MARIANNA, Ark. — On the evening of Sunday, May 12, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office responded to a report of a plane crash in Lee County.
According to witnesses, the privately owned plane was traveling from Florida to the Batesville airport.
Around 8 p.m., family members of the victims had not heard from them and contacted the West Helena Police Department for assistance.
Shortly after, first responders located a single-engine plane in a field 12 miles southeast of the city limits of Marianna.
Two passengers were found deceased inside the plane and identified as 72-year-old Joseph Bryant and 73-year-old Sharon Bryant. There were no other passengers on board.
Arkansas State Police handed over the investigation to the National Transportation Safety Board, which is working to investigate the cause of the crash.