Louisburg man charged in murder

By Dustin Kass, dustinKass@miconews.com

Officers arrested a Louisburg man Thursday near Wichita for the murder of an Osawatomie resident last month, and local officials have not ruled out the possibility that additional arrests could be made in the case.

Goddard (Kan.) police officers arrested Thomas E. Pool, 41, of Louisburg on Thursday night in the shooting death of Billy Gene Cooper of Osawatomie, according to a press release from the Miami County District Attorney’s Office.

Cooper was killed April 8 when an assailant fired nine shots at him apparently as he answered the front door of the house he rented at 816 Chestnut Ave. in Osawatomie, police previously said.

County Attorney David Miller charged Pool in Miami County District Court last week with premeditated murder in the first degree, which is a felony punishable by life in prison.

District Judge Amy Harth set Pool’s bond at $1 million, and the defendant was set to make his initial court appearance Tuesday morning. The result of that hearing was not available at press time.

The investigation into the murder continues despite the arrest, Osawatomie Assistant Police Chief Bob Butters said Monday. Louisburg Police Chief Ron Anderson confirmed Monday that officers had served a search warrant on a Louisburg property in connection with the homicide.

Butters also said there was the possibility of additional arrests in the case, though he stressed that the decision to pursue charges against any person is ultimately the county attorney’s. Miller said he could not comment on the possibility of additional arrests in an active case.

The relationship, if any, between Pool and Cooper remains unclear, as law enforcement officials will not divulge any details about the associations the men may have had.

Pool is no stranger to hard time, however, as his criminal record stretches back to a conviction on two counts of burglary in Sedgwick County in 1984.

Pool also made local headlines in November 2003 when he and another prisoner broke out of Osawatomie Correctional Facility. He was serving a sentence for drug possession, two counts of robbery and theft at the time, and both men were recaptured nine days later near Wichita.

Pool’s latest arrest comes after a three-and-a-half week investigation.

The investigation also saw officers serve a search warrant on one of two Casey’s General Stores in Osawatomie and search the banks and riverbed of the Marais des Cygnes River near U.S. Highway 169.