Who was Candace Kehoe? Oklahoma woman found dead next to her ex-husband with plastic bag wrapped over her head
CLAREMORE, OKLAHOMA: Candace Kehoe died in July and was found next to the body of her ex-husband. Now, the authorities have released a new autopsy report which sheds more light on the killings.
Her body was recovered from a sinking truck in Claremore Lake in Claremore, Oklahoma, on July 25. George Dakota Kehoe, 27, was also dead inside the truck with a possible self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The police are treating the case as murder-suicide
The Claremore Police treated the case as a murder-suicide while investigating. The two shared three children together, ages five, seven, and nine.
Candace’s stepmother, Theresa Hill, shared that the children are now with their uncle who has permanent guardianship.
“We’re trying our best. We now know how she suffered. So it’s been a rough few days for all of us, especially for her siblings,” said Hill.
She continued, “Therapy is helping them. There’s a lot of things that got disclosed, there’s forensic interviews and things like that. So there’s a lot more therapy that needs to be done than just their mother’s death. There’s a lot of trauma that has happened throughout their lives and now we’re going to make sure that no matter what, they are supported.”
Grandmother claims children suffered from sexual abuse
During the podcast interview with Law and Crime, the stepmother revealed that the grandchildren suffered from sexual abuse.
One of their three daughters may have shared it with their mother, possibly leading to the violent attack on Candace and her apparent death, said Detective John Singer, the lead investigator.
“George came to know that this daughter had disclosed what had been done to her. He drove in from out of state overnight and within hours he’s coaxed Candace to his house. He does terrible things to her, resulting in her death," weighed Singer.
"Then he tells some of his family and friends what he’s done and that he’s about to commit suicide,” Singer added.
He continued, “Keep in mind that the really bitter, nasty custody and divorce case has been ongoing for, I think eight years. For pretty much the life of all three daughters, mom and dad have been in a pretty ugly custody battle.”
“Obviously, George killed Candace. There was nothing healthy about their relationship. But I don’t think that there was any real evidence of the traditional domestic violence relationship. This one’s different in that George and Candace have been in an ugly court battle for a bunch of years, resulting in death," Singer further said.