Photos: (from left) William Christopher Niemet and Greg Jones
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – A central Missouri man charged with killing a 14-year-old classmate in 1991 has been released from prison after posting a $1 million cash bond.
William Christopher Niemet, 43, left the Cole County Jail on Monday but will be supervised and must wear a GPS tracking device, The Jefferson City News-Tribune reported.
Niemet was charged with first-degree murder in the death of Greg Jones, whose body was found in June 1991 near a river near Russellville. He had been shot twice in head. Niemet pleaded not guilty in March.
Niemet, who was 14 at the time, and Jones were classmates.
Niemet was arrested in 1991 not long after Jones’ body was found but the juvenile court case was eventually dropped. He filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the county and then-Sheriff John Hemeyer in 1997. That lawsuit was later dismissed.
A probable cause statement filed by the Cole County Sheriffs Department when Niemet was arrested does not suggest a motive for the shooting. The statement says three witnesses told authorities that Niemet claimed responsibility for Jones’ death.
Cole County Prosecutor Locke Thompson attributed the arrest after nearly three decades in part to advancements in technology since 1991.
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