Wednesday Crime Stories: Young woman bound and stuffed in suitcase, dumped in ritzy neighborhood
Podcast
PLUS: Patrick Frazee’s rodeo queen ‘friend’ to plead guilty in Kelsey Berreth probe
Missing
February 6, 2019
Serenity Dennard: Search for little girl who ran away from children’s home is now a ‘recovery mission;’ police say unlikely she’s still alive
Police said the search for a missing 9-year-old South Dakota girl has transitioned to a recovery mission as it’s unlikely she would’ve survived this long in freezing temperatures. The Pennington County Sheriff’s Office released a statement late Tuesday, announcing that they’ve ended rescue efforts for Serenity Dennard. Dennard was last seen Sunday morning when she …
Animal Crimes
February 6, 2019
Bear euthanized after eating man’s body in national park; police now say man was already dead from overdose: Report
A man eaten by a bear at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee was apparently already deceased from a drug overdose prior to the animal ravaging his body. Knoxville’s CBS 8 reports that William Lee Hill Jr., 30, died from “accidental methamphetamine intoxication.” Great Smoky Mountains National Park officials released the Knox County Regional Forensic …
Murder
February 6, 2019
Court upholds sentence of ‘suicide by text’ teen Michelle Carter
A court has upheld a judge’s ruling in the case of a Massachusetts teen who coerced her boyfriend to commit suicide. Michelle Carter was convicted in 2017 of involuntary manslaughter after prosecutors showed that she sent her suicidal boyfriend, Conrad Roy, text messages encouraging him to go through with his planned suicide in 2014, when he …
Drug Crime
February 6, 2019
Baby boy almost dies after chewing on heroin baggies found in home, next to his ‘passed out’ mother: Police
A 16-month-old Pennsylvania baby barely survived after police say he ingested heroin residue while inside his family’s Upper Darby home on Monday, after finding the baggies next to his mother. ABC 6 reports that the incident happened off of the 7700 block of West Chester Pike, after the baby chewed on empty drug baggies that contained …
Juveniles
February 6, 2019
Missing South Carolina teen found dead along highway
A South Carolina teen who has been missing for several weeks was found dead of homicide. The Associated Press reports that Malik Spencer, 18, was found shot to death in Bamberg County. As CrimeOnline previously reported, Malik’s parents had been desperately searching for him since he vanished in December, failing to show up for classes at …
Court
February 6, 2019
Man admits to leaving 5-month-old baby boy in woods alone, buried under sticks and dirt for hours while wet and freezing: Report
A Montana man accused of leaving a 5-month-old baby in the woods while high on meth changed his plea Tuesday morning at the Missoula District Court and admitted to criminal endangerment and child criminal endangerment. The Missoulian reports that Francis Carlton Crowley, 33, dropped the 5-month-old baby in the woods last July, in the Lolo Hot Springs area. Residents in …
Homicide
February 5, 2019
‘Find my Phone’ iPad app alerts woman that abusive ex is right outside of her home moments before he kills her: Police
Authorities in Connecticut say a 75-year-old man is facing charges including murder after allegedly breaking into a home and shooting his ex-wife dead. According to the New York Post, 70-year-old Catherine Taylor had accused James Taylor of stealing multiple vehicles belonging to either her or her 45-year-old stepson. The woman had allegedly moved into her …
Family Crime
February 5, 2019
Mother of three killed in home with daughters nearby, dad found dead in river; cops investigate as murder-suicide: Reports
Authorities in New Jersey are investigating an apparent murder-suicide after a woman was found dead in her home and her husband’s body floated to the surface of an area river. According to Fox News 48-year-old Denise Bartone is a mother of three whose remains were found on Monday inside of the family’s home in Freehold …
Murder
February 5, 2019
Young woman’s body found stuffed in suitcase in affluent Connecticut suburb
Police in Greenwich, Connecticut, are investigating an apparent homicide after a body was found stuffed in a suitcase on Tuesday morning. Greenwich Time reports that investigators are working to identify a woman’s body found by highway workers at about 8:30 a.m., bound by the hands and feet inside a suitcase about 10 to 15 feet …
Court
February 5, 2019
OUTRAGE! Judge calls girl victims ‘aggressor’ in sex abuse case before reducing offender’s sentence
A Kansas judge has come under fire after reportedly suggesting that two underage girls were “more of an aggressor” than the 67-year-old man who paid to have sex with them. From The Kansas City Star, Judge Michael Gibbens reduced Raymond Soden’s prison sentence from 13 years to five years and 10 months, saying the two victims—ages 13 and …
Consumer
February 5, 2019
Young man dies after e-cigarette in mouth explodes, causing massive stroke: Officials
A Texas man reportedly died days after the vape e-cigarette he was using exploded and caused him to suffer a massive stroke. According to KPRC, William Brown, 24, was in a parking lot of Smoke and Vape DZ, a store that sells vaping equipment and supplies, on January 27 when the vape pen he was using exploded. Brown’s …
