Arrest made in July 2022 Darien killing
Feb. 3—A Jesup man is in McIntosh County Detention Center charged with murder and aggravated assault for his alleged role in the death of a Darien shrimper in July 2022.
Justin Barrett Barnard, 33, was arrested Wednesday by McIntosh County Sheriff's deputies after an arrest warrant was taken out amid an ongoing investigation into the circumstances that led to the death of Neil Trutt on July 2, 2022, said Maj. Danny Lowe of the McIntosh County Sheriff's Office.
Trutt, 51, was found fatally beaten and left for dead on the Darien waterfront at the docks of Thompson Seafood at around 11 p.m. that night by a boat owner who came to check on his vessel.
It was the same night the city celebrated Independence Day.
Trutt was transported by ambulance to Southeast Georgia Health System in Brunswick where he was pronounced dead.
According to reports at the time, Trutt had no permanent address and he and fellow shrimpers had been staying at the docks off of Franklin Street in downtown Darien.
Lowe said at the time that Trutt had been in Darien all his life and was well known in the community.
Lowe declined to provide more details about the charges and said the investigation is ongoing.
Anyone with information that may be helpful to the case is asked to call the McIntosh County Sheriff's Office at 912-437-5870.
