A parolee has admitted to killing Scioto County resident Luke Bricker and will spend at least the next 18 years in prison.
Pike County officials say Kennith P. Nelson, 29, confessed to the murder and agreed to enter a guilty plea. Judge Rob Junk sentenced him to a sentence of 18 years to life in prison.
Just after midnight on May 28, a Pike County caller initially reported a man lying in the road on St. Rt. 772 covered in blood and said he believed the victim was deceased and had possibly been hit by a car. When deputies and EMS arrived on the scene, they discovered that Luke Bricker had been shot multiple times and succumbed to his injuries.
The Southern Ohio Major Crimes Taskforce, the Pike County Sheriff’s Office, and the Pike County Prosecutor’s Office immediately launched an investigation with assistance from state, federal, and local law enforcement agencies.
Investigators quickly identified Kennith Nelson as a person of interest. Nelson was on parole at the time, and officers took him into custody for parole violation.
According to the Pike County Prosecutor’s Office, the investigation was extensive with detectives serving dozens of search warrants in multiple counties, which resulted in the collection of hundreds of pieces of evidence.
When confronted with the case against him, Nelson agreed to plead guilty to murder with a firearms specification.
The Pike County Prosecutor said the deal saved the county another costly trial. “Special thanks also goes out the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation, Adams County Sheriff’s Office, Adams County Prosecutor, Scioto County Sheriff’s Office, Adult Parole Authority, Ohio State Highway Patrol, the United States Marshal Service’s SOFAST task force, OCIC, the Piketon Fire Department, Pike County Prosecutor’s Victim Witness coordinator Amy White, Officer Roger Risner with the Pike County Prosecutor’s Office, and all the other men and woman in law enforcement that helped bring Mr. Nelson to justice. This was truly a collaborative effort by everyone and is proof positive of what happens when we all work together for truth and justice.”