The Arkansas State Medical Examiner’s Office has officially ruled the death of Eli Perrin on August 15, 2023, in Warren as a suicide, as per information released on Thursday by the Warren Police Department.
As initially reported by Saline River Chronicle, the Warren Police Department responded to a call regarding a possible deceased man in the parking lot at the corner of Gannaway and Church Street around 5:12 a.m. on August 15, 2023. Upon arrival, Warren PD officers discovered the body of a white male later identified as Eli Perrin, aged 21, from Arkadelphia.
Shortly thereafter, officers learned that Perrin’s own vehicle had been involved in a one-vehicle accident on Hwy 8 North, approximately 3 miles outside the city limits. In the hours before the discovery of Perrin’s body at Gannaway and Church Streets, the Bradley County Sheriff’s Department had been investigating that accident, though the vehicle itself appeared to have been abandoned.
On August 16, the Warren PD received the preliminary autopsy, which revealed that Perrin had been struck by a vehicle.
On Thursday, January 11, 2024, the Warren PD held a press conference and released the final findings by State Medical Examiner Dr. Charles P. Kokes. Dr. Kokes determined that Perrin’s death was an apparent suicide.
However, Warren Police Chief Shaun Hildreth stated that the Warren PD’s investigation suggested Perrin appeared to have been hit by the vehicle further east of where his body was eventually discovered. They believe he was hit along the highway, close to Johnny’s Radiator Shop and the entrance to the Southeast Arkansas Human Development Center on East Church Street. Police believe that the body was then moved to the location where Perrin was eventually found at Gannaway and Church Street, nearly three-quarters-of-a-mile to the west.
The Warren Police Department did find vehicle debris along the highway. With the assistance of the Arkansas State Police and the FBI, they have narrowed down the search for the type of vehicle involved. They believe it was an early 2000s model of either a Ford Crown Victoria, a Mercury Grand Marquee, or a Lincoln Town Car.
The hit and run incident occurred sometime between 12 am and 5 am on August 15, 2023.
“If anybody has information about the incident, please call the Warren Police Department,” said Chief Hildreth. Although the death has been ruled a suicide, the investigation is still ongoing. Anyone with information can contact the Warren Police Department at 870-226-3703.