FL FL - April Stone, 21, Apopka, 14 Jan 1991

ETA: A few facts about April Stone, 21, and her murder on January 14, 1991 in Apopka, Orange County, FL.

- She'd left home to go for a walk, leaving behind her wallet and ID. Father stated she often went for walks with her Walkman.

- COD was stab wounds

- Death took place shortly after she left home.

- Her body was wrapped in a blanket

- "...last seen about 4 p.m. Jan. 14 walking along Old Dixie Highway - State Road 424 - in Apopka."

- Jan 16, "...body was found 15 miles away on Painted Post Road near State Road 46 and the Wekiva River" (Sanford/Seminole County)

- She had red hair and blue eyes, with a four leaf clover tattoo on her right shoulder.

- Worked at Hungry Howie's Pizza and Subs

Link to 1991 Orlando Sentinel report.

http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1991-01-23/news/9101230965_1_thomas-stone-stone-friends-apopka

Suspected SK William Devin Howell is being considered as a possible suspect in April Marie Stone's murder.

Suspected New Britain Serial Killer Eyed In 1991 Florida Slaying
By Dave Altimari
August 7, 2015 9:30 A.M.

Investigators tracing the history of suspected New Britain serial killer William Devin Howell are looking into his possible connection to the unsolved 1991 murder of a woman in Florida.

April Marie Stone disappeared on Jan. 14, 1991, as she was walking along a state highway in South Apopka, Fla. Stone, 21 at the time, was found two days later wrapped in a blanket off a dirt road in nearby Sanford.

At the time of the slaying, Howell was living in Casselberry, about 15 miles away from where the body was found. Howell was arrested a few months after Stone's death. Police records obtained by The Courant show that Howell, who was also 21 at the time, was charged with soliciting a prostitute in Altamonte Springs, Fla. on April 12, 1991. Altamonte Springs borders Casselberry.

(The woman was an undercover LEO.)

[...]
Spears said Howell got on their radar in late February when detectives from the Connecticut Serial Killer Task Force came to Florida and gave a presentation to several law enforcement agencies on their case, Howell's background and his ties to Florida.

[...]
The Florida case was the first time Howell was ever arrested as an adult, judicial records indicate. He has no other arrests for soliciting prostitutes.

---

So from what we can glean from the report, there are at least two reasons why Howell is of interest in the April Stone murder.

1) Stone was wrapped in a blanket. The CT victims were wrapped in blankets. (The CT victims were buried, however, and Stone was not.)

2) Stone was murdered on Jan 14, 1991. Howell was residing in Casselberry at the time, 15 miles from where Stone's body was found.

The article suggests there are other similarities, but only describes the ones above.

More about William Devin Howell in the SK forum.

We're sorting through these cold cases looking for any similarities to one we are investigating. Found some similarities on this case. The links and article below are 4 different cases we believe were committed by the same person due to some information we've obtained. Any thoughts?

What happened to Mary Ellen Wise?

Family of slain chiropractor seeks tips 26 years after her death

Plea For Help In Solving Murder Of Wife, Mother Bonnie Goodson

And this one doesn't have many articles, but here is a blurb from one of them:

- The seventh killing happened Nov. 21 when a discount ticket salesman was beaten to death on West U.S. Highway 192.

Tourists stopping for directions found Antonio Zuco, 50, in the bathroom of his ticket shop and tourist information center.

An undisclosed amount of cash and number of tickets to area attractions were taken, along with Zuco's wallet. Deputies think the murder weapon might be a hammer. The Osceola Sheriff's Office is still investigating.

So, they don't think he's the killer now.

Published 10/29/2015

Accused serial killer in Conn. has link to Central Florida

Because the timing matched up, investigators looked at Howell, who would've been 21 at the time of Stone's death.

However, investigators haven't found any evidence linking him to the crime, Bentsen said.

"Howell is not considered a suspect at this time," she said.

Name: April Stone
Date: January 16, 1991
Case Number: 9100160026
Location: Painted Post Road, Sanford
On January 16, 1991, the body of April Stone, w/f 21 years old, was located off Painted Post Road in Sanford and had been wrapped in a blanket. She had been stabbed to death. Stone was last seen on January 14, 1991, walking along Old Dixie Highway in Apopka.

Unsolved Homicides