Husband Used Coronavirus as Cover for Murder: Cops

Texts sent from the phone of a Florida woman beginning on March 23 claimed she was sick with the coronavirus, at a medical center, subsequently moved to a facility that didn't exist, and finally placed on a ventilator. In fact, Jupiter Police believe 51-year-old Gretchen Anthony was killed by her estranged husband on March 21, the same day neighbors heard a scream from inside her garage. Friends and family members sounded the alarm days later, concerned that the texts didn't sound like her. Police verified Gretchen hadn't actually been admitted to the Jupiter Medical Center, where her car had been left by a man matching David Anthony's description, per the Palm Beach Post. Forcing their way into the garage on March 27, officers found what they described as a bleach stain and apparent blood on the floor, per the Washington Post.

There was also blood in a bedroom and what appeared to be blood-soiled towels in the washing machine, police say, per WPEC. Days later, after Gretchen and David's phones pinged off towers in Texas, 43-year-old David was arrested in New Mexico and charged with second-degree murder and kidnapping. Gretchen's body has not been found. A neighbor recalled hearing a woman yell, "No! No, it hurts," around 6am on March 21. Other witnesses reported seeing chemicals draining into the street from the closed garage while David's pickup truck sat outside, its bed covered with a tarp, per the Post. David had told a witness that Gretchen "mentioned something about going to beach," per an arrest report. He now awaits extradition. (More murder stories.)