GUILTY TX - Ronald Shumway, 57, found buried at his Dallas home, 23 April 2015

[cvaldez1975]

I so hope she comes back too!!!

Yes... and I don't think Mrs. Snodgrass' gypsy/ drifter friend could have done this all, at least not on his own.

This is not just simple fraud hello.

Someone impersonated Shumway at least twice months before the house was sold.
Posting to his FB pretending they were him, sending the resignation email to his employers.
Saying g'bye, I met a guy in Austin/ I have terminal cancer/ won't come back/ bye/ I'm moving out w/e, none of it written like he normally writes.
Then he turns up in June to the sale of his house and signs the papers, only, it wasn't him.

It's interesting that the police asks where Shumway is, but never asked Mrs. Snodgrass or hubby if they knew where their friend was.
She said she/ hubby tried to contact him, I wonder if she/ hubby checked recent arrest records also?

Was the mugshot recent?
And how did they (LE) know he (Mrs. Snodgrass' friend) once lived there when the house was empty of all traces of previous occupants and they couldn't even get DNA of the person who lived there for 30+ years?

I wish Mrs. Snodgrass could come back because I have some questions!

PS. Sorry if some of what I write do not make sense. I have been drinking wine.

 

[Dogface]

Ok I just lost everything I typed and it wasn't auto saved! Gah!

My hubby told me about this story last night, he is a top agent/investor in the Dallas area and had been contacted by a wholesaler about this property previously but passed so I was excited to be able to sleuth something that interested him! I am not sure who we can exactly sleuth in this so I will tread lightly...

The man who represented the fake Shumway at the closing operates a cash for home sites but is not a licensed agent. I imagine that is how he got involved with all this, and acted as a liaison between seller and buyer and took a spiff off the sale, essentially acting as a wholesaler. One of the articles linked previously mentions the lien being paid but alludes some what omniously that it doesn't say by who. The lien would have been paid for by funds in escrow with the title company, so the $56-57k would have been remitted for the lien and the rest of the funds released to the seller.

The rest of the transactions are of little importance IMO as they are most likely just wholesaling and transferring title transactions where each previous buyer hopes to sell the property for not much more than what they paid, until it reaches the final seller who would probably flip it or make it in to a rental. What will be of interest is if any of these buyers had a title policy coverage(many wholesalers don't bother with one for some insane reason)which would protect them financially. If not, the last person will probably be stuck being $249k out. If not that's quite a big hit to take.

Also of interest is recently my hubby had a buyer, who thankfully is also a good friend, going to buy a house and it turned out the person had forged all the documents and was not the owner, but because there was a title policy in place it didn't end up costing our friend anything. That person was reported to the police but it makes me wonder how often title fraud occurs.


I imagine that once the first transaction took place that is where any criminal involvement stopped. I think it's a high chance that those are the remains of Shumway in the house and either a tenant or someone close to him murdered him and simply tried to get money by doing this.

 

[cbpearson]

I've been following this case since the beginning because, first, the house where this occurs is about 4 blocks from where I now work, and secondly, because I think Ronald Shumway was my bus driver about 3 years ago.

I used to have to take the 376 from Cockrell Hill PTL to work in the late afternoon, and I remember the driver as a man who looked like Ronald, and who was always very polite and talkative. I’m about 90 percent sure that driver was Ronald Shumway. He was always polite and gentlemanly as a driver.

I think it’s fairly obvious what happened here, after reading literally everything on the Internet I could find about this case.

I think Ronald was murdered by someone he met – probably the drifter that Mrs. Snodgrass knew – and the murderer assumed Ronald’s identity to fraudulently sell Ronald’s house, and to impersonate Ronald on Facebook to throw people off the trail. Then he hid Ronald’s body under the concrete slab at the house and fled.

Here’s the way I think it went down (using all the clues published in the media):

Ronald met the man I’ll call “Drifter,” whom he most likely considered a romantic partner. I think the final Facebook picture posted by “Ronald” before he disappeared was taken by Drifter. Ronald seems to be posing for someone, outdoors. Considering that Ronald was smiling and seemed happy, I think Ronald was unaware at that point that Drifter was a bad guy.

Drifter conned Ronald into letting him move in. I’m not sure whose idea it was, but based on what Mrs. Snodgrass reported, the Drifter moved into the next door duplex that had recently been vacated by the people that had spray-painted all over the walls and that Ronald had some trouble evicting.

At some point shortly before or after Drifter moved in, he decided to rip off Ronald.

About the time Ronald disappeared, Drifter impersonated Ronald in an email message to DART, and quit Ronald’s job with DART via email. Drifter also seems to have contacted a cousin and said he had terminal prostate cancer.

I believe Ronald was probably still alive at this point, but being held against his will in the house on Winnetka by Drifter. I think Drifter began forcing Ronald to reveal information to him, so that Drifter could assume Ronald’s identity, steal everything Ronald had, and sell Ronald’s house for money.

I think Drifter was sending the fake Facebook messages from the house on Winnetka, possibly even using Ronald’s own computer or cell phone to do it. (It’s also possible he had already killed Ronald and got enough from Ronald’s computer, cell phone, or personal belongings to assume his identity and steal his house, and never needed Ronald alive.)

The goal in sending the fake email to DART, message to the cousin alleging cancer, and fake Facebook messages was to make it appear that Ronald ran away with a new boyfriend and sold his house on the fly. Drifter wanted to throw people off the trail.

Drifter lived in the house on Winnetka for a while, as he concocted his plan to sell Ronald’s house and flee. I think this accounts for the filthy state of the house, and the beer and rum bottles found by the new owner of the house. (It would be an important clue if Mrs. Snodgrass knows whether the drifter she knew drank beer and/or rum).

I think it’s possible that Drifter was drinking and hanging out at the house as he held Ronald and forced him to reveal identity-information – or that both Drifter and Ronald may have been partying together for a while before Drifter killed Ronald and stole Ronald’s house (most likely scenario IMO).

Drifter then killed Ronald and buried him under a concrete slab in the backyard of the house on Winnetka.

Drifter then went online looking for someone he could sell the house to quickly, possibly even for cash. He found a guy who buys and sells houses for cash for a living. I’ll call him “CS.” CS advertises himself as a real estate investor who does that very thing – his website indicates that he pays cash for houses and does quick turnarounds.

Drifter then conned CS – and later the notary public mentioned in the stories – into believing he was Ronald. He then sold the house for cash.

What I think happened is that Drifter had somehow gained enough information from Ronald by living with Ronald and either conning him, forcing him, or snooping around – to be able to kill Ronald and assume his identity well enough to get fake ID sufficient enough to fool a notary public.

Drifter had lied to and fooled CS into a fraudulent transaction and literally stole Ronald’s house while Ronald was decomposing under a concrete slab in his own backyard.

Drifter then drifted away.

The reason why police had a mugshot of the man Mrs. Snodgrass knew, the drifter, was because the police did what police do – they canvassed the neighborhood and learned a description and possibly the name off anyone living there with Ronald. They then compared notes with the notary, CS, and the person who had bought Ronald’s house, and discovered the name and identity of Drifter – who I think was Mrs. Snodgrass’s friend. (They may have also found evidence of the drifter’s identity from clues left in the house).

Because the body under the concrete slab has not been positively identified yet as Ronald Shumway, and because of the remote possibility it could be Drifter or some other person, police are not revealing that they are suspicious of Drifter until they know for sure that the body is Ronald. When and if they identify the body as Ronald, which I believe they will, I expect that Drifter’s name and mugshot will be all over the news.

To sum up, I think the person who killed Ronald and buried him in Ronald’s own backyard is an extremely cunning sociopath who is very talented at fraud, forgery, and identity theft, and who has most likely done this before for him to be as skilled at it as he seemed to be. I think he likes to drink beer and rum. He may or may not be truly gay, and he is capable of “homicidal violence” to achieve his ends.

I think we are looking at a talented, skilled, experienced identity thief, who might have killed before, and who had intended to con Ronald and get his house or whatever else he had of value right from the start.

Finally, I’m sure the police have looked at Ronald’s financials. I’m willing to bet they tell an interesting story. I’d be very interested to know if Ronald’s credit cards or checking account was active after the time he went missing, and where any transactions were and what was bought. (I suspect Drifter is too smart to leave a paper trail, and most likely cleaned out Ronald’s bank accounts as fast as he could in one sitting for as much as possible, in an attempt to stay off the grid – like going to ATMs, etc. I wonder if we’ll be seeing ATM camera footage on the news).

In conclusion, I am really haunted by this murder and I really, really hope to see Ronald’s killer brought to justice. I am confident that the police are going to find the murderer very soon, and I’m on pins and needles watching the news and waiting for justice.

 

[AliceInPain]

(Sorry mods, I was quoting people but forgot how to. Will fix tomorrow)

(quotes/ cbpearson)

I really like your post.
What a great job you have done!
Very simple, straight and easy to understand for even dummies like me.

I have a problem with Mrs. Snodgrass' friend, or anyone else new, to bury a body in the yard in such a busy residential area, where a neighbor can look into the yard at any time.
Unless you know their schedule... (isn't cement work noisy anyway? unless you're just putting the body into something pre-dug , like a flower bed... who is Terry?)

Yeah, who else to impersonate Shumway than the guy who is in his house... access to emails, FB etc if passwords are saved...

"Drifter wanted to throw people off the trail. "
Agree.

"Drifter then killed Ronald and buried him under a concrete slab in the backyard of the house on Winnetka. "
--I have a problem with this. It's a very poulated area with houses very close to each other. How would someone new know neighbors daily and nightly habits?

" I think the person who killed Ronald and buried him in Ronald’s own backyard is an extremely cunning sociopath who is very talented at fraud, forgery, and identity theft, and who has most likely done this before for him to be as skilled at it as he seemed to be. I think he likes to drink beer and rum. He may or may not be truly gay, and he is capable of “homicidal violence” to achieve his ends."
Not sure... I think Mrs. Snodgrass needs to come back... =/

I think it wasn't planned at all...
Did you also see Sumway's posts from January where he was talking about selling?
It was under a photo.
I looked again and can't find it.

(Quoting Dogface)
"...or make it in to a rental.)
That would be very ironic since he has pics on his FB of For Rent signs in yards on his street and talks about how much he hates them and rentals...

 

[cbpearson]

Thanks for the compliment AliceInPain!

I am bothered by the concrete slab burial too. How does NO ONE see a man pouring concrete in the backyard or otherwise messing with a slab in the backyard? As for the Drifter learning the coming and going habits of the neighbors, this is possible if he's unemployed and home during the day -- he would learn when he could work and not draw too much attention. And if he looked like he was just working in the yard, and if he was known to be a guy living there, no one would pay much attention. Besides, the neighbors reported in the media that they didn't much like the guy anyway, so they might not have paid much attention.

Why take the risk of being caught though? That's a good question. I think this points to the Drifter too. If he didn't have a car or truck, he would have fewer options to dispose of the body. He would be able to carry a bag of concrete picked up at Home Depot on the bus without raising any suspicion.

No, I did not know Ronald made posts in January about selling his house. That's interesting. I can accept that Drifter didn't intend to kill and impersonate Ronald at the beginning, but I do think he planned it all out very carefully. Based on the Facebook posts, and the time Ronald disappeared, it looks like Ronald was killed in late April. Then we have the impersonation and fraudulent sale of the house taking place in June. That's 2 months to plan and scheme and get the details worked out.

Drifter or whoever the murderer was had to be skilled enough at this to know how to get fake IDs in Ronald's name that were high quality enough to fool a notary public, and had to be smart enough to concoct a ran-off-with-a-new-boyfriend story, post the red herrings on Facebook, and space the posts out enough to look real. That's planning. That's smarts.

Also, btw, I was curious about the Facebook comments referencing Ronald learning how to ride a "horse named Snuffy" at the "ranch by Lake Austin." I Googled for references to horses named Snuffy in our around Austin (worth a shot), and found that there is a Snuffy's Bar and Grill in Hutto, Texas about 25 miles from Lake Austin. Clue? I wonder.

 

[AliceInPain]

Thanks for the compliment AliceInPain!


No, I did not know Ronald made posts in January about selling his house. That's interesting.

He says realtor is coming this weekend, friend asks if he's selling his house, he replies yeah at last.

It's on his timeline underneath the pics of the not very nice tenant he had to get rid of, a few months before Mrs. Snodgrass' friend moved in.
Jan 2.

 

[catlike]

If he didn't have a car or truck, he would have fewer options to dispose of the body. He would be able to carry a bag of concrete picked up at Home Depot on the bus without raising any suspicion.

For a standard 4" thick slab of a small, patio-sized slab (6'x8'), he would have to carry 54 bags of 40 lb. cement home. I can't see how this could be done without attracting some attention. There's quite a bit of prep, too, that goes into making the bed for the concrete. It's not something you could plop down in an hour. There's another thread on here about a woman's body found in a NYC basement slab that required 45 bags of 80 lb. bags of concrete. Again, someone had to notice that.

 

[cbpearson]

Wow! OK this is just getting weirder and weirder. Yes, someone would have to notice that.

And yes AliceInPain, I read that on Ron's Facebook page too (I went and looked). Yes, just who is "Terry?" I wonder if Mrs. Snodgrass' friend's name is Terry. Ron has no Facebook friends named Terry.

The reference to wanting to sell his house in January -- interesting! That January 2nd reference is the one and only time he ever said anything about wanting to sell his house. Curiously, that one reference to his "friend Terry" and the flower bed was the only reference to Terry too. And did you notice that no one asked "who's Terry?"

I wonder if the flower bed work was the disguise for burying Ron.

 

[cvaldez1975]

FWIW I took the "teaching him to ride a horse" as tongue in cheek.

Thanks for the compliment AliceInPain!

I am bothered by the concrete slab burial too. How does NO ONE see a man pouring concrete in the backyard or otherwise messing with a slab in the backyard? As for the Drifter learning the coming and going habits of the neighbors, this is possible if he's unemployed and home during the day -- he would learn when he could work and not draw too much attention. And if he looked like he was just working in the yard, and if he was known to be a guy living there, no one would pay much attention. Besides, the neighbors reported in the media that they didn't much like the guy anyway, so they might not have paid much attention.

Why take the risk of being caught though? That's a good question. I think this points to the Drifter too. If he didn't have a car or truck, he would have fewer options to dispose of the body. He would be able to carry a bag of concrete picked up at Home Depot on the bus without raising any suspicion.

No, I did not know Ronald made posts in January about selling his house. That's interesting. I can accept that Drifter didn't intend to kill and impersonate Ronald at the beginning, but I do think he planned it all out very carefully. Based on the Facebook posts, and the time Ronald disappeared, it looks like Ronald was killed in late April. Then we have the impersonation and fraudulent sale of the house taking place in June. That's 2 months to plan and scheme and get the details worked out.

Drifter or whoever the murderer was had to be skilled enough at this to know how to get fake IDs in Ronald's name that were high quality enough to fool a notary public, and had to be smart enough to concoct a ran-off-with-a-new-boyfriend story, post the red herrings on Facebook, and space the posts out enough to look real. That's planning. That's smarts.

Also, btw, I was curious about the Facebook comments referencing Ronald learning how to ride a "horse named Snuffy" at the "ranch by Lake Austin." I Googled for references to horses named Snuffy in our around Austin (worth a shot), and found that there is a Snuffy's Bar and Grill in Hutto, Texas about 25 miles from Lake Austin. Clue? I wonder.

 

[Tulessa]

Wow! OK this is just getting weirder and weirder. Yes, someone would have to notice that.

And yes AliceInPain, I read that on Ron's Facebook page too (I went and looked). Yes, just who is "Terry?" I wonder if Mrs. Snodgrass' friend's name is Terry. Ron has no Facebook friends named Terry.

The reference to wanting to sell his house in January -- interesting! That January 2nd reference is the one and only time he ever said anything about wanting to sell his house. Curiously, that one reference to his "friend Terry" and the flower bed was the only reference to Terry too. And did you notice that no one asked "who's Terry?"

I wonder if the flower bed work was the disguise for burying Ron.

I don't know, but it's making me think twice about pouring a slab for my fire pit.

 

[Mrs.Snodgrass]

also, it seems like whoever was posting to RS's fb about the cowboy and moving, was not really RS.

Havent seen much on this lately... Sure it will take some time to sort out. Im hoping the body is identified soon, if it is RS... then I would be willing to bet that my old neighbor knows or had something to do with it. There were many a nights that I listened to him argue with his buddy downstairs and it often got physical. From what I read RS wasnt the nicest of guys... I bet if an argument ensued, things couldve gotten out of hand. Time will tell. Still no answers on his phone when we try to call him.

 

[Mrs.Snodgrass]

My friends name is not Terry, I didnt want to disclose that until the case is solved. But truly getting weirder and weirder!

 

[cvaldez1975]

thanks for coming back!

Havent seen much on this lately... Sure it will take some time to sort out. Im hoping the body is identified soon, if it is RS... then I would be willing to bet that my old neighbor knows or had something to do with it. There were many a nights that I listened to him argue with his buddy downstairs and it often got physical. From what I read RS wasnt the nicest of guys... I bet if an argument ensued, things couldve gotten out of hand. Time will tell. Still no answers on his phone when we try to call him.

 

[cbpearson]

Mrs. Snodgrass,

Thank you for coming back. I certainly hope that your friend is still alive and not the victim found under the slab. I also hope that your friend is innocent of any wrongdoing in this case, but unfortunately it looks as if he might be, as you yourself have said.

Thank you for telling us that your friend is not the mysterious "Terry." But may I ask, is your friend, in your opinion, smart enough and organized enough to be capable of perpetrating the fraud, forgery, and identity theft necessary to pull off the fraudulent sale of the house?

Right now it's looking like someone who had access to RS and identifying information about RS such as email and Facebook passwords, and the means to get fake ID for themselves in RS's name -- possibly if not probably the friend you helped moved into the house -- killed RS, hid his body under the slab, assumed RS's identity, obtained fake ID of enough quality to satisfy a notary, and sold RS's house and then disappeared. Is your friend, in your opinion, capable of that level of criminal cunning?

 

[Mrs.Snodgrass]

Yes... and I don't think Mrs. Snodgrass' gypsy/ drifter friend could have done this all, at least not on his own.

This is not just simple fraud hello.

Someone impersonated Shumway at least twice months before the house was sold.
Posting to his FB pretending they were him, sending the resignation email to his employers.
Saying g'bye, I met a guy in Austin/ I have terminal cancer/ won't come back/ bye/ I'm moving out w/e, none of it written like he normally writes.
Then he turns up in June to the sale of his house and signs the papers, only, it wasn't him.

It's interesting that the police asks where Shumway is, but never asked Mrs. Snodgrass or hubby if they knew where their friend was.
She said she/ hubby tried to contact him, I wonder if she/ hubby checked recent arrest records also?

Was the mugshot recent?
And how did they (LE) know he (Mrs. Snodgrass' friend) once lived there when the house was empty of all traces of previous occupants and they couldn't even get DNA of the person who lived there for 30+ years?

I wish Mrs. Snodgrass could come back because I have some questions!

PS. Sorry if some of what I write do not make sense. I have been drinking wine.

Id be happy to answer your questions! I try to remember every couple of days to get on here and see whats been found. You guys are truly amazing at finding articles about this. I have yet to see a few that were posted.

 

[Mrs.Snodgrass]

Lemme tell ya what I know about the "drifter" as we will call him. I met him shortly after my husband and I moved into our apartment. He lived downstairs with the tenant we already knew (pretty sure they were lovers but wouldnt admit it). Both were active in the gay community. They fought A LOT. My "drifter" friend was the more violent of the two, yelling as loud as he could and the first to get physical at times. I got to know him from stepping out on the back porch to see what the noise downstairs was, he was always creating some type of contraption down there. A bit of an entrepreneur. Id ask him what he was doing and then sit there and chit chat with him. He was interesting to say the least! I found out pretty quickly that he was a schizophrenic. He would ask me if I ever noticed that the apartments were bugged and that the Illuminati had been watching him. I just kinda ignored it because he had also mentioned that he dabbled with the drug GHB. Figured it was just side effects or something from the usage. One day he showed up at my door freaked out. He was scared because he had just been in a car accident and fled the scene on foot. He left his wallet in there with 2 different Id's. His own and someone elses. He wanted to know if I thought they would find the ID's in the van. I asked him what he was doing with someone elses ID's and he laughed about how it belonged to an old boyfriend. He then told me that he used this ID to identify himself on the DART train when they caught him riding without paying. That way the ticket was put into his friends name instead of his own. On another occasion he came to my job asking if i could help him with something. I worked at a copy shop and he wanted me to help him mock-up a passport! I told him no way, that he was on his own with that. Later he showed me what he did, he had removed the photo of the other guy, placed his photo over it, and then laminated it. Looked pretty legitimate. I told him how dangerous that was and that he was committing a huge crime by falsifying that identification. He didnt seem too concerned about it. I did tell the police about it, they took a report but that was about it. He also attempted to sell us stolen merchandise from places like Home Depot, Nordstroms, and anywhere else he had stolen from. Never took him up on it. Just figured it was a matter of time before he would get himself caught. So around February the downstairs neighbor (the actual tenant that lived there consistently) said "hey we are moving outta here, wanted to tell you guys that Im gonna miss you and Id like to cook you dinner at the pool later." Later came and thats exactly what we did, but the drifter was not present. We asked him what would become of the drifter and he said "well im outta here tomorrow and he has until the end of the month when rent is up, then I dont care what he does." End of the month comes up and thats when the drifter shows up in a tan car, maybe a corrolla ? Something of that nature and I said "where'd you get those wheels?" He replied "From a friend I met on the DART bus, Im going to move in with him for a while." This is where Ronald Schumway comes in. So the drifter had JUST met Ronald and was already driving his car... he picked up some stuff and then asked us if we wouldnt mind helping him make one trip. We helped him and went to that house on Winnetka. We did not see Ronald but we did hear someone cough in the background. So I believe that he was there. Thats when we saw the trashed room and what not. About a month later or so he had a garage sale at the house and invited us to come check the stuff out. We love antiques and he claimed that he had some so we went to check it out. He had all of this old stuff out there, stuff that I knew didnt belong to him and he was selling it to people left and right. This time I didnt see or hear anyone else in the house. He was still driving Ronalds car. I asked him why he was selling all of this stuff and he said "the guy I am staying with doesnt want this stuff, it was his mothers and he has no use for it." We didnt buy anything because we were uncomfortable about it. I did ask him how things were going there and also if he was dating the homeowner. He said "No way, he wants to but Im not interested." We left and never heard from him. The next thing you know I am seeing that house on the news! So to answer your question on whether I think this guy is capable? Very much so. After writing this I am asking myself, "Why did you continue to talk to this terrible person!" haha. Tell you the truth I felt bad for him, there was something about him that seemed save-able. Time will tell tho. Guess we will play the waiting game til this body is identified.

 

[Mrs.Snodgrass]

Thank you guys for all of the information you seem to find! Im not the best at surfing the net and I do not have a facebook so it helps to see it here.

 

[Mrs.Snodgrass]

Oh yes, and a little more on the visit with the Detective. The Mugshot was not real recent, or at least did not appear to be. The drifter had been in and out of jail for traffic tickets for the last few years. So we think that it was just a photo from one of his visits for minor issues. I did run his name to see if he is currently incarcerated and he is not. The detective did ask if we knew where to locate the drifter. My husband gave him two numbers we had for him and that was about it. My husband asked him if he wanted to know about any identifying marks or anything and he said no. Definitely very hush hush, he wouldnt tell him anything at all. Just that it was still an open investigation.

 

[cvaldez1975]

wow that is a crazy story!!!

Lemme tell ya what I know about the "drifter" as we will call him. I met him shortly after my husband and I moved into our apartment. He lived downstairs with the tenant we already knew (pretty sure they were lovers but wouldnt admit it). Both were active in the gay community. They fought A LOT. My "drifter" friend was the more violent of the two, yelling as loud as he could and the first to get physical at times. I got to know him from stepping out on the back porch to see what the noise downstairs was, he was always creating some type of contraption down there. A bit of an entrepreneur. Id ask him what he was doing and then sit there and chit chat with him. He was interesting to say the least! I found out pretty quickly that he was a schizophrenic. He would ask me if I ever noticed that the apartments were bugged and that the Illuminati had been watching him. I just kinda ignored it because he had also mentioned that he dabbled with the drug GHB. Figured it was just side effects or something from the usage. One day he showed up at my door freaked out. He was scared because he had just been in a car accident and fled the scene on foot. He left his wallet in there with 2 different Id's. His own and someone elses. He wanted to know if I thought they would find the ID's in the van. I asked him what he was doing with someone elses ID's and he laughed about how it belonged to an old boyfriend. He then told me that he used this ID to identify himself on the DART train when they caught him riding without paying. That way the ticket was put into his friends name instead of his own. On another occasion he came to my job asking if i could help him with something. I worked at a copy shop and he wanted me to help him mock-up a passport! I told him no way, that he was on his own with that. Later he showed me what he did, he had removed the photo of the other guy, placed his photo over it, and then laminated it. Looked pretty legitimate. I told him how dangerous that was and that he was committing a huge crime by falsifying that identification. He didnt seem too concerned about it. I did tell the police about it, they took a report but that was about it. He also attempted to sell us stolen merchandise from places like Home Depot, Nordstroms, and anywhere else he had stolen from. Never took him up on it. Just figured it was a matter of time before he would get himself caught. So around February the downstairs neighbor (the actual tenant that lived there consistently) said "hey we are moving outta here, wanted to tell you guys that Im gonna miss you and Id like to cook you dinner at the pool later." Later came and thats exactly what we did, but the drifter was not present. We asked him what would become of the drifter and he said "well im outta here tomorrow and he has until the end of the month when rent is up, then I dont care what he does." End of the month comes up and thats when the drifter shows up in a tan car, maybe a corrolla ? Something of that nature and I said "where'd you get those wheels?" He replied "From a friend I met on the DART bus, Im going to move in with him for a while." This is where Ronald Schumway comes in. So the drifter had JUST met Ronald and was already driving his car... he picked up some stuff and then asked us if we wouldnt mind helping him make one trip. We helped him and went to that house on Winnetka. We did not see Ronald but we did hear someone cough in the background. So I believe that he was there. Thats when we saw the trashed room and what not. About a month later or so he had a garage sale at the house and invited us to come check the stuff out. We love antiques and he claimed that he had some so we went to check it out. He had all of this old stuff out there, stuff that I knew didnt belong to him and he was selling it to people left and right. This time I didnt see or hear anyone else in the house. He was still driving Ronalds car. I asked him why he was selling all of this stuff and he said "the guy I am staying with doesnt want this stuff, it was his mothers and he has no use for it." We didnt buy anything because we were uncomfortable about it. I did ask him how things were going there and also if he was dating the homeowner. He said "No way, he wants to but Im not interested." We left and never heard from him. The next thing you know I am seeing that house on the news! So to answer your question on whether I think this guy is capable? Very much so. After writing this I am asking myself, "Why did you continue to talk to this terrible person!" haha. Tell you the truth I felt bad for him, there was something about him that seemed save-able. Time will tell tho. Guess we will play the waiting game til this body is identified.

 

[cvaldez1975]

definitely sounds like a suspect!!!

to be frank I believe the deceased is RS.

Oh yes, and a little more on the visit with the Detective. The Mugshot was not real recent, or at least did not appear to be. The drifter had been in and out of jail for traffic tickets for the last few years. So we think that it was just a photo from one of his visits for minor issues. I did run his name to see if he is currently incarcerated and he is not. The detective did ask if we knew where to locate the drifter. My husband gave him two numbers we had for him and that was about it. My husband asked him if he wanted to know about any identifying marks or anything and he said no. Definitely very hush hush, he wouldnt tell him anything at all. Just that it was still an open investigation.