SALINA —On Saturday, Salina Police share additional information regarding an arrest made in Salina earlier this month. Release of this information was delayed to avoid interfering with Great Bend Police Department’s ongoing homicide investigation.
In the early morning hours of September 5, Great Bend Police Department issued an officer-safety alert for a homicide suspect identified as 19-year-old Keegan Martens, wanted in connection with the fatal shooting of a juvenile.
Salina officers quickly developed information connecting the suspect to individuals in the Salina community. As part of that investigation, officers used the department’s Flock camera system to identify an associated vehicle traveling toward Salina from the Barton County area.
Less than an hour after the alert was issued, officers located the vehicle at a Salina gas station and took Martens into custody. Great Bend Police Department responded to Salina and continued its investigation. On September 11, prosecutors in Barton County charged Martens with second-degree murder and aggravated child endangerment in the death of 17-year-old Erin Smith.
"This case is a good example of several pieces of police work coming together quickly, information sharing between agencies, local investigative work, and available technology. Good police work developed the lead. Technology helped officers act on it quickly."