Police make arrest in double homicide case

By Jeffery Smith, for NEWS 9

TULSA, Okla. -- Deputies said a man allegedly shot one of his friends in the head and burned another one beyond recognition. Deputies arrested Travis Danley Sunday night. Danley was booked into jail on two counts of first-degree murder, one count of first-degree arson, one count of larceny from a house and one count of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle. 

Deputies said Danley allegedly killed his friends at a house outside Sperry, then took a truck and headed back home to Joplin. Deputies said that's when he told family members he killed two men.

Investigators said Danley's mother convinced him to surrender in Miami.

Danley was in town for the long holiday weekend. Now, instead of celebrating, families are planning funerals.

As soon as the sheriff's office knew who they were looking for late Sunday afternoon, they sent two deputies to Joplin to recover the stolen truck and search for the murder weapon.

The victim's family said they were friends with Travis Danley and that they knew him for years. They said in a heartbeat, it has gone from a relaxing holiday weekend to a tragic nightmare.

Friends and family are overcome with grief.

"How I'm going to live without him, I don't know," Mike Reeder's girlfriend, Jackie McDonald said.

Police called the scene gruesome. Police believe Saturday night six friends hung out at Reeder's home, drinking beer and fishing in a pond. The next morning, a neighbor saw smoke coming from the roof and called for help. When firefighters arrived on the scene in the 2900 block of E 106 Street N, they found two dead bodies inside.

"Stuff like that doesn't happen around here ever," neighbor Stacie Sisk said.

One man was shot in the head. Police aren't releasing the name, but friends said the victim is David Lujaun.

"Nobody hated Dave. Nobody hated Dave. Everybody loved Dave," Reeder's sister-in-law, Sabrina Reeder said.

Police said the other man was doused in fuel and set on fire. Police said they found a gas can nearby. The body was so badly burned, police said they'll need dental records to identify him. But, Mike Reeder's girlfriend said she doesn't have to wait for that.

"I can't process what's going on in my head. I just know it's Mike. I love him. I want him to know that right now and I can't tell him," Jackie McDonald said.

"He was just an all-around good guy, wonderful. Do anything for anybody. Never backstab anybody. He was your best friend and he's gone," Sabrina Reeder said.

It's a tangled web. The six party-goers were all close friends and extended family.

"It's all intertwined together. Everything was always done together. We've always done everything together," Sabrina Reeder said.

Now, two men are dead and the family wants answers.

"We went on fishing trips together. We went on lake trips together. And he's gone because some senseless piece of jerk took his life," Sabrina Reeder said.

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08/31/2008  Bodies Found In Burning Home