A Dodge Ram belonging to Robert Manns was found in Poplar Bluff after he was discovered dead in Naylor, according to investigators.
NAYLOR, Mo. — A missing pickup truck helped carry a southeast Missouri death investigation across county lines before authorities arrested a Broseley man in the killing of his father, officials said.
The case began in Ripley County and quickly reached Butler County. Robert D. Manns, 71, was found dead April 13 at his home in the 600 block of Route B in Naylor. His son, Dustin D. Manns, 44, was later found where the victim’s silver Dodge Ram had been located in Poplar Bluff. The next day, the Ripley County prosecuting attorney charged Dustin Manns with first-degree murder and four related felonies.
Investigators first learned the truck was missing from Robert Manns’ sister, who had gone to check on him after not hearing from him since April 11. She found the front door unlocked and discovered him dead in a bedroom. When deputies from the Ripley County Sheriff’s Office arrived, she reported that the Dodge Ram was not in the driveway. She also said Dustin Manns could not be reached. The missing truck gave authorities an immediate lead beyond the house itself. It suggested someone had left the property after Robert Manns was last heard from and before his body was found.
The Ripley County Sheriff’s Office asked the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Division of Drug and Crime Control to investigate the suspicious death. State investigators pursued several leads, including the truck. They eventually found it at a residence in Poplar Bluff. That location mattered because Poplar Bluff is in Butler County, while the death scene was in Ripley County. Law enforcement contacted Dustin Manns at the same residence where the truck was found. He was detained there and taken back to the Ripley County Sheriff’s Office for questioning. The patrol later thanked the Ripley and Butler County sheriff’s offices for their help.
After the interview, investigators said they had evidence connecting Dustin Manns to his father’s death. The probable cause account says Dustin Manns allegedly admitted stabbing Robert Manns with a fish gig, striking him across the chest with the handle and asphyxiating him until he died. A fish gig is a fishing spear, and authorities said the weapon was recovered at the scene. Officials have not released a motive or said whether they believe the attack happened before, during or after any argument. They also have not said whether the truck was taken immediately after the death or later.
The geography of the case is part of its public record. Naylor is a small community in southern Ripley County. Broseley, where Dustin Manns was identified as living, is in Butler County. Poplar Bluff, where investigators found the truck, is a regional hub in Butler County. The investigation therefore involved the victim’s home, the suspect’s county of residence and the location where the missing vehicle was recovered. That spread required coordination among local deputies and state investigators. It also meant evidence could include the home scene, the vehicle and the Poplar Bluff residence.
The criminal complaint filed April 14 includes first-degree murder, armed criminal action, abandonment of a corpse, stealing a motor vehicle and tampering with a motor vehicle. Those counts reflect more than the death itself. Prosecutors allege a weapon was involved, that the body was abandoned and that the vehicle was unlawfully taken or handled. Dustin Manns is held without bond at the Ripley County Detention Center. The filing of charges does not determine guilt. The patrol noted that the accusations must be supported by evidence in court, where guilt or innocence is decided.
Several major facts remain outside the public record. Authorities have not released the full probable cause statement, the autopsy findings or a detailed account of evidence recovered from the truck. They have not said whether the Dodge Ram showed signs of damage, whether it contained evidence from the Naylor home or whether anyone saw it arrive in Poplar Bluff. Officials also have not said how investigators located the truck. Possible leads in such cases can include witness tips, license plate readers, phone data or patrol observations, but authorities have not identified which methods were used here.
The legal path ahead will determine how much of the investigation becomes public. Early hearings may address bond, counsel and the schedule for the case. A preliminary hearing, if held, would require prosecutors to show probable cause that a crime occurred and that Dustin Manns committed it. Later proceedings could address the admissibility of any statements he allegedly made to investigators. Evidence from the weapon, the bedroom, the truck and the Poplar Bluff residence could also become part of court filings or testimony. No next court date was available when the charges were first reported.
The public timeline now runs from April 11, when Robert Manns’ sister last had contact with him, to April 13, when she found him dead, and then to April 14, when prosecutors filed the five charges. Between those dates, investigators say the Dodge Ram left the Naylor property and was found in Poplar Bluff. Dustin Manns was detained at that second location and later arrested after questioning.
Currently, Dustin Manns remains jailed without bond, the motive has not been released and the case is awaiting its next court milestone in Ripley County.
Author note: Last updated May 7, 2026.