A man and woman, sought by both state and federal law enforcement, were apprehended on Thursday in connection with the alleged murder of a man whose body was discovered burning in a fire pit earlier this summer. The incident occurred in the early hours of July 8, when a passerby noticed an unusual fire in a wooded area near South High Street in the Hungarian Village neighborhood of Columbus, Ohio, and alerted the authorities.
On August 20, the Franklin County Municipal Court issued arrest warrants for Miranda King, 24, and Robert Beine, 42. The pair were charged with murder and gross abuse of a corpse in relation to the killing of William Hamblin, 43, and the subsequent alleged attempts to conceal his violent demise.
According to court records, the accused allegedly assaulted Hamblin with a blunt object before shooting him. Investigators believe that an ongoing dispute over stolen property was the motive behind the crime. Detectives stated that witnesses had observed a heated argument between Hamblin, Beine, and King, Beine’s girlfriend, on July 6, 2023. During this altercation, Beine allegedly threatened to kill Hamblin, with King reportedly encouraging him.
Two days after the altercation, surveillance footage captured King and Beine, along with an unidentified third individual, near the location where Hamblin’s burning body was later found. Shortly after their appearance on the footage, flames were visible in the video. Firefighters responded to a call about the fire around 1:30 a.m., extinguishing the blaze and discovering the body, which was pronounced dead at the scene.
Investigators believe that Hamblin’s body was burned in an ill-fated attempt to destroy evidence of the murder. After nearly three weeks on the run, King and Beine were located in south Columbus early Thursday morning, leading to a police chase. The U.S. Marshals Southern Ohio Fugitive Apprehension Strike Team reported that the suspects were found at a gas station near the intersection of Lockbourne Road and Frebis Avenue. Despite an initial attempt to flee, the pair were eventually captured by assisting patrol units.
Following their arrest, both King and Beine were transported to the Franklin County Jail to await their initial court appearances. As of Friday afternoon, King remained in custody. During her first court appearance on Friday morning, her bail was set at $2.5 million. She is scheduled to appear in court again on September 15. Beine’s first court appearance is set for September 9, though he was not listed on the current inmate roster for the jail.