Who is Michael John Despres? Florida man kills fiancée, sleeps next to her corpse
SEBASTIAN, FLORIDA: A Florida handyman has confessed to murdering his fiancée, sleeping next to her corpse, and finally leaving the body in a pickup truck at a Walmart parking lot. 67-year-old Jeanine Bishop's body was found on Tuesday, October 5, at a Walmart in Sebastian, Police Chief Daniel Acosta said in a video statement.
Michael John Despres, 56, was also found at the Walmart. The handyman from Sebastian gave investigators “cryptic accounts” about where he was before the body of the woman was found, said Acosta. “Upon being interviewed by Sebastian detectives, he confessed to killing Ms. Bishop in their shared residence and later transporting her body to the parking lot of Walmart, where he staged the incident,” Acosta said.
READ MORE
Jennifer Faith: Woman who cried on TV for info on spouse's killer charged with murder
Sheridan Wahl: Florida woman's dead body was 'laid out on grass', reveals 911 caller
Acosta further stated that an investigation into the killing is underway. Evidence is being collected from Despres’ home and workplace, and his vehicle and Bishop’s. Reportedly, Despres confessed that he had been planning to kill Bishop for several days and even made a weapon with rope and two handles in order to strangle her. Despres described how Bishop was sitting on a kitchen chair when he wrapped the rope around her neck and strangled her “as hard as he could” until she “slumped to the ground.”
After killing Bishop, Despres moved her body to the bedroom and placed her on the bed face up, and then laid down next to the corpse and slept for a while. He woke up at around 5:30 am, changed Bishop's clothes, and then disposed of her body. He subsequently walked to Walmart and asked the manager to call 911 because there was an “emergency situation with his fiance in the parking lot.”
“The decedent had ligature marks around her neck area, consistent with being strangled,” police said. Bishop also had a deep cut on her neck. “Without any doubt, this is due to the swift and exceptional work of the men and women working this investigation that it was able to be solved so quickly and efficiently,” Sebastian Police Chief Dan Acosta said.
According to neighbors and friends, Bishop was in an abusive and toxic relationship with Despres for several years. Neighbors spoke to Sebastian Daily under anonymity and said that Bishop was very active and healthy. “You would often see Janine riding her bike around the neighborhood. She was a lovely woman who also helped others. It is tragic; she didn’t deserve this,” a neighbor said.