Sarcoxie man faces murder charges in the shooting of two housesitters

CARTHAGE, Mo. -- A man who failed to report to a minimum security center after his release from prison three weeks ago has been charged with killing two men at a home near Sarcoxie during the weekend.

John M. Opry, 26, of Sarcoxie, was arrested early Monday morning while walking along a highway in Sarcoxie, Jasper County Sheriff Archie Dunn said. Opry is accused of killing Jim E. Grace, 59, and Nelson Cramer, 81, who were found dead Saturday night after a minor fire at the home where they were housesitting, and where they reported a burglary earlier in the day.

Opry, being held on $500,000 bond, is charged with two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of armed criminal action.

Grace and Cramer called the sheriff's department Saturday morning about the burglary, and deputies went to investigate. That evening, a fire was reported at the residence and the bodies of the two men were found in the basement. Both had been shot.

Authorities also learned that a car belonging to the owner of the home was missing. The sheriff said reports that Opry had been seen inside the car, or walking away from it, helped identify him as a suspect.

Investigators have recovered a .38-caliber weapon that is being examined at the Missouri Southern State University crime lab, Dunn said.

The fire

The fire, which authorities believe was set to conceal or destroy evidence, caused little damage, said Lt. Jeff Merriman, investigative commander for the Sheriff's Office and the Tri-State Major Case Squad. He said the house likely had been burning only 20 to 30 minutes.

Opry was released July 5 from the Western Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center in St. Joseph. He was serving time on convictions for first-degree tampering, second-degree burglary and stealing in Vernon and St. Clair counties about six years ago, said Wanda Seeney of the Missouri Department of Corrections.

He was to have reported to the Kansas City Community Release Center, which Seeney said is a place where offenders are housed while the state determines whether they can be released on parole.

When he failed to show up by July 6, a warrant was issued for his arrest. On two previous occasions, Opry had been sent back to prison for failing to report to supervisors -- once while he was at another community release center in St. Louis and another time while he was on parole.