The trial of a man accused in the suspicious death of a Bowling Green resident began Tuesday with jury selection.

Jurors were being questioned by attorneys involved in the trial of Antonio Wilson, who faces charges of complicity to commit murder, tampering with physical evidence and abuse of a corpse.

Wilson, 42, of Smiths Grove, is accused of being complicit in the death of Smajo Miropija, 49, of Bowling Green.

Miropija’s body was found Feb. 8, 2019, at Mega Transport on Porter Pike.

Warren County Commonwealth’s Attorney Chris Cohron gave a brief description to prospective jurors of how police came to the business after a 911 call and encountered a scene initially believed by authorities to be a possible industrial accident.

The upper half of Miropija’s body was badly burned.

The death investigation became a homicide when police found signs of trauma on the body and an electrical cord wrapped around Miropija’s neck, Cohron said.

Wilson was developed as a person of interest by law enforcement, who sought to speak with him, only to later learn that he had flown from Chicago to the Philippines, according to court records.

Wilson was taken into custody by authorities in the Philippines later that year and extradited to the U.S.

Wilson’s defense team of attorneys Rob Eggert and Ted Shouse have pleaded not guilty to all counts.

Police allege Wilson engaged another person, Jeffery Smith, in a plot to kill Miropija.

Smith is alleged to have actually committed the homicide, though he has pleaded not guilty to murder and other counts.

During jury questioning Tuesday, Cohron went through a list of potential witnesses, including numerous Bowling Green Police Department officers, and asked prospective jurors whether they could consider the evidence offered by those witnesses without bias even if they knew any of the witnesses personally.

Prospective jurors were advised by Cohron that a conviction for being complicit in a murder carries the same penalties as a murder conviction – imprisonment from 20 to 50 years, or life with no chance at parole for at least 20 years.

Cohron asked the prospective jurors whether they could consider the full range of penalties, and no jurors were excused Tuesday morning for being unable to do so.

A number of prospective jurors were excused after disclosing that they were familiar with certain witnesses or had heard about the case prior to trial, and that those experiences might prevent them from considering the evidence without bias.

Seven days have been set aside to try the case, and jury selection continued Tuesday afternoon with questions from Wilson’s attorneys, with the aim of seating a panel of 15 jurors, including three alternates.

– Follow courts reporter Justin Story on Twitter @jstorydailynews or visit bgdailynews.com.