New details emerge in Homer homicide case

More details are emerging in a three-year-old homicide case that lead to charges against a 55-year-old Homer man.

Homer police arrested Lee John Henry, 55, of Homer on Oct. 16 in the 2013 death of Mark Matthews. He was taken into custody at an address on Pioneer Avenue, near the Grog Shop.

Because it was an active investigation, Homer police have released only limited information about the case until recently.

On July 28, 2014, two people walking along the Poopdeck Trail found Matthews’ body just after 10 p.m.

Matthews’ death was ruled a homicide after an autopsy by the State Medical Examiner Office, but details of the case remained confidential.

Matthews was beaten to death, Homer Police Sgt. Lary Kuhns said. “It was blunt force trauma to the head and face.”

The actual location of the death was not the Poopdeck Trail, but the nearby Boystown Trail.

Kuhns said this was a deliberate tactic used in the investigation.

“My suggestion was I don’t think we should tell anyone the exact location where this occurred because that’s the location only known to the person or persons involved,” Kuhns said. “Of course the idea there is that anybody who had relevant information would say, it didn’t happen on the Poopdeck Trail, it happened on this other trail.”

The case has remained open for the last three years, while Homer police conducted their investigation.

In September, an unnamed person contacted Kuhns with information about Matthews’ murder.

“Somebody with information came forward and asked to speak with me,” he said.

Henry later confessed to the murder in a phone call to Homer police.

Police were aware that Henry had been in contact with Matthews on the evening of the homicide.

A cab driver witnessed the pair arguing near a park bench on Poopdeck Street about a half-hour before the death.

Kuhns said this piece of information helped police determine when the death occurred.

“He really helped as far as establishing a timeline,” Kuhns said. “With just seeing the argument and then how much longer it was from that time to the time he saw or heard police sirens. We were able to capture a 20- to 30-minute window of time as it when it would have happened.”

Henry was arraigned on Oct. 17 in Homer Courthouse on a charge of first-degree murder.

Judge Margaret Murphy appointed a public defender, but did not set bail.

He was transferred to Wildwood Correctional Complex, Kenai.

The case will go before a grand jury in Kenai Superior Court on Oct. 19, to decide whether there is enough evidence to formally press charges against the defendant.

The proceedings are not open to the public.

Henry faces up to 99 years in prison if convicted.

KBBI - Homer

KBBI is our partner station in Homer. KTOO collaborates with partners across the state to cover important news and to share stories with our audiences.

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