Facebook posts point police to slain woman's body and establish probable cause
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Facebook posts on the account of a Missouri woman stating that she had been the victim of a violent crime led authorities in Springfield to make a well-being check and discover her dead body.
Then the same posts helped establish probable cause to charge the dead woman’s daughter and a male friend with first-degree murder, Courthouse News reports.
Charged with stabbing Clauddinnea “Dee Dee” Blancharde to death are Nicholas Godejohn and her daughter, Gypsy Blancharde. The posts, on a joint Facebook account for mother and daughter, were made from an Internet account associated with Godejohn, according to Courthouse News and the Springfield News-Leader. Both defendants allegedly made damaging admissions during police interviews, according to sheriff’s offices in multiple counties linked to the crime.
The probable cause statement (PDF) in the case says robbery may have been a motive, and Greene County Sheriff Jim Arnott said at a news conference that the family has been involved in a fraud scheme.
“We really don’t know the true background of this family,” the sheriff told reporters. “This is a tragic, tragic event surrounded by mystery and public deception.”
Both defendants are being held in lieu of $1 million bond. The articles don’t include any comment from their legal counsel.
