What we know about Samuel Crawford; Payne County Murder

The state medical examiner confirmed Thursday that a body discovered on a rural property in Payne County was that of a missing 21-year-old Stillwater man. Investigators found the body of Samuel Crawford buried in a ditch near the suspect’s home.

What’s the story?

Samuel Crawford, a 21-year-old man, disappeared in late August.

Crawford’s old friends were shocked when he disappeared, and they realized that disappearing was not the same as him.

“The first thing I thought was, ‘Why him?'” said Presley Ann, the victim’s school friend. “He’s like the sweetest person I know from Stillwater schools.”

On September 4, investigators contacted OSBI.

Then on September 8, a helicopter was sent to fly over a large area in Payne County.

State agents said that’s when they found an alleged chop shop, somewhere near the VFW Road. And the prairie road. In Glencoe.

The case was turned upside down when investigators returned to rural Glencoe looking for additional evidence, days after Samuel Crawford was reported missing.

Parts of Crawford’s white pickup truck were found scattered throughout the property.

“When they noticed parts of his vehicle, they executed a search warrant, and when they were searching that area they found a deceased male,” said Hunter Mackey, spokesman for the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation.

Investigators said that near a tractor on the property, a body believed to be Crawford’s was found buried in a ditch.

Investigators found a partially filled dirt pit.

Inside was a decomposed body with two gunshot wounds to the head.

The medical examiner performed an autopsy and positively identified the victim as Crawford.

According to these investigators, Crawford had been shot multiple times.

Investigators then learned that a man named Christopher Sommers was living on the property in a pickup truck.

Court documents filed in Payne County revealed that Crawford was likely targeted for his truck, as Somers ran the same chop shop seen in the helicopter search, on the same property where Crawford was found.

Somers was arrested on a complaint of murder, and for running a chop shop on the property where dozens of vehicles were found.

“We are not only looking into the motive, but the relationship between Somers and the victim,” Mackey said.

According to the new court filing, Crawford was working at a welding shop in Morrison when he began having problems with his truck.

The search warrant said Crawford asked his boss to put him in touch with Somers.

Detectives interviewed a man who said Christopher Somers had a plan to kill a man and take his car – but it “did not go as planned”. – The man told investigators he believed Somers killed Sam Crawford for his truck.

But Crawford wasn’t 21-year-old Christopher Somers’ first target.

Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation agents uncovered the sinister murder plot last week.

One of Somers’ associates told investigators after Somers was unable to contact the original target.

The suspect’s attention then turned to Crawford when he learned the victim needed his truck repaired.

“I can have him hang out with me and I’ll take care of him,” Sommers was heard saying.

The witness also told investigators that Somers received money to kill people.

Somers, who was seen working the farm in videos posted to his TikTok, works as a mechanic and agreed to fix Crawford’s “very special” car.

The filing says Crawford’s employer questioned Somers after he became increasingly concerned when Crawford failed to return to work or return his phone calls.

According to investigators, “Somers was the last person to see Crawford before his disappearance,” but when he was questioned he “changed his story” and provided “conflicting information.”

Somers has been charged with first-degree murder and is being held in the Payne County Jail without bail. OSBI officials expect to file more charges soon.