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Henryetta horse trainer remembered by community

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Okmulgee investigators are working hard to identify remains they believe could be Addison Waddell, who was a well-known horse trainer.

Okmulgee investigators caught a break in their case today after they say 37-year-old Nicole Spears told them she shot and killed Waddell.

Friends knew him by his nickname 'Add'.

"He was such a kind soul and so soft-spoken," family friend Jamie Malone-Hiett said. "He was very gentle, could help you, some of the worst horses he could make winners."

Many people might not know it, but Waddell was known all over the industry as training some of the best barrel racing horses across the country.

Malone-Hiett had her horse 'Kid Rock' trained by Waddell.

"He was a major part of the whole barrel racing family," Malone-Hiett said.

And just today in Tulsa, 'Kid Rock' won the amateur class and second overall and to all who knew Waddell, it was a bittersweet feeling.

"It was tough," Malone-Hiett said. "Once I got through I just lost it out there because I just had a tough six months and I was just like 'Add' magic today."

Waddell ran a training center in the Henryetta area but moved to Oklahoma from the Carolinas.

His loss is being felt all over the country.

"We just remained friends he just a great man to me," Malone-Hiett said.

Okmulgee detectives say they'll have to wait for the medical examiner's office to determine if the remains found today is that of Waddell's.

Meanwhile, Spears is being held in the Okmulgee County Jail on a first-degree murder complaint.

 

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