(Reuters) – An Oklahoma police officer has been charged with murdering his own police chief in a Florida seaside hotel as the pair traveled to attend a law enforcement conference, authorities said on Monday.
Officer Michael Patrick Nealey, 49, was charged with murdering police chief Lucky Miller, 44, inside the Hilton Inn on Pensacola Beach, authorities said.
The pair had been drinking, got into a fight and Miller died as a result of his injuries, Escambia County Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman Amber Southard said by telephone.
Nealey is being held without bond at the Escambia County jail.
Southard said sheriff’s department officers responded to a call about 9 p.m. Sunday regarding a disturbance at the hotel.
“When they arrived, Lucky Miller was deceased and Michael Nealey was arrested for his murder,” she said.
Southard said no other details were available pending an investigation – but she confirmed the pair had been drinking before they got into a fight.
Miller was the police chief in Mannford, Oklahoma, a town of about 3,200 people located 20 miles (32 km) west of Tulsa.
The Mannford mayor’s office said in a written statement that Miller had been on the force since 2007, was married and had three children.
“We are heartbroken by the news,” said Mannford Mayor Tom Buttram.
Reporting by Brad Brooks in Austin, Texas; Editing by Frank McGurty and Tom Brown