CHARLESTON, W.Va. — An arrest has been made in the death of a former coal company executive found shot at a West Virginia cemetery where his wife is buried.

Mingo County Sheriff James Smith said Tuesday that Anthony R. Arriaga, 20, of Gibsanburg, Ohio, is being held on a homicide warrant in Allen County, Ohio, in the shooting Monday of Bennett K. Hatfield, 59.

Mr. Hatfield resigned in 2015 as president and CEO of Patriot Coal, a month before the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for the second time. He was International Coal Group’s CEO when a 2006 explosion at the Sago Mine in northern West Virginia killed 12 miners.

Mr. Hatfield was shot at Mountain View Memory Gardens, a cemetery in southern West Virginia’s Mingo County. Detectives were interviewing Mr. Arriaga and will seek his extradition to West Virginia, Sheriff Smith said. The sheriff didn’t immediately release a motive and said he didn’t know Mr. Arriaga’s hometown.

Authorities believe Mr. Arriaga sneaked down a river bank next to the cemetery and asked some neighbors to take him to Wayne County, Sheriff Smith said. A man who drove Mr. Arriaga contacted authorities after hearing about Mr. Hatfield’s death.

“Once he heard what was going on, he let us know he gave this subject a ride to Wayne County,” Sheriff Smith said.

A state police team then helped track the suspect to Wayne County and eventually into Ohio.

Sheriff Smith said authorities had been stumped until the neighbor stepped forward to report the suspect.

“We were totally lost,” the sheriff said. “Him catching that ride helped us.”

A second person also has been charged in connection with the killing.

Ricky Dean Peterson, 20, of Wayne, W.Va., is charged with accessory after the fact, obstructing/​resisting an officer and providing false information to a trooper in connection with the shooting, according to a criminal complaint filed in Wayne County Magistrate Court.

Mr. Hatfield’s girlfriend had reported him missing after he didn’t return home, and authorities traced his cellphone to the cemetery in Maher, where his body was found, Sheriff Smith said. An autopsy by the state medical examiner was ongoing.

In October, a sculpture donated by Mr. Hatfield was installed at a Charleston hospital’s “healing garden” in memory of his wife, who passed away from cancer, according to Charleston Area Medical Center.

Mr. Hatfield was named last June to the board of coal producer Foresight Energy, based in St. Louis.

He also previously held management positions with Arch Coal and Massey Energy and was a member of the West Virginia Coal Association board.

“Ben Hatfield was well known, not just for his many accomplishments within the industry, but also as a mentor to so many of us,” said Bill Bissett, president of the Kentucky Coal Association. “His kindness and compassion were legendary, as was his intellect and ability. His belief in those around him often succeeded our belief in ourselves, which made you work that much harder to accomplish the task at hand.”

First Published: May 24, 2016, 3:07 p.m.
Updated: May 25, 2016, 3:04 a.m.