Expand / Collapse search
Watch TV
Menu

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. ©2024 FOX News Network, LLC. All rights reserved. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Market data provided by Factset. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Legal Statement. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper.

story

Stepfather, Friend Confess to Killing 9-Year-Old Missouri Girl

Associated Press
Published | Updated

STELLA, Mo. – Newton County Sheriff Ken Copeland says the two men charged with killing 9-year-old Rowan Ford have confessed to the crime.

Ford's 25-year-old stepfather David Spears of Stella and 32-year-old Chris Collings of Wheaton are charged with one count each of first-degree murder, forcible rape and statutory rape.

Copeland said investigators believe that Rowan was abducted early Nov. 3 from her home in Stella and was murdered in Barry County. The sheriff said Collings confessed Friday and Spears was arrested a short time later.

Copeland said that during the search for Rowan, David Spears rode around with another man and pointed out good places to put a body. One of those places was the sinkhole in McDonald County where the girl's body ultimately was found.