Cops Believe Stepmom Killed Boy, Reported Him Missing

Affidavit reveals grim details in Gannon Stauch murder
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 6, 2020 6:15 PM CDT
Cops Believe Stepmom Killed Boy, Reported Him Missing
This internet advisory, accessed Feb. 5 from the El Paso County Sheriff's Office, shows Gannon Stauch, of Colorado Springs, Colo.   (El Paso County Sheriff's Office via AP)

Colorado Springs woman Letecia Stauch reported her 11-year-old stepson Gannon missing on Jan. 27. Investigators believe she murdered him earlier that day. According to an arrest affidavit seen by People, investigators believe the 36-year-old woman killed the boy in his bedroom. "Evidence recovered from the residence and inside Gannon’s bedroom supports that a violent event occurred in the bedroom which caused bloodshed, including blood spatter on the walls, and enough blood loss to stain his mattress, soak through the carpet, the carpet pad, and stain the concrete below his bed," the affidavit states. Investigators say that before calling 911 to report the boy missing, Stauch contacted her 17-year-old daughter and asked her to buy trash bags, baking soda, and carpet powder.

The daughter has refused to speak to investigators, but police say they do not believe she was present when Gannon was murdered or when his body, which was found in Florida last month, was moved, CBS Denver reports. Police say Stauch brought notes to her interviews but still changed her story, initially claiming that an intruder had raped her and held her at gunpoint on the day Gannon vanished. Al Stauch, the boy's father, was on deployment with the National Guard at the time of the murder, investigators say. He has filed for divorce. The affidavit also revealed that before the killing, Stauch searched online for jobs and apartments in Florida in California. Her other searches included "husband uses me to babysit his kids" and "police steps for our missing child." She faces charges including first-degree murder and child abuse resulting in death. (More Colorado stories.)

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