Misc. cases I

[Butterfly Girl]

Detroit police: Slain women found in car trunks linked by escort website

Three of four women recently found dead in Detroit car trunks had promoted themselves as escorts through the same website, police said Monday.

The deaths could be connected, said Chief Ralph Godbee, who cautioned that police were "stopping short" of calling it the work of a serial killer.

cont.

http://www.mlive.com/news/detroit/index....n_lin.html

[Jezreel]

RE Post 341

Detroit Free Press - A woman whose badly burned body was found in a car trunk on Christmas Day in Detroit has been identified as Vernithea McCrary, 28, police confirmed this morning.

The Wayne County Medical Examiner’s Office said the Detroit woman was identified Thursday using dental records.

The 28-year-old woman who was found with her has yet to be identified, but family members of Natasha Curtis said they fear she is the second victim.

Cortez Wingfield, Curtis' longtime boyfriend, told the Free Press on Thursday that Curtis left with McCrary at about 8 p.m. Dec. 23. He said he spoke to her about two hours later. She told Wingfield she loved him, and he hasn't heard from her since.

Wingfield knew something was wrong when she didn't come home or call Dec. 24 -- her birthday. She was to turn 29.

The medical examiner's office has not yet positively identified Curtis using dental records, but loved ones say they believe it is her because the women were found in McCrary's 1997 Buick LeSabre parked in a garage in the 14900 block of Lannette.

Six days earlier, police found the bodies of two other women just blocks away.

Those victims were cousins Renisha Landers, 23, an assembly-line worker at a Chrysler plant in Sterling Heights, and Demesha Hunt, 24, of Detroit, who left behind a 10-month-old daughter. They were found dead in the trunk of Landers' Chrysler 300 on Dec. 19 in the 14900 block of Promenade.

Detroit police have tied three of the victims to Backpage.com, a website that advertises escort services, and say they believe the cases may be connected.

Police have said someone could be targeting escorts, but they stopped short of calling it a serial killing.

[Lady Cop]

pressure is on...

Orlando Sentinel
Dale Wayne Smith Sr., the 64-year-old father of the suspect in the disappearance of missing mother Michelle Parker, was arrested on drug charges on Tuesday, records show.

The elder Smith faces charges of sale or manufacture of a controlled substance, possession of cannabis less than 20 grams and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Circumstances of the arrest were not immediately available. The sale or manufacture charge is a third-degree felony, and the other two charges are first-degree misdemeanors.

Smith is the father of Dale Smith II, ex-fiancé of Parker and father of her twins. He has not been charged, but Police have named Smith II the sole suspect in Parker's disappearance.
The Department of Children and Families said in a statement Saturday they are looking into the circumstances of the arrest and Smith Sr.'s role in the care of the children, which his son was awarded custody of after a court hearing on Nov. 30.

[Cheyne]

Good Lord that is one Lazy Eye.

Glad to see the pressure is on. Hope they can find something to tie sonny boy to Michelle's disappearance/murder.

[Lady Cop]

(CBS/KTVQ/AP) SIDNEY, Mont. - The FBI has joined the search for missing Montana teacher Sherry Arnold. An FBI spokesperson says because of the abduction potential and the proximity of North Dakota, agents are on the ground in Sidney.

CBS affiliate KTVQ reports the search for Arnold is in its third day. A small team of law enforcement officers and firefighters combed rural areas outside the town, trying to uncover clues as to what happened.

Authorities say they will search one more day for the 43-year-old Arnold, who left her home for a pre-dawn run and never returned.

A single shoe in a ditch is all that's been found of her since Saturday morning.

Sidney Mayor Bret Smelser says search teams Tuesday will re-canvass surrounding areas, looking for any more clues. After that, searches will be based on leads developed by police and FBI agents.

MSNBC reports no solid evidence has emerged to indicate that she was kidnapped, authorities said.

"It's just been grueling," said Arnold's father, Ron Whited, who runs a ranch outside of Sidney. "When you can't find someone and you do find a shoe and you know that's where she was running, something obviously wasn't right. I can tell you I would never believe I would be looking for my daughter."

Snow and rain is expected Tuesday and temperatures are expected to drop into the teens overnight.

Hundreds of volunteers have helped in the search for the missing teacher. Sherry's older sister Rhonda Whited Rupp says her family is still in shock over her sister's disappearance in the small, tight-knit community.

Sherry and her husband, Gary Arnold, had five children from previous marriages, including two still living at home and attending Sidney High School, Whited said. Colleagues described her as a devoted teacher.

Police are asking anyone with information about the whereabouts of Sherry Arnold to call the Sidney Police Department at 433-2210. You can also call the Richland County Tipline at 406-433-4027.










Gary Arnold, right, gathers with Rhonda Whited, center, and Lynell Knatterud, at a search and rescue operations center based at the Richland County Fairgrounds as family, friends, law enforcement and volunteers search the area around Sidney for high school teacher Sherry Arnold, 43, who went missing Saturday morning. Gary Arnold is Sherry's husband, Whited her sister and Knatterud her cousin.

[Jezreel]

I have been somewhat following this case.... sad story of domestic violence. Cassie was young, beautiful and seemed to be loved by a lot of people.

A Fort Smith man accused of killing his wife pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder Wednesday in Sebastian County Circuit Court.
Circuit Court Judge Michael Fitzhugh appointed the public defender’s office to represent Brent Dan Cotta, 33, and set his bond at $500,000 cash at the request of Prosecuting Attorney Dan Shue.
Brent Cotta confessed to killing Cassie Leigh Cotta, 24, after being confronted with “inconsistent stories that (investigators were) able to disprove,” according to an affidavit for probable cause signed by detective Adam Creek, Fort Smith police.
Cotta then took investigators to his wife’s body, which was recovered Tuesday afternoon off Gun Club Road in Crawford County, which is accessible from Arkansas 59 near Lock and Dam 13 on the north side of the Arkansas River, according to the affidavit.
When Fitzhugh asked Shue to state grounds for the $500,000 bond request, Shue cited “a statement” on cause of death that was consistent with physical evidence collected by investigators, the fact the body was concealed and Brent Cotta’s prior history of domestic violence toward Cassie Cotta.
Brent Cotta pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor count of third-degree domestic battery on March 21 in Sebastian County District Court and one felony count of third-degree domestic battery, second offense, on March 23 in circuit court. Cassie Cotta was the victim in both cases.
The misdemeanor count involved a Oct. 7, 2010, altercation, when a neighbor of the couple told Fort Smith police she heard someone beating on her front door, and when she opened it Cassie Cotta was lying on the ground and Brent Cotta was walking away, according to a police report.
When police arrived, Brent Cotta was attempting to leave the area in a black vehicle, and when police told him to step out of the car, Brent Cotta told the responding officer he was going to have to shoot him before he ultimately complied with the officer’s orders, according to the police report.
Cassie Cotta told police she and Brent Cotta had been downtown earlier in the evening, but he came home before her.
When she arrived at the couple’s apartment, Cassie Cotta said, Brent Cotta was standing outside before he kicked open the front door and went to bed.
When Cassie Cotta started to get in bed, Brent Cotta pulled her out of bed by her hair, pulled her around by an earring in her right ear and then began choking her, according to a police report.
Brent Cotta then tore off her shirt and told her he would kill her before he would allow her to leave, although she eventually made it outside, Cassie Cotta told police.
Brent Cotta was heavily intoxicated and kept repeating he was sorry before he was taken into custody, according to a police report.
When he pleaded guilty in district court on March 21, Brent Cotta was given a one-year suspended sentence and was ordered to enroll in the Domestic Violence Intervention Program.
The felony count involved a March 6 arrest when police responded to a domestic-disturbance call at the couple’s apartment.
Cassie Cotta told police she and Brent Cotta were arguing when he pushed her in the chest with both hands, causing her to fall backward and hit her head against a dresser.
Cassie Cotta said he also attacked her the previous day, holding her on the ground with his hands around her neck and dragging her across the floor, according to a police report.
Brent Cotta initially told police he didn’t remember what happened, before saying he remembered an argument that turned physical and conceded it was possible that he choked Cassie Cotta, according to a police report.
The report also noted that Brent Cotta had scratches on his back and chest, although he declined to say how he received them.
Once Brent Cotta was placed in a patrol car, he claimed Cassie Cotta attacked him with a knife — causing the scratches on his chest and back — and he only defended himself, according to a police report.
However, Elizabeth Farmer, the couple’s roommate at the time, told police she never saw Cassie Cotta with a knife.
The prosecutor’s office has filed a petition to revoke Brent Cotta’s suspended sentences on the battery charges.
Cassie Cotta, who like her husband regularly posted on Facebook, in response to a question from a friend on March 6, posted, “Well, there’s no wedding, baby. Brent and I are over. Love you.”
When he pleaded guilty in circuit court on March 23, Brent Cotta was given a five-year suspended sentence.
Later that morning, Brent Cotta posted on Facebook, “Got into some trouble, plead out this morning and moving on with my live!” (sic) in response to a question from a friend.
Prior to Brent Cotta’s arrests in October and March, Cassie Cotta filed a domestic-abuse complaint with police in September, but the case was closed when police were unable to locate her to follow up on the report.
Cassie Cotta said as she and Brent Cotta argued, he pulled her across their living room by her hair before choking her, according to a police report.
A little more than three months after posting on Facebook that “Brent and I are over,” the couple married in Crawford County on June 17.
On Saturday, a little more than six months after the couple married, Cassie Cotta’s mother, Pearl Cook, filed a missing person report with Fort Smith police.
Cook told police Brent Cotta last saw her daughter about 10 p.m. Friday and Cassie Cotta failed to show up for work at Perry’s Place at 4 p.m. on Saturday, according to a police report.
Cook said Brent Cotta told her Cassie Cotta said she was going to a party in Alma when he last spoke to her, according to the report.
Cassie Cotta last posted on Facebook at 10:53 p.m. Friday, telling a friend her phone was almost dead and “call tomorrow and hang?”
A little less than four hours later at 2:38 a.m. on Saturday, Brent Cotta posted a lengthy poem on Facebook that in part read: “Forgive me and please stop leaving; slow down and please believe me; I need you and you need me; always and forever; forever and always; we belong together ...”
The poem was posted after investigators believe Brent Cotta killed his wife, according to court documents.
On Monday and Tuesday, Brent Cotta made several posts thanking people for their support and asking for prayer; a little more than 90 minutes after he led investigators to his wife’s body, Brent Cotta posted “Love her,” while in police custody.
Both Shue and Sgt. Daniel Grubbs, Fort Smith police public information officer, said Wednesday they were prohibited from providing any details about Brent Cotta’s statements to investigators beyond the probable cause affidavit and what was stated in court.
Cassie Cotta’s body has been sent to the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory for an autopsy, but there were no signs of “obvious trauma” on her body, Grubbs said Tuesday.
First-degree murder is a Class Y felony punishable by 10 to 40 years or life in prison.
http://www.swtimes.com/news/article_49a1...3ce6c.html

Also there is a video at this link with the husband as he joined the search for his 'missing' wife, just hours before confessing to killing her
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcflRQiql9I


ETA: according to his google+ profile he is a father of 3, poor kids knowing what their Daddy did :(

[Lady Cop]

re: post 345

SIDNEY, MT - The school district in Sidney, Montana has announced that Sherry Arnold is dead.

A press conference will be held at 3 p.m. at the Law and Justice Center in Sidney, Montana.

Sidney Police Chief Frank DiFonzo says there will be a statement released by the department in conjuction with the FBI.

Deborah Bertram from the FBI released the following statement:

FBI Special Agent in Charge David J. Johnson of the Salt Lake City Division, and Chief of Police Frank DiFonzo of the Sidney, Montana Police Department, would like to inform the public that there has been a significant development in the investigation of the disappearance of Sherry Arnold. Based on a tip from the public, law enforcement took one adult male into custody, and another adult male is being questioned by police. The investigation to determine what happened to Ms. Arnold continues.

[Jezreel]

I was really hoping that wouldn't be the case here. I read its a small tight knit community, I wonder if the suspects are local and what they did to her

[Lady Cop]

do they have a body or not?

KUMV

Authorities announced at a news conference at the Richland County Law Enforcement Center in Sidney just after 4 p.m. That there has been a major break in the search for missing school teacher Sherry Arnold. They did not confirm that she was dead. HUH?? They said that they have taken a 47-year-old man into custody in connection with the disappearance. He`s being held in the Williams County Jail. And they`ve detained a 22-year-old man in Rapid City, South Dakota, for questioning.

[Lady Cop]

so...was she hit and killed? do they have a body not yet IDed? was she kidnapped and taken elsewhere?
aggravated kidnapping means armed.
why the secrecy? the family and school were informed of her death.


bismarcktribune
SIDNEY - Two men have been arraigned on charges of aggravated kidnapping in connection with the death of Sidney, Mont., High School teacher Sherry Arnold and are being held in Williston, Sidney Police Chief Frank DiFonzo said Saturday morning.

The Williams County jail in Williston confirmed that two men are being held there on aggravated kidnapping charges related to the case but declined to release their names, citing an ongoing investigation by the FBI.

A jail official told a Gazette reporter that they have been instructed by the FBI to not release any information on the two men.

Investigators in North Dakota are continuing to search the area and gather evidence in the case. DiFonzo called the rumors circulated Friday night that Arnold may have been killed in a hit-and-run type accident "all kinds of speculation."

[Lady Cop]

Reuters

Two Colorado men were being held in a North Dakota jail on Sunday on kidnapping charges in connection with the disappearance of a Montana teacher, authorities said.

Lester Vann Waters, 47, and Michael Keith Spell, 22, of Parachute, Colo., were detained after a tip to a hotline set up by authorities, police said. They are charged with aggravated kidnapping.

The pair was being held in a county jail about 45 minutes away from Sidney, Montana, where high school math instructor Sherry Arnold disappeared more than a week ago near her home.

The town's mayor and Arnold's husband said her body has not been recovered, but police have said they believe she is dead.

SIDNEY, Mont. (AP) - The FBI is asking property owners in parts of North Dakota and Montana to check vacant farmsteads for signs of disturbed soil where the agency says a missing Montana teacher might be buried.


waters. extensive florida record

[Lady Cop]

Prison records in Florida show Waters ^ has a criminal history in that state and has served prison time. Florida records show Waters has felony convictions for driving without a valid license and leaving the scene of an injury crash. He also served time for a weapons offense, and records show he has used numerous aliases.

Waters was released from a minimum-security corrections facility in August 2010, after serving about 18 months. He also was incarcerated between September 2002 and December 2003, and again between August 2007 and March 2008.

Court records show Spell was arrested in Colorado in May 2007 on state charges of drug possession, contributing to the delinquency of a minor and sexual contact without consent -- but the charges were dropped five months later. The records do not say why the charges were dismissed.


spell

[Lady Cop]

WESH

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. -- Friends of missing woman Michelle Parker were on hand at the Orange County Courthouse Thursday as Dale Smith, Parker’s ex-finance, saw a judge about ceasing child support payments to her.

Parker vanished a week before Thanksgiving, and authorities said that Smith is the prime suspect in her disappearance.

Money had been coming out of Smith’s check automatically as child support for the couple's twins, and his attorney told the judge that needed to stop.

"Dale's not a wealthy man, it’s important that all funds available go toward supporting those children," Stanley Silver, Smith’s attorney, said.

The judge agreed that since Parker is missing, and Smith has custody, an automatic deduction seemed impractical.

The decision could change if Smith’s situation changes.

"Upon Michelle's reappearance, without any further court order, without any other hearing, the court can reinstate child support immediately," Silver said.

Dale Smith didn’t personally attend his hearing, which proved disappointing for a friend of Michelle Parker’s, who had questions for him.

"Why won't he take a lie detector test? If he's so innocent, why won't he take a lie detector test? What's the big deal? What does he have to hide?" Karlyn Moody said.

She says this whole ordeal has her emotionally drained.

"The trauma those kids are going through, right now--- not having their mother," Moody said. "I do wish Dale would fess up and tell us where Michelle is."

Parker's whereabouts remain a mystery.

[Jezreel]

There is a search going on right now:


Orlando Sentinel: Divers this morning are searching a body of water near South Orange Blossom Trail for clues in the missing-person case of Michelle Parker, who vanished in November.

The Orlando Police Department received a credible tip that has led them to believe evidence in the case may be located in a small lake located behind a shuttered nightclub near Orange Blossom Trail, police said.

Parker has been missing since Nov. 17, when she dropped off her twin toddlers with their father, Dale Smith II, at his home in east Orlando. Her iPhone last pinged around 8 p.m. that day near Oakridge Road and Orange Avenue. Divers found it under the Nela Bridge in Belle Isle a few weeks later.

Smith was named the primary suspect in the case, but has not been charged with any crime. He told police he went to his parents Rose Avenue home shortly after Parker dropped off the twins.

Detectives have searched his home and his parents' home since Parker disappeared.

Parker, 34, disappeared the same day a pre-taped episode of "The People's Court" aired in which Parker and Smith argued about a $5,000 engagement ring that got lost after she threw it at him during a fight. In May, Smith sued Parker in civil court, about the time the episode was taped.

Parker's family arrived at the search site a few minutes ago and was briefed by law enforcement.

"We have been waiting for clues and tips to see if we can find her," Parker's mother Yvonne Stewart said. "It's a double-edge sword. But if she is here, I hope we find her."

Recent weeks have been increasingly harder for the family, Stewart said. She has not been allowed to see her 3-year-old twin grandchildren for the past three weeks, despite having a visitation arrangement.

The children have been living with their father since their mother disappeared.

Stewart said when she last saw the children they appeared to be healthy.

She worries about what Smith may be telling the children about her family. They had been raised by their mother and her family since they were two weeks old, Stewart said.

A pic uploaded by Michelle's brother Dustin


There is also a video at this link: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/loca...0957.story

[Lady Cop]

bob kealing
Orlando Police announce no new evidence found in today's lake search for clues in to disappearance of #missingmom #Michelleparker.

[Lady Cop]

re: post 345. Sherry Arnold. her body has still not been found.

KTVQ

SIDNEY Montana- Detailed court documents have been released in the abduction and murder of Sidney teacher Sherry Arnold.

The documents reveal that Michael Spell, 22, confessed to investigating agents that he and Lester Waters Jr., 47, abducted Sherry Arnold while she was jogging and killed her.

According to Spell confession, Waters was smoking crack cocaine on the morning of Saturday, January 7. The same morning Arnold, 43, went missing after an early morning run.

Spell told authorities Waters told him crack cocaine brought "the devil" out in him and he (Waters) was capable of doing anything while using crack cocaine. Spell said that Waters then began talking about kidnapping and killing a female.

According to the documents, Spell said Waters was driving through a town when they observed a female running along the road. Spell said Waters told him to grab the lady and pull her into the Explorer as she jogged by. When Spell forced her into the vehicle, Spell said the female struggled and her shoe fell off.

Spell said Waters got into the back seat with the female and "choked her out."

According to the report, Spell advised that Waters said he would kill Spell and his family if Spell ever told anyone what happened.

Spell confessed that the two men then apparently threw Arnold's clothing in a dumpster at Lonnie's Truck Stop across the street from Walmart in Williston.

Spell said he and Waters drove to a rural area outside of Williston and dropped off Sherry Arnold's body. The two then returned to Williston and purchased a shovel at Walmart. The two returned to the female's body, and Spell said Waters made him dig a hole two or three feet deep, and then they placed the her body in the hole. Spell said the grave site was at the end of a shelter belt on an old farmstead in a rural, isolated area outside of Williston.

Evidence collected has been submitted to the federal crime lab for testing. Authorities are continuing to search for Sherry Arnold's body.

[Lady Cop]

AP

BILLINGS, Mont. — Authorities said Wednesday they believe a body found outside Williston, N.D., is that of a missing Sidney, Mont., high school math teacher who disappeared Jan. 7 during a morning run.

Sidney Assistant Police Chief Robert Burnison said the body, likely that of Sherry Arnold, is being sent to the state medical lab in Missoula for further identification.

Authorities told The Associated Press the body had been buried. The recovery effort started Tuesday in western North Dakota about 50 miles from Sidney, and the body was found early Wednesday, authorities said.

It's still not clear what led them to that location.

The location of the body across the state line from where the alleged kidnapping occurred means there could be federal charges against the two suspects in the case, Michael Keith Spell, 22, and Lester Van Waters Jr., 47, both of Parachute, Colo.

Read more: http://bismarcktribune.com/news/state-an...z1pnP32L45

[Midwest Spy]

Federal Death Penalty should be in store for those two animals, but they probably gave up the location of the body to take the DP off the table.

[Lady Cop]

she planted him in the herb garden.









Fox Tampa bay

First, Barbara Scott told relatives her husband left their Polk County home and went to Oklahoma to visit a sick friend.

Then, when friends from Oklahoma called to speak to Benny Scott, Barbara told them a different story — Benny had a throat problem and couldn't speak on the phone.

In reality, her 77-year-old husband was buried in the back yard of their Lake Alfred home under a garden of herbs.

His hands and legs were bound by ropes. He was shot in the back of his head.

On Tuesday, 66-year-old Barbara Scott — an ex-convict who served time for embezzlement in Oklahoma — was taken into custody and booked into the Polk County Jail after a grand jury indicted her on a charge of first-degree murder.

The bullet recovered from his skull was consistent with a .22-caliber projectile.

Detectives found a .22-caliber revolver and a box of .22 caliber ammunition in her dresser drawer.

The Polk County Sheriff's Office said Scott told detectives and relatives various stories about what happened to her husband.

At one point, she said Benny fell in the shower in January, hit his head and died. Later, she said she found him on the shower floor with a gun nearby and she assumed he killed himself.

Detectives later found a witness who said Barbara "expressed distain'' about having to care for her husband.

"Ms. Scott related she was also tired of Benny always wanting and needing her assistance," the Polk County Sheriff's Office said in a report.

The couple moved to Florida from Oklahoma sometime around 2009. Barbara was arrested in Oklahoma in 1987 on embezzlement charges. She was convicted and sentenced to five years in prison.

Barbara's daughter confronted her mother about her father's whereabouts late last month. They went to the Lake Alfred Police Department on March 26 and Barbara said she buried her husband. His body was unearthed the next day.

[Lady Cop]

what a bitch!








florida
Hillsborough County Sheriff's detectives are asking for the public’s help in identifying the woman caught on hotel surveillance walking out with a TV from one of the rooms that is under renovation at Sabal Suites in Tampa, according to a news release from the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office.

She is seen on the video checking several doors as she walks down the hallway before entering a room under renovation.

And she made off with a haul: During the course of several trips she is seen taking items out of the room such as the bedspread, picture frames, iron with ironing board, rugs, trash can and curtains.

Total amount of stolen items is estimated at over $700.00

Sabal Suites
10007 Princess Palm Avenue
Tampa, Florida
Suspect:
White female
22 – 29 years of age
Approximately 125 lbs.,
5’7”
Medium complexion, long brown hair (in ponytail).
Wearing a blue tank top and blue shorts.