Columbia woman charged with abandonment of a corpse case

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Columbia woman has been charged with abandonment of a corpse after being arrested in late March.

According to court documents, Columbia police began a death investigation in the 3100 block of Wingate Court on March 22 after a drug overdose at a Columbia hotel.

Columbia police arrested Kenneth C. Jones, 32, and April Dawn Hanson, 41, for abandonment of a corpse back in March.

While reviewing surveillance footage, police saw Jones and Hanson enter and exit the room where the body was found.

During a post-Miranda interview, Hanson told police that she heard the victim snoring and then later finding the victim not breathing. Hanson also told police that she left the building trying to conceal her identity and did not report the body to authorities.

Jones is also charged with tampering with physical evidence.

According to court documents in Jones's case, Jones admitted to police that he had been in the room and used ice in an attempt to revive the victim. Police say Jones admitted to removing his items and the victim's cellphone from the room, attempting to conceal his identity as he left the room and deleting files from the victim's phone.

Hanson bonded out after her bond was set at $1,500 back in March.