Taylor Elkins, a 22-year-old Fort Smith mother, was arrested and charged with the murder of a retired teacher and Army veteran, Bill DuBois, who was found brutally beaten to death in the bathroom of his home during a welfare check in July 2019. She eventually pleaded guilty, receiving a 40-year prison sentence.

Elkins allegedly tried to rob DuBois, but when the 72-year-old told her that he did not have any money, she repeatedly struck him in the head with a hammer and stole a number of valuables, including the car, before fleeing the scene. Once the stolen vehicle was tracked to an address known to local police as a drug and s*x house, two men arrested at the venue named her as the killer.

Bill DuBois was a Fort Smith retired teacher (Image via Find a Grave)

According to the Arkansas Department of Corrections, Taylor Elkins is now serving her sentence at the McPherson Unit in Newport.

An upcoming episode of ID's The Murder Tapes, titled The Quick Change, further delves into Bill DuBois' beating death. The synopsis states:

"The town of Fort Smith, Ark., reels when an elderly, retired school teacher turns up dead, bludgeoned to death with a hammer no fewer than 36 times; when the person responsible receives justice, an unlikely perpetrator comes to light."

The episode will air on the channel on Tuesday, June 13, at 7 pm ET.

Taylor Elkins, a Fort Smith mother-of-two, accepted a plea deal in retired teacher Bill DuBois' beating death

In January 2020, Taylor Elkins of Fort Smith was sentenced to 40 years in prison after she pleaded guilty to the first-degree murder of 72-year-old retired teacher and Army veteran Bill DuBois, who was found beaten to death at his duplex home, where he resided alone, in July 2019. She agreed to a plea deal to avoid going to trial.

As per the Arkansas Department of Corrections, Elkins is currently serving her sentence at the McPherson Unit in Newport and will be eligible for parole after serving 70% of her sentence, that is, after having served 28 years in prison.

At the time of the murder, Elkins was staying at her grandfather's house, who was DuBois' neighbor. The 22-year-old mother was arrested not long after the murder after she was found with the victim's red 2013 Ford Focus, which was stolen from his house, among other valuables.

According to the Times Record, Taylor Elkins initially told the police that the vehicle was given to her by a man as payment for s*x. She later altered her narrative, claiming that DuBois was the one to give her the car in exchange for s*xual favors.

The mother-of-two later told a detainee at the Sebastian County Adult Detention Center that she struck the 72-year-old victim in the head with a hammer when she found out that he did not have any money. At some point, she even admitted to having "knocked him in the head."

Bill DuBois was found beaten to death in the bathroom of his house on the 1800 block of Greenwood Avenue during a welfare check after his neighbor contacted 911 because he hadn't been seen for a couple of days and his car was missing. A subsequent autopsy revealed that he died of blunt force trauma to the head and had 27 impact points.

Furthermore, the crime scene had been ransacked, and his valuables, including two sets of TVs, a microwave oven, his gold lieutenant's bars, a wallet, a car, and other items, were missing from the house. They were able to track his vehicle to a s*x and drug house, which then led to Taylor Elkins' arrest.

ID's The Murder Tapes will further delve into Bill DuBois' killing this Tuesday at 7 pm ET.

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