Second suspect arrested for evidence tampering in Greenwood homicide

Norwood
Norwood

A local man sought by Hot Springs police in connection with a homicide victim whose body was found dumped in Greenwood Cemetery last month was arrested in Benton on Sunday.

Jake L. Norwood, 28, who lists a Jerome Street address, was taken into custody at around 4:30 p.m. Sunday and charged with felony tampering with evidence, punishable by up to six years in prison. He remained in custody Monday in lieu of zero bond, and is set to appear Nov. 14 in Garland County District Court.

According to the probable cause affidavit, Norwood was being sought on an active warrant for evidence tampering in relation to the Cory D. Richardson homicide investigation.

Detectives learned of Norwood's alleged involvement after interviewing two witnesses on Oct. 24, who stated Norwood told them about cleaning up a car and a body being dumped in the cemetery. Later that day, the driver of the vehicle, Melissa J. Wineland, 37, was arrested for tampering with evidence. She pleaded not guilty to the charge Oct. 25 in district court.

Wineland reportedly told officers she and another suspect had transported the body to the cemetery from her house and Norwood took the vehicle to a carwash to clean the blood from the back seat.

The body of Richardson, 31, of Hot Springs, was found the morning of Oct. 23 on a hillside to the east of the cemetery's main entrance at 701 Greenwood Ave. by a resident who was walking his dog. Hot Springs police say Richardson's death is being investigated as a homicide.

According to an affidavit for a search warrant for a residence on North Patterson that was filed in district court Oct. 25, Richardson had apparent trauma to his body, including a bullet wound to his upper left buttocks. The other trauma was not specified in the affidavit.

At around noon Oct. 23, a witness came forward and told police Wineland had borrowed their car at around 11 p.m. Oct. 22 and returned it at around 10:30 a.m. the next day, confiding to the witness that she had used it to dump Richardson's body in the cemetery.

The witness stated Wineland said Richardson came to her house on North Patterson and an "altercation ensued between him and an unknown suspect." As Richardson attempted to flee the residence, Wineland allegedly told the witness, he was shot in the buttocks, a detail at that time known only by investigators.

The affidavit does not state the manner of Richardson's death, or whether it occurred at the North Patterson location.

A large amount of suspected blood was reportedly located in the back seat area of the witness' car, the affidavit said.

The search warrant specifically included forensic evidence, DNA, latent prints, trace evidence, bodily fluids, weapons and shell casings.

Local on 11/07/2017

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