Posted on 11/09/2007 7:06:23 PM PST by Dubya
NEOSHO, Mo. — Two men have been arrested in the death of a 9-year-old girl whose body was found Friday in a hillside cave in southwest Missouri, authorities said.
Newton County Sheriff Ken Copeland identified one as a 24-year-old male and the other as a man of about the same age. Their identities were not released because charges have not yet been filed, Copeland said.
The body of Rowan Ford was found on private land about 10 miles south of the girl's hometown of Stella, a village of about 200 people, Copeland said.
He said authorities were still determining how the girl died.
"We know we have a homicide," Copeland said, declining to elaborate.
The McDonald County deputy who found the body had searched the area on his way to work after recalling that there was a cavern there, Copeland said. The FBI was gathering the evidence at the scene.
Stella Mayor Bill Alsop, who answered the phone at the family's home Friday, said the girl's mother was "pretty shook up" when Copeland came to the home that morning and told her the body was very likely Rowan's.
"He told her they found the body of the little girl, and they were 99 percent sure it was her daughter," Alsop said.
Rowan was reported missing after her mother, Colleen Spears, returned home early Nov. 3 from a night shift at a Wal-Mart.
The girl's stepfather, David Spears, told investigators he and two male friends were with Rowan the night before until they went out around 10:45 p.m. He returned home around midnight but did not check on the girl, Copeland said.
David Spears also later told authorities that he called his mother sometime after 1 a.m. and asked to use her vehicle, Copeland has said. She took it to him about half an hour later, then stayed at his house while her son left in her vehicle for about 5½ hours, Copeland has said.
Copeland also has said that Spears has not been able to explain what he did during that time. He has not been accused of a crime.
David Spears declined to comment. He has been staying at his mother's house outside Stella since Rowan's disappearance.
"He's pretty torn up. He's extremely distraught. He's been crying quite a bit," his mother, Myrna Spears, said.
His mother declined to answer any questions about what happened that night. David Spears previously has said that it was wrong for him to leave the girl alone.
The stepdad looked scared during his “news conference Q & A”. I suspect being kicked out of the house intensifies his fear. I am praying for the mom.....
He is a JERK for sure. If she don’t kick him out well I better stop here.
She kicked him out for sure, I’m not sure how quick it happened. I think within hours of finding out his “antics”.
Let them suffocate and die a fearful death.
Leave their grave unmarked.
Forget they ever existed.
Maybe so didn’t turn up in the search.
Also ths post does not have any one arrested.
ping
I know its a diff article thats why I posted it.
Unfortunately this ending for poor Rowan was a foregone conclusion, it was merely a matter of finding her body. God bless her soul, and may her mother find comfort.
Do you know a Chris Collins?
No, cannot say as I do.
One of the reporters said they had heard he had turned himself in. You can hear it in the video clip of the presser.
Could be one of the guys in custody.
Yeah, I wasn’t criticizing, just providing some continuity by cross referencing related threads.
No harm, no foul.
There’s actually a LOT of info on the old thread, including plenty of info about arrests. You must just not have been looking toward the bottom. But it’s okay, we can move to this thread.
And the old thread originally had Rowan Ford’s name in it, but that was replaced with update info this morning by a moderator when her body was found.
Why do we need a new thread??
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