Cops to Tear Down Walls of Suspect's Home

Sex Offender Denied Bail on Five Murder Charges; 10 Corpses Were Found in and Around His Cleveland House

(CBS/ AP)  Updated 7:19 p.m. EST

A sex offender who lived among 10 corpses was ordered held without bond Wednesday as investigators prepared to begin tearing apart walls inside the house in search of more evidence or bodies.

Anthony Sowell appeared in court under tight security, wearing a blue paper jumpsuit typically used when an inmate might be a suicide risk. His wrists and ankles were manacled, and he walked into court staggering slightly.

Assistant Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Brian Murphy called Sowell "an incredibly dangerous threat to the public" and said he could face the death penalty if convicted of the charges - five aggravated murder counts for the victims whose cause of death has been ruled strangulation. In addition, he faces charges of rape, felonious assault and kidnapping for a Sept. 22 attack on a woman at his home.

Public defender Kathleen DeMetz told the judge that Sowell has medical problems, including a heart pacemaker and cardiac medication. He was laid off two years ago and receives unemployment compensation.

The case now goes before the county grand jury.

Police discovered the first six bodies Thursday and Friday after a woman reported being raped at Sowell's home. Investigators said they found one body in a shallow grave in the backyard. The rest were inside the house - one in the basement, two in the third-floor living room and two in an upstairs crawl space.

They found four more bodies Tuesday in Sowell's backyard, as well as a skull wrapped in paper inside a bucket in his basement.

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PICTURES: Anthony Sowell's Home of Horror

Outraged local residents accuse authorities of ignoring their concerns about missing women for years, reports CBS News correspondent Randall Pinkston. Six of Sowell's alleged victims are known to be African-American.

Tonia Carmichael was among the first victims to be identified with a DNA match. Her family says they tried to get Cleveland police to look for her when they found her car near Sowell's house a year ago. They believe police ignored them because Carmichael was a known drug user.

"Nobody looked," Carmichael's daughter, Donita Carmichael, told Pinkston. "Nobody took the time out to look for the missing women. My mother's life meant something beyond the drugs and alcohol."

Cleveland City Councilman Zack Reed is calling for an independent investigation, Pinkson reports. Reed believes authorities should have done more to trace the source of the stench of death; the smell was erroneously believed to be coming from a sausage factory next door to Sowell's home.

"Something went wrong here," Reed said. "You can't have 10 bodies in a residential neighborhood where the community is telling you about a foul smell."

After Sowell's court appearance, Deputy Police Chief Ed Tomba said investigators have finished digging through the backyard and will begin tearing apart walls inside the house Wednesday in search of more evidence or bodies.

"We're going to go bit by bit, piece by piece," he said.

The Cuyahoga County coroner hasn't identified any of the bodies but is trying to do so through DNA and dental records. The six found last week were black, and five of them were strangled.

Sowell served 15 years in prison for a 1989 attempted rape. On Tuesday, Police Chief Michael McGrath said: "It appears that this man had an insatiable appetite that he had to fill."

A crowd of around 100 people milled about and chatted near the home Tuesday evening. A short while later, around 50 people joined hands and put their arms around one another in the middle of the street and prayed aloud.

One of those in the crowd, Antoinnette Dudley, 29, lives a few houses away. She said she could smell a terrible odor like something was dead all summer. She said she saw Sowell only a few times, mainly drinking beer while he sat on his porch.

"I didn't think he was that sick," she said.

As a registered sex offender, Sowell was required to check in regularly at the sheriff's office. Officers didn't have the right to enter his house, but they would stop by to make sure he was there. Their most recent visit was Sept. 22, just hours before the woman reported being raped.

For the past few years, Sowell's neighbors thought the foul smell enveloping their street corner had been coming from a brick building where workers churned out sausage and head cheese. It got so bad that the owners of Ray's Sausage replaced their sewer line and grease traps.

Note: The Associated Press has withdrawn reports referring to Sowell as a "convicted rapist." The AP says that Sowell was only convicted of attempted rape, according to police.

[littleme55]

if the police and city would do their job instead of being afraid of these psycho people there would be less crime.....

[Texkat]

Okay....what is the point of having a Registered Sex Offender program if NO ONE checks to see what they are doing behind closed doors?!?!?!! Between this case and the Duggard horror, our system is CLEARLY flawed. Don't misled the public by saying we track Registered Sex Offenders when you clearly DO NOT!! I am sorry, but talking to one will NOT guarnentee the truth! Shouldn't these 2 extreme cases be a wake up call that these SEX OFFENDERS do not get cured and need to be better monitored?!?!? Sick....

[stryker54]

Blame the ACLU and Attorney's yell for the rights of the criminal. They have laws to keep police at bay or they break the scumbags constitional rights. It's absurd.

[bearkaz]

The point of having registered sex offenders is basically NIMBY. Sex offender laws exist so that the rich people can know confident that nobody nasty is living in their back yard.

Well, that and, plus, it provides additional punishment for sex offenders (cuz we're mad they haven't suffered enough, and/or because we're using them as scapegoats), but mostly I think those laws are there there to make us feel good, like everything is under control.

[pachin_haburashi]

Writing from Japan, I had a question about his house. (sorry for a minor interruption)
Since he served 15 years in prison and only 2 years working, how could he live the house like that? It looks like very nice condition and living by himself seemed like the house was his own..is that right?
If the house was provided by city or some organization, they might have visited to check when the neighbor's complain of smell was mentioned... right?

[jsd330]

It's his mothers house and she is in a nursing home, he lived there by himself.

[bearkaz]

Because Cleveland is one of the cities going through a sort of downsizing - it is happening in cities all over the so called "rust belt", the formerly prosperous area from Chicago to Pennsylvania, and from Michigan in the north to to the Ohio/WV/KY border.

In some parts of these cities, there are abandoned buildings. Prices are low, there are no buyers - nobody wants to live there, because there are no jobs. You can't even expect to buy one, fix it up, and rent it. Many sit empty and crime is high. It's very sad. Some cities (Akron, OH & Detroit, MI, I think) the city councils are relocating residents, so that the worst parts of town may be demolished. In other cities (Gary, IN) there are photos on the internet (see: urban blight, urban decay) that are just falling in, and nobody can stop it because there's no money.

Hope that answers your question.

[jsd330]

Yep the Cuyahoga county sheriffs department right on the ball, as usual. This man was a registered sex offender and they never went to his home to check on him. They allowed him to go to the sheriffs office and report in. Maybe had they checked him at home this would have been discovered earlier. Of course when you have almost every county office under investigation for corruption, including the former sheriff this is what happens.

[ffoulkes-2009]

The story says the police went to his home to verify he lived there and were just there hours before the woman who reported him was raped.

[armyoftwelve]

This story keeps getting worse and worse. Funny, you don't often hear about black serial killers.

[Nivlac_Skcaj]

It happens but seems to not be news worthy most of the time. Mental problems span all races and religions. A sick person is the hardest to spot for they hide their illness as a way of life. A bad person flaunts his badness but this crime is one of a sick mind.

[nycyndia]

My teenaged daughters and i have honestly decided the best way to stop this horror that keeps happening to our nations women is to give punishment (jail) first offense and then after that if it happens again then it is time to make the offender into a eunuch.
As a parent, i have always told my children if they didn't know how to be responsible with what they have been given then it should be taken away.
from what i understand, once a man is castrated a loss in libido occurs.
perfect.

[legacyABQ2]

heh. Dont get too cynical about men now.. There's plenty of nice men in this country! ;-)

I like how you allowed for jail for 1st time offenders before castrating them. That sounds fair.

[stryker54]

Castration will cause a loss of libido, but this guy is a killer. I'm sure if you start castrating men alot would probably do other crimes just as bad for revenge.

[tmittelstaed]

You would think that the court could have found some other public defender than a woman. (Kathleen DeMetz) I cannot imagine how any woman, even a lawyer, could possibly give a good defense for a convicted rapist on trial for murdering dozens of women who's bodies were found in his home. It's not that he -deserves- a good defense, it's more that whoever on the court selected DeMetz to represent him is a first-class creep.

[jclark7613]

by missme4

You are a very nasty and ignorant person...I've read your post for months now... please don't ever respond to my post because you are not on my level... I'm not a nasty degrading person as you are... you low life neo con thug...

[Skirtlifters]

I admit, missme4 is over-the-top rude. I despise political correctness as much as missme4. You, JClark, were having a fine debate, and may have been winning. But then you resort to name calling while saying missme4 is not on your level.

Sorry...missme4 wins the debate.

[OregonJames]

Tell me, why are rapists and pedophiles ever allowed to go free? They should instead be executed, every single one of them. They cannot be cured. Execute them.

[Skirtlifters]

If we made these capitol crimes, we'd also have to make a false accusation capital punishment. Only fair.

[Iamthemango]

Black male rapist + White female victim = compassion, outrage

Black male rapist + Black female victim = sarcasm, apathy

Test my theory. It holds up every time.

[Skirtlifters]

White male accused rapist + Black female accuser = massive community outrage from the likes of Al Sharpton and a Nifong witch hunt.

Dude. c'mon, please ... you can't stuff human behavior into little boxes of predictability based on race. Your theory is simple minded.

[Iamthemango]

There is a very disturbing factor here.

This lunatic/serial killer was able to rape and murder all those women, and neighbors chalked it up to the odor from a sausage factory (time to rethink that breakfast menu people).

Prayer is great. Keep it up, but next time dial 911 when you smell a rotting corpse for an extended period of time.

[tmittelstaed]

Have you ever cleaned out a grease trap from an industrial food processor? I have. The smell is exactly like that of a dead body - and if you have never done it, you will find yourself literally vomiting, unless you force yourself not to.

[ToolMangler1]

by tmittelstaed November 4, 2009 6:12 PM EST
"Have you ever cleaned out a grease trap from an industrial food processor? I have."



Who did you tick off????
Cruel and inhuman punishment if you do it to a captured terrorist.
Just another day on the job in the food industry, "Low man on the totem pole gets it"

[watchthis01]

Please do not waste my tax dollars on a trial for this evil; take his ass straight to the needle. Don't even wait, just give him the needle right now.

[Nivlac_Skcaj]

We just escaped 8 years of this type of shoot first ask questions later thinking. I think we need to depend on our legal system to handle this.

[nanc12]

Um, justiceprevails and PAguy - our fathers, grandfathers, etc. fought for the right to have justice, the right to a trial, and the presumption of innocence until proven guilty. If you want executions with no trials, I guess you can move to a country with no rights for its citizens. And it has nothing to do with being a liberal or conservative, by the way.

[justiceprevails]

To nanc12,
A simple DNA test from the local lab is all it takes. Trials, waiting time and all that BS will waste millions. Oh---so lets go ahead and run a three year trial, put him on death row for 10 years getting past all the appeals-----Yeah you bet ! The dollars could be used on hunger or children`s hospitals.

[stayAU]

Rickyevan its depression not laziness if your brain is hurting everything is going to be hurtin. All that keeps comming to mind is what Chris Rock said. Something to the effect that we may have thieves but we don't have serial killers. As a half breed I was like yeah! he's right what the hell is wrong with white men? Then I'm thinkin well most of them were from either german or english decent something in their genes. Hey and Malcom X take your anger somewhere else tough times is not a black thing. We've got people living in Motorhomes in camp grounds in Northern VA and they're white. At least you have a home, and **** the federal government took 45,000 acres of my ancestors land and you're living on it. Meanie! I think if it weren't for the smarts of the ladies in that neighborbood there would be more victims. Kudo's to them. And hell no if it were white women would the police have noticed? Look at that Dugard girl in California! All men think with the same brain!

[jclark7613]

by rickyevan

I understand part of your point of view but to genalize everyone in a poor neighborhood or ghetto as you call it is horrible. You dont know how many people in that neighborhood are hard working people that probably don't bother anyone... they own their own home..maybe it's in the "ghetto" but it belongs to them. The comment you made is so broad. We as black need to take responsibility for our action but your comment of downgrading them don't help. I really hope that you are not a man of mixed race that downgrade blacks every chance you get to your white friends because if you realize it or not they don't see your comment as enlighting but they look at you as being one of them no matter how light your skin is....

[legacyABQ2]

Ouch. One of them??

Look. I look at my black friends as friends whose ancestors happen to come from a certain part of the world. I look at my white friends as friends whose ancestors happen to come from some other part of the world. It's anthropology; nothing more. It's interesting the way history or astronomy is interesting.
In other words, some people always look at others as people. As individuals. I've gotten to know many people very well by taking them at face value with an open mind. And talking about race is like talking about orange juice (as it applies between us personally).

[TheEnergyDoctor]

Everybody is so Angry.
This is the 21st Century guys. It could prevent
future victims if there is a trial and this guy
was dissected a bit.

Dont burn the witch just yet. Developing a profile and/or
a character template for this guy could identify other potential
predators within proximity to you. Trust me, science is gonna grab this guy.

This also raises the issue of identifying sexual predators within
a community. PPL like grido who took that girl for 18 years. With
clear identification, communities can police themselves and furnish
law enforcement with pertinent information.

This is not a time to enjoy the wrath of our angers(enticing though)
but a good time to teach communities how to band together and better
protect their women and children and make their politicians move when
they say move.

I could go on, but . . . . . .

[jclark7613]

by rickyevan
For some reason, majority of black neighborhoods suffer from the ills of laziness and lack of self respect for where they rest their heads.I wish blacks could show more pride and respect for themselves like the Great Malcolm X once tried to instill in the people. But guess what, his own race murdered him!! Maybe there is no hope for some blacks. It angers me being half black..This would have never happened in my community and I live in a diverse area, because the neighborhood has self respect and common sense.




You seem to be judging every black low income neighborhood and this shows your ignorance. Maybe you should research this story more because even the congressman had complained to police about the smell in the neighborhood. CBS News doesn't give you enough info in most of their articles. I live in what you would call a low income neighborhood the houses range from 35,000 to 70,000 and on my street in upstate New York every lawn is kept nice and it's a very quite street. The fact the Malcom X was killed by a black means what???? Every day ignorant people kill each other.... whites, black and hispanics kill in their own race or maybe you live on Mars.

[rickyevan]

I am simply pointing out that there may be some ignorance,no common sense and lack of pride in this community. As in most black communities I've been in, this is what I have witnessed. And as for Malcolm X, he was a great leader and role model for the mentally dead black man as well as people as a whole. If blacks listened and followed what the man preached, I believe the ills and negativity that dwells in black communities would never exist to this day. Instead, they kill him because he began to judge people by their character and their intentions instead of by their skin color. Back to the topic at hand, this community seems to have a drug problem and addicts and dealers roam the streets freely. Would you see this in a civilized neighborhood? And would it be accepted? I think not. Had this not been a ghetto, the suspicions would have been looked into the necessary way. I am merely pointing out that ghettos remain ghettos because of the people inhabiting the area. No self respect

[missme4]

"You seem to be judging every black low income neighborhood and this shows your ignorance."

Trying to be politically correct and pretending there is not a problem is the ignorant thing to do. Trying to find an exception to the rule to back your position is the ignorant thing to do. When you cover up the truth with rose colored glasses and perfume, the situation never gets better. Giving people a welfare check and hiding them in a corner of the city (a big corner) will never fix the problem. Calling someone a racist because he is addressing the issue is ignorant grand standing.
So, what I would suggest is that you try to walk down the suspect's street alone late at night and see if your political correctness helps protect you.

[taxchurches]

"A short while later, around 50 people joined hands and put their arms around one another in the middle of the street and prayed aloud."

And did it help, or are all those women still dead?

[missme4]

LOL

[statins321]

people like you ruin our country

[ToolMangler1]

The praying wasn't really for the dead, it was to help heal the familys injured by this person.

Since you don't seem to understand the reasons for praying, the more you say about it shows more of your ignorance.

[taxchurches]

Why do they keep calling this guy a rapist? If he's living with 10 corpses, he's apparently a serial killer.

[missme4]

Multi-talented would be a better definition.

[nanc12]

Because he is a convicted rapist, served time for being a rapist, and was out on parole and apparently badly supervised for rape - that's why they call him a rapist. When he's convicted of these murders, they'll call him a serial killer.

[statins321]

this coming from someone whose name is 'taxchurches'.. maybe you should start a lawsuit against the church since they condemn murder

[statins321]

this coming from someone whose s/n is 'taxchurches'... you are one of those people i see sueing the church for condemning murder due to religious bias

[Deanna559]

This is horrific. This man is completely insane. I can not understand how he was able to do that for so long while nobody being aware of it. Somebody should have called the cops when they realized the foul smell instead of simply thinking that it was something else. I find this extremely bizarre and completely pathetic that it was not prevented sooner.

[stryker54]

Remeber Jeffrey Dahmer, he got away with it for some time to and he had body parts left over in his house. He liked to eat his victims if you remeber, cops came to his house numerous times, never had a clue. Even with a naked 15 year old boy.