Six Dead Bodies Found In Home--Manhunt Leads to Arrest of Convicted Sex Offender
Posted: Sunday, November 01, 2009
by Steve Kovacs
The Kovacs Perspective
Police originally went to convicted rapist and registered sex offender Anthony Sowell's home to serve a warrant for rape and felonious assault. They did not find Sowell but they did find two dead bodies. The next day, they found a third body in a freshly dug grave in the basement and the remains of two more people in an upper floor of the home. Sex crime investigators also dug up a shallow grave in the backyard of the home, revealing the remains of a sixth body.
Sowell, 50, is a registered sex offender who served 15 years in an Ohio penitentiary for rape. He was released from prison in 2005. He reportedly lived in the house with his uncle and aunt but no one has seen the relatives in awhile. According to local news reports one neighbor described him as being crazy and that, "Sometimes he would just go off if he didn't have his way".
Police say two of the bodies were those of women. Neighbors who have missing friends or relatives are worrying if the bodies are those of loved ones. The county coroner's office will compare medical and personal records from locals who have gone missing to those of the bodies found.
The area of Cleveland where the bodies were discovered has been hit hard by a harsh economy, challenging employment possibilities, and high crime rates. This tragedy adds to the woes to an area that has been swimming upstream for quite a while.
Questions linger in this case. First, is Sowell the man responsible for the six bodies in the home? Everyone is innocent until proven guilty. Second, if he turns out to be the one responsible should he have been released from prison? Should he have been monitored more closely after his release from incarceration?
Outrageous crimes occur much too often and similar questions are asked repeatedly. I suppose there are no cookie cutter answers as every case is a little different. However, what about the terror of the people who were most likely killed in that home. And how about the fear, anxiety, and desperation of the friends and relatives of those who have gone missing while they wait to hear about the identification of the bodies?
Moreover, what about the people who worry about the next crazy crime that may hit them, their parents, children or friends? All these folks deserve answers to these questions. We should never give up trying to find them.
This Article has been viewed 1,822 times. (Not updated in real-time.)
Top-level comments on this article: (8 total)When did this happen Steve? I haven't heard about this on the news. "good article"Hi Dave,Happened this past Thursday. The news media is running with it now. It just so happened it is close to where I work. Thanks for the kind words.Steve
Excellent writing, Steve, and I hadn't heard about this before either. I pray that they can find whoever did this so that the people in Cleveland can rest a little easier.Thanks for sharing this one with us.Thank you Nancy,I think they have the right person in custody and they just confirmed all the bodies were female. Terrible stuff!Thanks for writing.Steve
Hi Steve,This was a well written and interesting article. Very sad, for the victims, the neighbors, and our society.MarkThanks Mark--yes, sad is the word for the neighbors and society indeed. The horror the victims went through is sad indeed as well. Things like this just should not happen. I appreciate your comment.Steve
Hi Fran,Yes, from what I understand, cure is far and few between. What to do...is the question. Thanks for writing.Steve
hi steve,good writing, sobering article.i think it simply boils down to the lack of prisons and room in existing prisons, to keep these sex offenders. as if that should be an excuse.i'm all for science and growth, but just one of the shuttles would pay for more penitentiaries. i also think we forget what these acts do to society. people getting raped has got to be the worst thing-no control, which is horriffic, and being made to do what someone else wants you to do, and you don't want to do it! if they are not killed, these people, whether children, women, or men, have to live the rest of their lives with the thoughts of their assaults in the back, or front, of their minds, which can lead them to crime themselves.oh, if we, the people, would just ACT like people.my best regards,sue
Well said Sue--if we people could just act like people!Thanks for writing.Steve
You got to wonder why people like this guy are ever let out of prison. Why are his rights so much better than societies? Some bleeding heart lib gets he out and boom 10 people are now dead.It seems the system did not work here my friend. He was assessed and found to be: not apt to re offend sexually! Wow they got that one wrong. The body count is up to 10 now and they are looking to see if he could be the serial killer in another nearby community that was never caught. Changes are needed. Thanks for writing.
I think everybody is crazy in their own way. It is a matter of how we channel our lunacy. I try to channel mine constructively. I am fortunate that my audiences find my singing voice entertaining and my lunacy somewhat humorous. But there are those lunatics who are dangerous to society. Like many serial killers, they mask themselves with charm to lure a victim before they torture and kill the poor soul. As I have learned in my martial arts studies, beware of the charming stranger who could actually be a strangler.
We want your comments! If you can read this, you don't have javascript enabled, so you can't use this comment system. Please enable javascript.