ADAMS COUNTY — An Adams County jury found a Conewago Township man guilty of first degree murder in the June 2016 beating death of his roommate, according to a tweet Thursday night from the Adams County District Attorney’s Office.
Walter Mark Smith attacked his roommate, Mitchell Jones, with a ceramic water pitcher in their Conewago Township apartment on June 4. The two were smoking crack together earlier that night, but got into a fight that eventually turned physical.
After the fight, Smith drove to a friend’s home in New Oxford. He told the friend and his wife that he and Mitch “had been partying together” and that Jones “hit him with a chair and knocked him down.” He then stated that he “beat him to death.”
The friend and his wife then drove to Smith’s apartment and found Jones’ body. They then notified police. Police arrived on the scene and confirmed that Jones was dead in an upstairs bedroom with a black plastic garbage bag covering his head. There were also evident signs of a struggle and a large amount of blood in the bedroom.
Smith was immediately taken into custody.
