Florida

Roommate Accused in Missing Florida Woman's Death: Police

Investigators have expanded their search for Latonya Baxter throughout parts of Pensacola and into Alabama

WPMI-TV

Authorities in Florida's Panhandle are searching for the body of a 40-year-old woman whose roommate is already accused of her death.

Investigators have expanded their search for Latonya Baxter throughout parts of Pensacola and into Alabama, Pensacola police Chief Eric Randall said Monday. Her daughter reported her missing Sept. 12.

“We are really trying to narrow this search effort down because we really do have an expansive area to try and locate Ms. Baxter,” Randall told the Pensacola News Journal.

An arrest report said Baxter went missing Sept. 10, and the roommate, Giles Curt Jones, 38, was arrested four days later.

Investigators found blood in Baxter’s bedroom and other sites on the property, as well as in a vehicle that belonged to Jones, a news release said. The arrest report said detectives found a photo on Jones' cellphone that showed Baxter deceased with obvious signs of trauma.

Court records show Jones remained in custody Tuesday on a first-degree premeditated murder charge. He was being held without bond in the Escambia County Jail. An attorney for him was not listed on court records.

Baxter’s daughter, Ja’Nay Jackson, told the newspaper she's been in daily contact with detectives.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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