It's been more than a year since Poteau bar owner Joe Neff's body was found by two fishermen in a strip pit in rural LeFlore County. Neff was shot in the head and his family still has no answers as to who killed him.
"I thought we would just take a week, arrest somebody and it be over with. It didn't occur to me that we may not find who did this," said Joe Neff's daughter Marie Pitchford.
She is still waiting for closure. Her father's murder has not been solved but Jessica Brown at the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation says the case has not hit a dead end yet.
"We are still getting leads. The case agent is working on it every day. That's how many leads are coming in. Unfortunately, it's not pointing to any one particular person. There is quite an array of different people that Neff had in contact with, due to the fact that he owned a bar in the area," said Brown. Neff owned the Long Branch Saloon in Leflore County.
Many people in the community rallied together when Neff first went missing and helped search for him. Now that the case has turned into a murder investigation, they say they are frustrated with the lack of progress.
"I think they just want to let it die instead of getting it solved. It's solvable and nobody is doing anything about it," said Mike Pool, a friend of Neff.
Brown says they do have some clues in the case. She says this wasn't a random murder. The very rural spot where he his body was left and the way the crime was committed means somebody meant to kill Neff.
"You would have to know how to get to where his body was found. It was premeditated with how they did it. They went into great thought about how to weight that body down. Whoever did it had forethought of what was going on and went into the bar with intention to harm or to kill him," said Brown.
Pitchford says just because the case hasn't moved forward, she isn't giving up hope that her father's killer will be caught.
"I will do anything to see this person caught. I don't care. I will crawl to the edge of the earth and back if that's what it takes. I will not stop," said Pitchford.
The family is offering a $10,000 reward for information in the case. If you know anything, please call the LeFlore County Sheriff's Department.
"I thought we would just take a week, arrest somebody and it be over with. It didn't occur to me that we may not find who did this," said Joe Neff's daughter Marie Pitchford.
She is still waiting for closure. Her father's murder has not been solved but Jessica Brown at the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation says the case has not hit a dead end yet.
"We are still getting leads. The case agent is working on it every day. That's how many leads are coming in. Unfortunately, it's not pointing to any one particular person. There is quite an array of different people that Neff had in contact with, due to the fact that he owned a bar in the area," said Brown. Neff owned the Long Branch Saloon in Leflore County.
Many people in the community rallied together when Neff first went missing and helped search for him. Now that the case has turned into a murder investigation, they say they are frustrated with the lack of progress.
"I think they just want to let it die instead of getting it solved. It's solvable and nobody is doing anything about it," said Mike Pool, a friend of Neff.
Brown says they do have some clues in the case. She says this wasn't a random murder. The very rural spot where he his body was left and the way the crime was committed means somebody meant to kill Neff.
"You would have to know how to get to where his body was found. It was premeditated with how they did it. They went into great thought about how to weight that body down. Whoever did it had forethought of what was going on and went into the bar with intention to harm or to kill him," said Brown.
Pitchford says just because the case hasn't moved forward, she isn't giving up hope that her father's killer will be caught.
"I will do anything to see this person caught. I don't care. I will crawl to the edge of the earth and back if that's what it takes. I will not stop," said Pitchford.
The family is offering a $10,000 reward for information in the case. If you know anything, please call the LeFlore County Sheriff's Department.
