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Fort Drum soldier found fatally shot, another soldier held

This undated photo provided by the U.S. Army shows Hayden Harris, of Guys, Tenn., who was stationed at the U.S. Army base Fort Drum in upstate New York. Harris disappeared on Thursday, Dec. 17, 2020, and his body was found in a wooded area of Byram Township, N.J., on Saturday, Dec. 19. Fellow soldier Jamaal Mellish is being held in New York in connection with Harris' death. (U.S. Army via AP)
This undated photo provided by the U.S. Army shows Hayden Harris, of Guys, Tenn., who was stationed at the U.S. Army base Fort Drum in upstate New York. Harris disappeared on Thursday, Dec. 17, 2020, and his body was found in a wooded area of Byram Township, N.J., on Saturday, Dec. 19. Fellow soldier Jamaal Mellish is being held in New York in connection with Harris' death. (U.S. Army via AP)

By Associated Press 2 min read

BYRAM, N.J. (AP) – Authorities on Monday were holding a U.S. Army soldier in the death of a fellow soldier from Tennessee who was found shot to death in New Jersey after he was missing from a base in upstate New York.

Authorities found the body of Cpl. Hayden Harris, 20, in a wooded area of Byram Township, New Jersey, on Saturday.

The resident of Guys, Tennessee, was last heard from Thursday night after he headed from Fort Drum to Watertown, New York, for a vehicle transaction, the Army said.

Harris was meeting fellow soldier, Jamaal Mellish, for “some type of vehicle exchange,” First Assistant Sussex County Prosecutor Gregory Mueller said. Authorities believe Mellish “abducted” Harris and killed him, Mueller said.

Mellish, 23, was held in New York and charges were pending. It wasn’t immediately known whether Mellish had a lawyer.