Lawson Man Charged In Fatal Hit-and-Run Case

PALMYRA — A Lawson, Missouri, man has been formally charged in connection with a fatal hit-and-run investigation stemming from an incident last June at a gas station along U.S. 36.
According to court records, Gary Dean Jones Jr. is charged in Case No. 25MM-CR00204 with leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death, a
felony. The information was filed April 16 by Marion County Prosecutor Luke Andrew Bryant.
A probable cause statement filed earlier in the case alleges the incident occurred June 3, 2025, at about 9:31 p.m. at the Ayerco station on U.S. 36 in Marion County. A Missouri State Highway Patrol trooper wrote that surveillance video showed a red Peterbilt tractor-trailer entering the parking lot and striking a pedestrian.
The statement alleges the truck traveled completely over the pedestrian, then backed up, paused and left the scene without a 911 call from the driver. The pedestrian later died at Hannibal Regional Hospital.
Investigators said information from the public helped identify the truck as one owned by SPB Trucking LLC and registered to Jones. Court records state search warrants were later executed for the truck, Jones’ cellphone records and his Facebook account. According to the probable cause statement, cellphone data placed Jones’ phone in the area of the gas station at the time of the fatal crash, while the Facebook search produced nothing relevant to the investigation. The statement also says Jones refused to give a statement for the crash report.
Court records show the original case file was received from the associate
division on April 14.
An arraignment is scheduled for June 3, 2026, at 10 a.m. before Judge John J. Jackson in Marion County.
Records also show a $75,000 cash bond was posted Dec. 1, 2025.
All charges are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.