OTTUMWA, IOWA: A 63-year-old man who was to be sentenced in a first-degree murder trial went missing on Friday, September 22.
Gregory Showalter Sr didn’t appear in court, and a judge had to issue an arrest warrant after he was found guilty by a jury.
The Ottumwa resident had been on bail for almost two years after he agreed to attend all his hearings, wear a GPS monitor, and 10% of his $250,000 bond amount.
Who was Helen Showalter?
Gregory Showalter is booked with first-degree murder and other offenses as he killed his wife Helen Showalter by strangling her.
As per prosecutors, Showalter murdered his 60-year-old partner on July 31, 2021. He then dumped her along the Des Moines River near Ottumwa. The next morning her body was found floating in the river.
The jury found Showalter guilty "of first-degree murder, abuse of a corpse, willful injury causing serious injury, and domestic abuse assault by strangulation or impeding blood circulation."
His bond is no longer applicable, as per court documents obtained by NBC News.
Jurors gave their verdict after 1 pm on Friday. Showalter’s lawyer said he tried to reach out to his client and told him to come to the Wapello County Courthouse.
After he failed to show up, his attorney contacted the judge and the officers, who then checked his home.
While the cops looked for the convict, the judge ordered that the verdict be read, as the law permits in case a person on trial is voluntarily absent.
Who did police find at Showalter's home?
Ottumwa Police Lt Jason Bell shared that after reaching Showalter’s home, they found a woman outside.
She claimed to be Showalter’s friend and said the man gave him his vehicle’s keys, “and made a comment about not needing those keys anymore.”
The police found that Showalter turned off his cell phone around 1.30 pm, and had also removed the GPS monitor. He is now considered "armed and dangerous," according to the Iowa Department of Public Safety.
The next hearing in the case is scheduled for October 16. Showalter will be serving a mandatory term of life in prison without the possibility of parole, according to Iowa State’s law.
His attorney, Robert Breckenridge said, “When that did not occur and substantial time had passed, I became concerned about his welfare [and] contacted the judge and law enforcement asking that a welfare check be done at Mr. Showalter’s home."
