The recycling bin where Lyne’s head and other remains were found. (Image: CHS)
King County prosecutors charged John Charlton with first degree murder Wednesday for allegedly killing a Renton mother of three, whose body parts were found in a Central District recycling bin on Saturday. The 37-year-old Snohomish man is suspected of dismembering Ingird Lyne, 40, in her home then dumping her body parts at 21st and Pine. Friends ofLyne, who worked as a nurse at Swedish Medical Center, said she had been dating Charlton for a short period of time after the two met online.
“The tragic murder of Ingrid Lyne has left a family and community in a spiral of grief and anguish,” said King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg in a statement. “We may never understand why she was killed … but the police and prosecutors working on this case have done a tremendous job of piecing together a solid case against the person we believe to be responsible for her death.”
Lyne was reported missing on Saturday. She and Charlton planned to go on a date the night before, which included seeing the Mariners home opener. After Lyne’s dismembered body was discovered on Saturday at 21st and Pine, detectives searched her Renton home and found bits of flesh and a 15-inch pruning saw in her bathroom.
Charlton also faces a charge for stealing Lyne’s car, which he allegedly used to transport her remains to the Central District. The vehicle was eventually recovered in Belltown.
The body parts found by a Central District homeowner were officially identified as belonging to Lyne on Wednesday, though SPD officials said Monday they were certain of the victim’s identity. Officials said the Central District property was only a dumping location in the case and that Charlton had no other known connections to the area. Continue reading →
Police investigators at the scene of Saturday’s grisly find (Image: CHS)
Chief Kathleen O’Toole announced the murder arrest Monday evening. (Image: CHS)
Seattle Police have arrested a 37-year-old man for homicide in connection with body parts that were found in a Central District sicycling bin Saturday afternoon. John Robert Charlton of Snohomish County was arrested Monday morning and booked into the King County Jail.
Although SPD Chief Kathleen O’Toole declined to identify the victim, she said evidence was clear that the remains belonged to a woman who was reported missing in Renton that evening. Ingrid Lyne, a Swedish Medical Center nurse and mother of three, was reported missing after going on a date that included attending a Mariners game on Friday, according to friends who have posted about the 40-year-old woman’s disappearance on social media.
“We have no reason to believe that there is any question as to the vicim’s identity,” O’Toole said. “We’re very confident the victim is the one that has been identified in the media.”
UPDATE (4/13): King County Medical Examiners positively identified Lyne as the victim in the case on Wednesday.
UPDATE (4/12): Charlton made his first court appearance Tuesday afternoon, where King County prosecutors said they believe he murdered Lyne in her Renton home and transferred her body in her car to Seattle. Bits of human flesh were found in Lyne’s bathtub along with a pruning saw, according to probable cause documents filed in court by SPD Tuesday.
The judge found probable cause to keep Charlton in jail and set bail at $2 million. Charlton stood still and remained silent during the brief hearing.
According to the probable cause documents, the Central District homeowner discovered the body parts after emptying his bin which he thought was unusually heavy. After he called 911, investigators found a human head, an arm, part of a leg, and a foot. Since the face was intact, investigators were able to match it with Lyne’s photograph. The garbage bags used to wrap the remains matched an emptied box of bags at Lyne’s home, according to detectives.
A neighbor later told investigators that Lyne had been dating a man named John and that she was going to the Mariners game with him on Friday. Police found a ticket to the game on her computer.
The documents also shed light on what transpired in the day after Lyne’s disappearance. On Saturday, Lyne’s ex-husband arrived at Lyne’s house with their three daughters — ages 12, 10, and 7 — and found Lyne’s wallet and keys, but not Lyne. He called Lyne’s mother, who came to the house where she found Charlton’s number on Lyne’s phone and began texting him to ask about her daughter’s whereabouts. Charlton acknowledged the two were dating, but stopped responding after this text:
After his arrest, Charlton told police he and Lyne returned to her house but that he was too drunk to remember what happened afterwards. He said Lyne likely drove him back to Seattle, where he slept on a sidewalk. Detectives observed abrasions to his face and scratches to his hand and chest.
Charlton’s criminal history stretching back to 1998 includes violent crimes committed in multiple states.
Ingrid Lyne (Image via Facebook)
King County Medical Examiners will make the final determination on the victim’s identity.
Investigators used forensic evidence, including a photograph, call records, and cell tower information to connect to the missing woman in Renton to the body parts found in the Central District, according to SPD. Police converged on Lyne’s Renton home early Sunday, the Seattle Times reported.
SPD did not provide any details on where the alleged homicide may have taken place. Assistant Chief Robert Merner said the recycling bin appeared to be a “dumping location” for the remains and that there were no other known connections to the Central District. Continue reading →
Bowman was taken away immediately after a King County jury convicted him of first degree murder (Photo: Bryan Cohen, CHS)
A King County jury has found Thomasdinh Bowman guilty of first degree murder in the 2012 shooting death of Capitol Hill QFC wine steward Yancy Noll.
After one day of deliberation, the jury upheld the prosecutor’s claims that Bowman’s actions were premeditated, not stemming from road rage or self-defense, as Bowman had claimed.
Bowman, 32, showed little emotion as the verdict was read on Thursday. He remained emotionless through much of the three week trial, where prosecutors finished their closing remarks on Tuesday. Prior to reading the verdict, Judge Bruce Heller commended the jury for their work.
Bowman, who pleaded not guilty to the murder in 2012, faces a 20 to 30 year prison sentence, plus an additional five years for using a firearm. The judge did not set a date for sentencing.
After the verdict was read, defense attorney John Henry Browne told reporters he was not surprised by the decision and vowed to appeal the conviction. Under the law, Bowman could have asked the judge to have the jury consider a second degree murder charge. Instead, Browne said Bowman wanted to challenge the first degree charge head-on.
