Inset: Weldon Ray Powell (Wood County Sheriff’s Office). Background: The Wood County Jail in Quitman, Texas (Google Maps).
A Texas man is behind bars after shooting and killing his wife and then covering her body with ice to store her in the bathroom for several days, Lone Star State law enforcement says.
Weldon Ray Powell, whose age is not a matter of public record, stands accused of one count of murder over the death of Brittany May Powell, according to the Wood County Sheriff’s Office.
The investigation began on Nov. 4, over concerns about the slain woman’s welfare, authorities said. Later that same day, the woman was found dead inside the couple’s home in Quitman — a small town located roughly 95 miles due east of Dallas.
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The victim’s brother-in-law was the first to raise suspicions after he realized no one had spoken to Brittany Powell in three days, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by Nacogdoches-based CBS and CW Plus affiliate KYTX and Tyler-based ABC and Telemundo affiliate KLTV.
The brother-in-law told law enforcement that radio silence came after a recent physical altercation between the defendant and the victim, the sheriff’s office says. In the days prior, Brittany Powell had texted her sister that she “was not good,” according to the charging document.
Around noon on the day in question, the brother-in-law used the family location-sharing app Life360 to find that the woman’s last location was near Lake Quitman — a little over 5 miles due north of town, according to the affidavit.
So, the brother-in-law drove out to the lake and spoke with someone who said they had seen Brittany Powell’s pickup truck there about two hours earlier, the sheriff’s office said.
Then, 2½ hours later, the brother-in-law called the defendant, who allegedly said he was out running errands at a particular store. The husband also allegedly said his wife was at their house, according to the affidavit. So, the brother-in-law drove to where Weldon Powell said he was, but did not see his pickup truck outside the named store, law enforcement says.
The brother-in-law then drove straight to the Powell household, knocked on the door, and shouted loudly, according to the affidavit. Getting no response, he called law enforcement. After that emergency call, the brother-in-law phoned the husband again, who allegedly insisted his wife was still at home.
Around 6 p.m. that day, investigators determined the missing woman’s phone pinged around the lake, authorities said.
Around 6:45 p.m., the Powells’ landlord told law enforcement he thought he saw a cat in the window of the residence and was going inside to check on it, the sheriff’s office said.
Inside, while still on the phone with 911, the landlord found Brittany Powell dead in a bathroom, according to law enforcement.
The landlord also said he saw the husband pull up toward the house but quickly leave when they saw each other, according to the affidavit.
The defendant was found by deputies and arrested that same day.
Investigators say the husband’s shoes matched a bloody print inside the bathroom in front of his wife’s body, according to the affidavit.
The victim was found positioned sitting up with her face raised toward the ceiling, according to the sheriff’s office. Her neck was resting against the side of the bathtub and she was covered in ice with a towel over her face, and a bullet was lodged in her left temple, according to the charging document.
Investigators also found blood smeared on the floor and the door frame between the bedroom and bathroom, suggesting her body had been dragged across the floor. A preliminary understanding of the crime is that the woman was killed away from home, brought through the backyard, dragged up the back porch and inside, according to the affidavit.
Weldon Powell is detained in the Wood County Jail on a $1 million surety bond, records show.
The post Woman told sister she ‘was not good’ before her husband shot and killed her, covered her with ice and a towel, then kept her body in the bathroom for days, authorities say first appeared on Law & Crime.
