-Hawkins Complex, 10 miles south of Little Rock, where he is expected to remain until at least January 28, 2029.
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