Two Ohio men are facing federal charges connected with the death of a pregnant woman found dead in a tote last August.
According to WDTN, Rick Sheppard — who already faces state charges in the case — and Walter Edward Wade have been charge with conspiracy to obstruct justice by concealing an object, concealing an object to impair its availability for an official proceeding, and accessory after the fact.
Sheppard and James Rothenbusch were charged in September with tampering with evidence and gross abuse of a corpse, CrimeOnline reported. The grand jury also indicted Rothenbusch charges of failure to report a death and two drug-related counts. Wade was later charged with similar counts.
The body of Brittany Fuhr-Storms, 28, was found along a rural roadway on August 3. Her body was wrapped in towels and tarps and sealed into the plastic tote with wood screws.
Sheppard and Rothenbusch reportedly said that they kept the woman’s body in the shower at Rothenbusch’s apartment for nearly a week before dumping it. A search warrant shows that investigators found towels at the apartment similar to those found in the tote with the body, along with a suspected blood stain on the carpet, a blue tarp, and wood screws.
Rothenbusch pleaded guilty last month to complicity in tampering with evidence and was sentenced to 30 months in prison, WKRC said.
According to WDTN, Fuhr-Storms’ baby was delivered stillborn after her death from a fentanyl overdose in July. A toxicology report found fentanyl metabolite, fentanyl, carfentanil, Xylazine, methamphetamine and ethanol in Fuhr-Storms’ body and fentanyl and fentanyl metabolites in the baby, which had an estimated gestational age of 23 to 31 weeks.
A person not charged federally (and presumably Rothenbusch but identified only as “Individual-I” in the federal affidavit) said that he found Fuhr-Storms unresponsive and that he and Sheppard delivered multiple doses of Narcan and attempted CPR. He asid he left thinking she “was okay” but later saw Sheppard and Wade put a sheet over her body.
During their interviews, WADE, SHEPPARD, and Individual-I at various times (and to varying degrees) disclaimed responsibility for their roles (or the roles of others) in the overdose, and/or moving the body. However, based on subsequent interviews, physical evidence, a review of the electronic evidence, and my training and experience, I believe that SHEPPARD’s subsequent admission is correct: that he and WADE knowingly moved the overdosed bodies on behalf of Individual-I, to cover up the overdose from law enforcement.
The status of the state charges against Wade and Sheppard is unclear.
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[Featured image: Walter Edward Wade/Butler County Sheriff’s Office and Rick Sheppard/Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office]
