“Person of Interest” in Somerset murder arrested

DANDRIDGE, TN (WTVQ) – A man investigators call a “person of interest” in the rape and murder of an elderly woman in Somerset, has been arrested in Dandridge, Tennessee, according to a Facebook post from the Somerset Police Department.

The post says 41-year old Dwight Mitchell Bell was arrested without incident on charges stemming from the theft of the murder victim’s car, which was found in Indianapolis, Indiana.

70-year old Ruthie Carolyn New was found murdered in the activity center of the Denham Street Baptist Church in Somerset late last month.  Her late husband founded the church.

It was a crime that shocked and saddened the community.

According to Indianapolis Police, there was also an arrest warrant out for Bell in a separate strangulation case in New Castle, Indiana.

Court records show in 1999, Bell pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of manslaughter in the shooting death of his father, 49-year old Roger Bell.  Dwight Bell, who was 22-years old at the time, served seven years of a 15-year prison sentence, according to court records.

He was paroled in 2005, but went back to prison in April 2008 for violating the terms of his parole.  He was released in October 2012, according to court records.