Yellowstone County deputies and emergency personnel responded to the Arrow Creek Trailer Court at the Arrow Creek Trailer Court in Ballantine Friday morning to find a deceased female. According to Yellowstone County Sheriff Mike Linder, an autopsy was performed and identified the victim as Jennifer L. McCollum, age 34, who lived in the trailer court.
According to the medical examiner, McCollum died from injuries she received during the assault, but details of the injuries were not being released at this time due to the ongoing investigation.
As the deputies were at the murder scene in Ballantine at 6 am, it wasn’t until 8:40 am that morning that a homicide suspect was located and apprehended of East I Rd., a few miles from the crime scene.
The suspect was identified as Stephen Craig Philips, age 37, who also resided at the same trailer court but at a different residence.
Phillips has been booked into the Yellowstone County Detention Facility on charges of probation violation and a $1 Million-dollar deliberate homicide bond, according to detention records on 5/19/20.
No more details in connection to the murder are being released as this time due to the ongoing investigation.
