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A former reality TV star is accused of beating his cellmate to death just days before he was scheduled to be released, according to police.
Chad Aaron Ollinger, who rose to fame starring on Discovery Channel’s “Mystery at Blind Frog Ranch,” has been charged with killing his cellmate after guards at the Clark County Detention Center in Nevada found his motionless body on Friday.
The inmate, who was not identified, was “suffering from apparent blunt force injuries” after a physical altercation inside the cell, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said. He was declared dead at the scene despite efforts to save him.
Ollinger, 41, was immediately taken into custody and re-booked for open murder, cops said.
He was due to be released from jail on Jan. 12.
It’s not clear what sparked the violent brawl.
Ollinger is the son of Duane Ollinger, who owns the Blind Frog Ranch in Eastern Utah. Throughout the Discovery series, which has run for five seasons, the pair and others search for gold hidden in the vast networks of caves underneath the property.
However, his legal troubles began in November 2024, when he was arrested for evading police after fleeing on a motorcycle and then on foot, according to records obtained by local outlet KFDA.
The Dumas, Texas native was indicted on those charges in Potter County, Texas January and then was arrested again in February for driving with an invalid license in Gray County.
In July, Ollinger’s family reported him missing in New Mexico, and he was entered into the National Crime Information Center as a missing person. He was located not long afterwards in Albuquerque.
Ollinger was busted in Clark County, Nevada on Oct. 27 for contempt of court and booked at the Las Vegas jail.
A judge handed him a short sentence on Dec. 18, and he was due to be released on Jan. 12, 2026, according to jail records.
Ollinger is now being held without bail and is scheduled to be arraigned on the new charges on Tuesday.
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