Caretaker now charged with homicide after missing Sacramento man found dead
The caretaker of a missing Sacramento man is now facing a homicide charge after family members say he was found dead inside his South Natomas apartment last week.
The Sacramento Police Department said on Monday that 41-year-old Christina Cowens has remained in custody since her arrest on Thursday and is now being charged with homicide and additional fraud-related offenses. She made her first court appearance on Monday.
On Nov. 6, detectives discovered the body during a search of the San Juan Road apartment belonging to 59-year-old Richard McClintic, who had been reported missing on October 25. Family members confirmed to CBS Sacramento that the person found dead was McClintic.
Police say the identity of the deceased individual will be officially confirmed and later released by the Sacramento County Coroner's Office.
A family member of McClintic told CBS Sacramento outside the courthouse on Monday that the family had been trying to get into contact with McClintic to notify him that his sister had died. The family member, who is McClintic's nephew, said another relative had tried twice to reach McClintic at his apartment but was ultimately denied by the caretaker.
This prompted the family to ask law enforcement officials to perform a welfare check at McClintic's apartment, which led to the original missing person report.
"To know that someone is capable of doing this to a disabled person in my uncle's condition is just outrageous," the nephew said.
McClintic's nephew said his uncle posted on Facebook in July that he had been looking for a new caretaker.
Cowens, who had been McClintic's caretaker for years, was initially booked into the Sacramento County Main Jail on suspicion of unlawful disposal of human remains, grand theft, and concealment or attempted concealment of a death. She is ineligible for bail and is scheduled to appear in court on Monday.
McClintic was considered at-risk due to medical conditions, including cerebral palsy. In August 2015, CBS News Sacramento spoke to both McClintic and Cowens for a story about his need for a new motorized scooter and a new machine that would help him find his voice.