WASHINGTON COUNTY, Mo. — A person of interest in the abduction of a Sullivan man is facing corpse abandonment and tampering charges after human remains were found inside the missing man's burned Jeep in Washington County.
Newly released court documents detail the series of events that led to 34-year-old Cody Lee Hunt's arrest.
Dale William Ryerson, 63, was reported missing from the 300 block of Jones Street early Tuesday morning. According to court documents, the search for Ryerson began when Sullivan officers responded to his home on Jones Street at around 12:40 a.m.
A concerned neighbor had called police after seeing Hunt arrive at Ryerson's apartment with a long gun, which appeared to be trying to conceal. Hunt banged on the apartment door, and a verbal argument ensued between Hunt and Ryerson, the witness said. He later saw Hunt park Ryerson's Jeep in front of the apartment and load items from the apartment into the Jeep.
"He observed Hunt 'dragging' what appeared to be a lifeless body out of (the apartment) and into the front passenger seat of the Jeep," court documents said.
Officers went to the apartment and entered it after receiving no answer at the door, which was unlocked. They found evidence of a struggle and large amounts of blood.
Sullivan police issued an Endangered Person Advisory for Ryerson and named Hunt as a person of interest.
Shortly after 6 p.m., Irondale firefighters extinguishing a brush fire near the village of Mineral Point found a burned Jeep Cherokee and contacted the Washington County Sheriff's Department.
Deputies found human bones in the front passenger seat, including a partial skull. The remains have not yet been identified.
The witness who reported the fire told police that at around 11 a.m., Hunt, who they knew through a mutual friend, came to their house in camouflage clothing and asked if he could hunt on their property. He had what appeared to be a rifle, an axe, a baseball bat and a backpack. The witness said they gave Hunt permission to hunt and saw him drive a Jeep Cherokee toward the heavily wooded area where it was later found burned.
The witness said they left their home at around 2 p.m. and returned around sunset to see the Jeep sitting amid a large fire on their property.
After a manhunt, police located Hunt Wednesday morning and took him into custody. A resident of the home where he was found said Hunt arrived at around 9 p.m. the previous night an admitted that he killed "that guy."
Police recovered an axe, a hatchet, a machete, and a coat with an apparent blood stain. Hunt's camouflage clothing had been washed and folded, police said.
Prosecutors charged Hunt, 34, with abandonment of a corpse, knowingly burning and exploding, first-degree motor vehicle tampering, tampering with evidence in a felony investigation, and unlawful possession of a firearm.
A judge ordered Hunt to be held on $1 million bond. An initial court appearance was scheduled for Oct. 29.