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Man accused of driving truck into creek, leaving girlfriend to die charged with murder

Cole McCall was charged with lesser crimes after the death, but they were amended to include second-degree murder Thursday

LINCOLN COUNTY, Mo. — A St. Charles man accused of leaving his girlfriend to drown inside a sinking truck was charged with murder Thursday, nearly two months after the incident.

Cole McCall, 21, was previously charged with two lesser crimes, but on Thursday those charges were amended to include second-degree murder. The charges come in connection to the Jan. 11 drowning death of Jennelle Wulfmeier.

RELATED: ‘He didn’t even try, he bolted’ | Man left his girlfriend to drown in flooded creek, police say

Police said McCall met up with a man to pay for a car he agreed to buy earlier in the night. McCall was $100 short, so the men agreed McCall would pay $50 and also give the man some tools.

The man realized the money was fake, so he started following McCall, who was driving a Chevy Silverado, to get his license plate number. Wulfmeier was in the passenger seat. 

McCall sped away down 7th Street, hit a levee and went airborne. The truck landed in a flooded creek, and McCall was able to get out as it was sinking.

McCall ran away and yelled at the man to call 911 because his girlfriend was still in the truck, police said.

The witness called for help, but emergency crews could not find the truck that night because the creek was swollen.

In all, McCall was charged with one count of second-degree murder, forgery, tampering with a motor vehicle, leaving the scene of a crash and stealing a vehicle. He was initially only charged with leaving the scene of a crash, tampering with a motor vehicle and stealing a motor vehicle.

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