Nancy Howery: Florida mom-of-two allegedly killed by boyfriend Daniel Stearns before he burned her body
PALM BAY, FLORIDA: Nancy Howery was allegedly killed by her boyfriend and the body was burnt to hide evidence. The authorities have confirmed that the accused is Daniel Stearns, 32, who now faces second-degree murder with a firearm and other charges. At first, he fatally shot the victim during an argument and torched her body in an attempt to hide evidence, said police officials.
Howery was reported to have been missing by her ex-husband on February 18, almost three days after she didn’t turn up to pick up her children from school, Indian Harbor Beach, as per Police Chief David Butler. “Our investigation to this point has revealed that the suspect, Daniel Stearns, killed the victim and subsequently left her remains in a wooded area for several days. The suspect returned to the scene of the crime and then burned the victim’s body in an effort to destroy any evidence connecting him to the murder,” said an official statement. It also added, “After burning the body, the perpetrator took the charred remains of the victim and scattered them in several locations, including burying them in multiple areas of the compound.”
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The victim's partial remains were found in a wooded area
Howery’s partial remains were found in a wooded area in Palm Bay, called ‘The Compound', shared Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey during a March 10, news conference while announcing Stearns' arrest. The police located it after tailing Stearns and realized he had tried to bury a body in the compound after allegedly burning it. The accused faces second-degree murder with a firearm, mutilation of a dead body, and tampering with evidence, as per People.
The accused was arrested after extensive surveillance
The police during the investigation found out that Howery was with a friend, and was later supposed to meet her boyfriend Stearns, later in Palm Bay. As per Sheriff’s office, the investigators increased their monitoring on Stearns, and just this week, the surveillance amassed 50 hours. "Ultimately the surveillance led us here to the 'The Compound' and there are actually five different crime scenes," said Ivey.
If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.