An Arkansas father has been arrested after allegedly killing a man he found in a car with his missing child.
The arrest has led to his wife taking to social media to slam the charges her husband is now facing.
Lonoke County Sheriff’s Office deputies were dispatched to Aaron Spencer's home after he reported his 14-year-old daughter missing on Tuesday, October 8, as reported by PEOPLE.
While authorities were en route to the scene, they were notified that the 36-year-old father discovered that his daughter was in a vehicle with Michael Fosler, a 67-year-old man.
According to Lonoke County Sheriff’s Office, a confrontation between the two men ensued, resulting in a fatal shooting.
"Deputies immediately initiated an investigation. Michael Fosler was pronounced dead at the scene, and Aaron Spencer was taken into custody," the statement read, per Too Fab.
The child’s father is facing a "preliminary charge" of first-degree murder, a Class Y felony, and was booked into the Lonoke County Detention Center.
Sheriff John Staley explained that the prosecutor will decide what charges will be filed. “I have not, nor will I, advocate for any specific charge,” he said, per USA Today. “This is a tragic situation and my thoughts and prayers are with all those involved.”
Jail records show Spencer has since posted bail and was released on Wednesday, October 9.
While police have said that they are only releasing limited details as the investigation is ongoing, a woman named Heather Spencer, claiming to be Aaron Spencer's wife and the mother of the 14-year-old, has shared a series of updates on Facebook and other platforms.
She revealed that the family started an online fundraiser to retain a lawyer. “We are private people, so all of this being public has been very difficult,” she said in a post, adding that the family has been "overwhelmed with the amount of love and support [they] have received since this incident".
The Independent reports that Heather shared some damning allegations on a since-removed GiveSendGo campaign, claiming that her daughter was "targeted, groomed and ultimately raped by the boyfriend of a family friend," reportedly being Fosler.
She explained that the deceased man faced pending charges and was reportedly on a "no contact order", but reached out to the teen while free on bond.
Heather Spencer says that they reported their daughter missing after being woken up by the family dog, which she says was "unusual".
"In that moment we lived every parent’s biggest fear as we realized our teen child was missing," Heather wrote, per The Independent. "We frantically searched our home/property and started calling friends, family, and 911. My husband immediately got into his truck to go blindly searching for our child."
The mom said it was down to "God’s never failing grace" that her husband was able to catch up with Fosler.
Speaking about the shooting, Heather added: "As soon as the predator knew my husband was behind him, he ran. The chase ended in an accident. Aaron was able to retrieve our child alive, but in the process he was attacked and did what he had to do to protect himself and our minor child."
“We let the justice system do its job. The monster who hurt our child was charged quickly, but released even faster on a $50k bond,” she added, per the outlet. “He was awaiting court in December for several felonies in relation to what he did to our child.”
The man who was fatally shot had been apprehended in July and booked for internet stalking of a child and sexual assault, Sheriff Staley revealed to USA Today.
"This guy that preyed upon their daughter was released on bond, and we had stopped him that night and got him with her," Staley said. "That bond would have been revoked. He would have never got out of jail. None of the bond companies would have let him out. We wouldn't let him out."
However, Heather fired back at the police department on Facebook, writing: "Some things we will never know, but we know that the police department afforded this predator privacy they did not give our family. Including posting our home address. I’m deeply offended by the way this was handled by the county sheriff's office."
Staley made it clear in a statement that he "absolutely [does] not support predators," and explained the arrest: "When we get on scene and there's a homicide, it means one person took the life of another. It's either justified or not justified. That's what the fact-finding, that's what the investigation is going to find out."
As of this writing, Aaron Spencer has since posted bail and been released.
Heather Spencer concluded her Facebook post by writing: "My husband is a hero and we are so thankful to have him home with us for now. We want to do everything possible to ensure he can continue to be here to protect us."
The sheriff's investigators are trying to figure out what happened that day leading to the man's death.
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