A Missouri man has been accused of killing his business partner and burying his remains beneath fresh concrete.
William T. Morrison, 62, allegedly shot his partner, 45-year-old Johnathon Brown, before concealing his body in the basement of a home in Kansas City. Now, prosecutors say that Morrison faces charges of first-degree murder and armed criminal action.
Brown was last seen on May 10, according to court records, while riding in the passenger seat of a white sedan. He is believed to have visited a property owned by Morrison with the defendant in order to do concrete work in the basement.
Prosecutors say that surveillance cameras caught the sedan arriving at the property and leaving early the next morning.
However, Independence police received a missing person’s report for Brown just three days later.
open image in galleryAccording to court records, investigators responded to the aforementioned address on May 23 with members of the Kansas City Fire Department and Missouri Task Force One cadaver canine handlers.
Upon receiving permission to search the property, two cadaver dogs were alerted to the odor of human remains in the basement in the vicinity of a dirt pile and a freshly poured concrete slab.
Eventually, the slab was excavated, and the body of a man who appeared to have suffered a gunshot wound to the head was found. Prosecutors say that this body was Johnathon Brown.
Brown’s wallet was also found at the address.
According to court records, cellphone location data suggested that a phone associated with the investigation was taken to the city of Urich. When surveillance footage from a Casey’s convenience store was analyzed, a woman was seen walking at that location near a trash can.
open image in galleryLater, on June 9, the woman was arrested and interviewed by detectives, telling them that she worked for Morrison. She alleged that Morrison gave her two cellphones and instructed her to drive to Springfield to dispose of them, court records state.
Later, she took investigators to a field where she claims that she left the devices, but authorities were unable to find them.
The woman also stated that she did not believe that the phones belonged to Morrison since she tried to unlock the phones using his passwords.
Morrison is being held on the murder charge and the armed criminal action charge without bond. His next court appearance is set to take place next week.