A former city councilman and businessman in Guthrie, Oklahoma, was sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty in April of killing his Black co-worker and burying him under septic tank.
According to Fox 25 News, Daniel Triplett was sentenced to life in prison without parole for first degree murder and seven years for desecration of a corpse.
Investigators said that Triplett fired Brent mack on Sept. 20, 2021, and gave him a $1,000 servance before dropping him off at a laundromat in Guthrie. Mack went missing and Triplett was discovered to be the last person to see him alive.
“Obviously, we know what happened,” said Mack’s son to WGXA, Brendon Mack. “That man is going to rot.”
Police reviewed surveillance footage from outside of the laundromat and saw Triplett’s truck drive by but never actually stop. They then began to question Triplett about the last job he and Mack did together. Triplett told police that it was on Sept. 8 in Crescent.
Authorities acquired a search warrant for Triplett’s home and vehicle. During the search, they found a logbook of job locations. They discovered the two men installed a septic system at a home in Mulhall on September, which was the same day Mack was reported missing.
The people who Mack and Triplette installed the septic system for had surveillance footage of the men working on the job site. The footage shows Mack going into a hole they dug to install the system but never coming back out. It also showed Triplett and Mack arriving together but only one person leaving.
Investigators dug up the septic tank on October 21 and state anthropologists used a probe to find the body. According to multiple reports, investigators found a wallet with Mack’s ID after the body was exhumed. They also found that Triplett shot Mack in the back while he was down in the hole.
The Oklahoma State Medical Examiner’s Office autopsy report states that Mack died from a gunshot wound to the upper back.
Triplett had his bond revoked in January 2022 after being released on a $500,000 bond in December 2021.
He claimed self-defense during the trial by stating that Mack became angry after he told him that it was his last day on the job.
Triplett claimed Mack was attempting to leave early before he was fired. He alleged the two got into a heated argument and Mack was the one who pulled the gun on him first inside the hole they built for the septic tank. He also stated that he initially lied to police and Mack’s family because he “freaked out,” according to Guthrie News Page.
It was reported that Logan County District Attorney Laura Austin Thomas said Triplett plans to file an appeal claiming he was not given a fair trial.
