The office of the Seventh District Attorney announced Wednesday it has charged a man with first degree murder for the death of Dennis Ray Fisher on Christmas Eve three years ago.

Joseph Thomas, 49, is currently being held on federal drug trafficking charges, according to a news release. The District Attorney will ask for Thomas' extradition to Natrona County, though it is not clear when that will happen.

It is unclear if others will be charged in the crime, the release states.

Fisher was found in a large drum on the property of convicted drug dealer Sam Urbigkit's mother two months after he was killed in a Knights of Columbus apartment. Fisher was beaten for several hours and it was apparent Thomas had stuck a knife through Fisher's ear canal, Attorney General Pat Crank said Thursday.

The homicide investigation was notable for its secrecy. Police held both Urbigkit and "One-eyed Joe" Thomas for methamphetamine and gun charges and hinted that they were involved in Fisher's murder, but no charges were ever filed.

Thomas received a 30-year sentence for possession and sale of methamphetamine in U.S. District Court. During the sentencing phase of the trial, the court found Thomas was involved in the murder, which led to a longer sentence in the drug case.

Crank, who was the Assistant U.S. Attorney during Thomas' 2001 trial, said the sentencing phase of federal trials allows the court to make findings based on a lower standard of proof.

"The U.S. Attorney's office charged him with drug conspiracy, and usually unless a homicide occurs in an area of special jurisdiction … it was always our policy that we deferred to local prosecutors," Crank said. "It was ultimately up to the D.A.'s office to charge him or not charge him on whatever timeline."

Urbigkit was sentenced to five consecutive life terms for aggravated assault and attempted murder after he tried to hit Division of Criminal Investigation officers with his car and then shot at them when they came to arrest him. He was also convicted on firearms and drug violations.

District Attorney Mike Blonigen said Thursday officials are continuing their investigation, but he offered no specific information on the case.