Who are Michael and Karen Halstead? Alabama parents detained after 19-year-old son's corpse found in backyard freezer
HENRY COUNTY, ALABAMA: After being charged with placing their son's corpse in a freezer before moving out of their house, southeast Alabama couple Michael Shane Halstead and Karen Tysinger Halstead are currently in police custody.
The body of 19-year-old guy Logan Michael Halstead was found shockingly packed inside a freezer in the backyard of the home when the new owners looked over the Alabama property.
Logan's parents – Michael Shane Halstead, 44, and Karen Tysinger Halstead, 43 – were taken into custody and accused of corpse abuse. They have no bond and are being detained in jail.
The community is in shock following the occurrence, and authorities are keen to learn the real reason for this unfortunate sequence of events and if there was any foul play in the teen's death.
How did the new Alabama homeowners discover the teen's body?
On Sunday, October 29, morning, the new owners were tidying up the place when they discovered an old freezer that was too heavy to move. They were shocked to see a human hand inside as they began cleaning it out.
Following their urgent 911 call, the Henry County Sheriff's Office opened an inquiry into the incident.
Sheriff Blankenship told AL.com that when deputies got to the location, they discovered a severely decomposed body—thought to be that of Headland resident Logan Michael Halstead, 19—hidden in an overturned freezer in the house's backyard.
According to WTVY, Logan Halstead experienced health problems, such as spina bifida.
What happened to Michael and Karen Halstead?
The parents, Michael and Karen Halstead were found in Jack, Alabama, by deputies after hours of searching, and they were returned to Henry County to be interrogated.
They are being held without bond in the Henry County Jail after being taken into custody and charged with one count of abusing a corpse.
According to Blankenship, the father told the station he had a psychotic episode and could not recall how his son's body ended up inside the broken freezer.
In yet another bizarre turn of events, Michael Halstead reportedly informed officials from a different police station earlier this month about his son's abandoned remains.
However, sources told WTVY that when the cops checked they were unable to find the body. An inquiry is presently underway to determine the cause of this disparity.
Additionally, the sheriff stated that he denied his wife's involvement in the gruesome incident.
Why did the Halsteads leave the house?
The teen's family reportedly rented the house earlier, but they left more than a month ago before the house was sold to new owners.
According to sources close to the case told WDHN, the landlord sold the house to the present owners, who discovered the body while trying to clean it. The Halsteads had apparently neglected paying their rent on the property too.
Authorities are working to find the cause of this unfortunate tragedy after the arrest of the teen's parents.
Sheriff Blankenship said: "This incident is a very tragic situation and our agency is committed to finding out the truth. The investigation is still on going and information will continue to be released as the case progresses."