Florida

Florida Woman Killed Husband, Used Moth Balls to Mask Odor: Sheriff

Investigators say Dorothy Singer used her husband's telephone to "create the illusion he was alive and well"

Authorities say a 52-year-old Florida woman fatally shot her legally blind husband and used moth balls to cover up the smell of his decomposing body, hidden under a jon boat in their backyard.

The Daytona Beach News-Journal reports Dorothy Singer is charged with the first-degree murder of 48-year-old William "Butch" Singer. She's being held without bond.

Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly says Singer's tarp-wrapped body was found April 7 after his sister reported him missing in March. An autopsy shows he was shot four times in the head and once in the chest.

Investigators say Singer used her husband's telephone to "create the illusion he was alive and well." The victim's sister told investigators she became suspicious when she received text messages with typos from his phone. Butch used an electronic device to send messages because of his blindness.

The sheriff says they've uncovered evidence that Singer may have been trying to fake her own death and flee the country.

Sheriff Staly said the "case could be from a Dateline episode."

Singer has been married three times and all have passed away, deputies said.

"It seems unusual to us that one of her husbands died at age 38 rather suddenly. We don't know exactly how he died, but we have notified the Putnam County Sheriff's Office. This might be a case they want to look at," Staly said.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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