Man Charged With Killing 71-year-old in Hostage Incident

A man has been charged with holding three relatives hostage and killing one of them in a central Missouri home.

KRCG reports that 57-year-old Terry Ewens, of Eldon, was charged Friday with first-degree murder, first-degree domestic assault, first-degree burglary, two counts of first-degree kidnapping and unlawful use of a weapon.

He is jailed on $500,000 cash or surety bond. No attorney is listed for him in online court records. Miller County Sheriff’s Office responded Sept. 5 to a house in Rocky Mount, where they found Ewens assaulting an 83-year-old man.

According to KRCG, Ewens was actively assaulting the man when SWAT officers entered the home.

Officers also found a 71-year-old woman unconscious, but she later died. A 51-year old woman was able to escape before officers arrived.