Jeremie Speaker was 26 when his body was found the afternoon of Sunday, May 14, 2017, near Mile 4.8 of Knik River Road, just south of Palmer, Alaska. Two burned vehicles were discovered close to the location and were impounded for forensic examination as investigators worked to establish their connection to the death. An autopsy and identification followed; early reporting and memorial listings indicate Speaker was shot.

Within days the investigation produced arrests. On Tuesday, May 16, investigators detained two Palmer residents at a downtown motel, 38-year-old Robert Barker and 35-year-old Joed Weyand. Each was charged with first-degree murder and booked into the Mat-Su Pretrial Facility held without bail. Officials said the seized burned vehicles were part of reconstructing the hours leading to the discovery on the Old Glenn Highway spur near the Knik River.

What details about the hours before Speaker was found might help explain why he was on that stretch of road, or how those burned vehicles relate to the killing?