ADRIAN, Mich. (TCN) — A man has been found guilty of second-degree murder and evidence tampering in connection with the death of his wife, whose body was found inside a fertilizer tank three years after she had gone missing.
The Associated Press reports Dale Warner, 58, was convicted on March 10. His wife, 52-year-old Dee Warner, was last seen in April 2021. He was charged with murder on November 22, 2023, although her body still had not been found, the AP reported at the time.
Dee Warner’s body was discovered inside a fertilizer tank in 2024. The tank had a handwritten tag on the outside saying it was out of service and not to fill it, according to the AP. An autopsy was conducted on the remains, and it was determined she had been strangled and suffered from blunt force trauma. Her mouth and nose had been taped shut so she could not breathe.
People reports Warner’s trial began Feb. 10 and the verdict was delivered after jury deliberations paused on March 6. At trial, a witness stated Dee Warner had mentioned ending her marriage many times, WTOL reports. The day before she went missing, she had told a friend she was going to sell the couple’s trucking business and ask for a divorce. Another witness said Dee Warner had red blotches on her neck on that day and appeared to have been crying.
According to the AP, Warner’s defense claimed there was no physical evidence linking him to the death, and that he had talked with investigators regularly during the search for his wife. At trial, jurors heard evidence related to trouble that the couple had during their marriage. Defense attorney Mary Chartier told the jury, “You are not here to judge Mr. Warner as a husband. You may think he was a bad husband, a not-very-attentive husband, whatever you may think of him.”
People reports Dee Warner’s brother, Gregg Hardy, said of the conviction, “I fought every day for five years. It was very difficult to get validation. It took nearly to the very end.”
According to Valley News Live, Warner is scheduled to be sentenced on May 7.
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