  
|  | |||||||||||||||||||
Link to 2nd body probed in video rape caseCouple arraigned in bulletproof vests on rape-murder charges
 Dena D. Riley cried in court as she pleaded not guilty to a videotaped rape and murder. 
YOUR E-MAIL ALERTSINDEPENDENCE, Missouri (AP) -- Prosecutors investigating a Missouri couple accused of videotaping the rape of a woman and killing her said Tuesday the pair may be linked to a decomposed body found in a neighboring county. The disclosure followed the arraignment of Richard D. Davis, 41, and Dena D. Riley, 39, who are charged in the grisly killing of an Independence woman. The couple were led into court in bulletproof vests and shackles, and Riley sobbed throughout the proceedings. Both were ordered held without bond after they pleaded not guilty to charges of murder, assault, kidnapping, rape and sodomy in the death of 41-year-old Marsha Spicer. After the arraignment, a spokesman for the Jackson County Prosecutor's Office confirmed authorities were investigating their possible link to a second body. "We are dealing with a body in Clay County and we believe it may be connected to the case," said spokesman Ken Evans. The skeletal remains were found in a remote, forested area east of Liberty, Missouri, and a medical examiner is performing DNA tests on the badly decomposed corpse, Clay County Undersheriff Roger Yates said. Spicer's body was found May 15, a day after she was believed to have died. Davis and Riley were questioned but released. Authorities later obtained a warrant to search the couple's home and discovered a videotape on their TV stand they say shows Spicer being beaten, sexually assaulted and choked. A tape of another woman was also found in the home, authorities said. Investigators have been trying to determine whether the woman seen on the second tape is Michelle Ricci, 36, who has not been seen since April 2. Prosecutors would not say if the body found near Liberty was Ricci. Sherry Ballew, Ricci's mother, has said her daughter and Spicer were friends. Neither Davis nor Riley had an attorney Tuesday who could comment for them. During the hearing, one of Riley's relatives shouted, "We love you Dena," but declined to comment afterward. Spicer's family members were so shaken that several who spoke to reporters after the arraignment could not complete their sentences, which were punctuated with sobs. "They deserve what they did to my mom to happen to them," said Spicer's 19-year-old daughter, Betty Jean Spicer. "I know that won't happen, though, so they deserve to die." Davis and Riley were arrested Thursday in southwest Missouri after eight days on the run. Davis' 5-year-old niece was with the couple when their pickup truck was involved in an accident. The girl's parents had called police after she went to a restaurant with Davis and Riley and didn't return. Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. 
|
| |||||||||||||||||||
| © 2006 Cable News Network LP, LLLP. A Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved. Terms under which this service is provided to you. Read our privacy guidelines. Contact us. |
 |
|
External sites open in new window; not endorsed by CNN.com
Pay service with live and archived video. 
