A Texas woman’s “heroic” dog pointed police in the direction of her killer, who turned out to be her cousin, state prosecutors said.
The white dog named Titan helped identify Mandy Rose Reynolds when Robinson police discovered the 26-year-old woman’s burned body in a brush fire on April 3, 2023, the McLennan County District Attorney’s Office wrote in a news release shared on its Facebook.
Nearby the fire and body, which was “burned beyond recognition,” was Titan barking frantically at officers as they arrived, the DA’s office said. The dog refused to leave the area and did not allow the officers to capture it, according to the release.
The next morning, someone found Titan sitting at the spot where the burning body had been the night before, the state government agency said. The person notified Robinson Animal Control, which found out that Titan was microchipped and belonged to Reynolds, according to the DA’s office.
He failed as a service dog.But that didn’t stop him from joining the police force
Mandy Reynolds’ missing Honda found in Wichita, Kansas
When police learned of Reynolds’ identity, they figured out she lived in San Marcos, Texas, according to the news release. Police in San Marcos, who communicated with officers in Robinson, went to Reynolds’ home, which was completely emptied, the DA’s office said.
In addition to her possessions being gone, her black Honda Accord was also missing, according to the release. Police ran Reynolds’ vehicle through a license plate reader database and found that the car was in Wichita, Kansas, the state government agency said.
Wichita police, who were told to be on the lookout for the missing Honda, spotted the vehicle and attempted to pull it over causing a high-speed chase to ensue, the DA’s office said. The chase lasted 30 minutes and consisted of the Honda going over 100 mph, according to the release.
The missing Honda ultimately crashed into another car, which prompted the driver to run into a nearby grocery store where he hid on a shelf behind canned goods, according to the DA’s office. The driver was quickly found and identified as Derek Daigneault, 29, who is Reynolds’ cousin, according to the news release.
Police found a .380 handgun in the driver’s seat floorboard of Reynolds’ car, the state government agency said.
What happened to Mandy Reynolds?
Based on physical evidence at the scene where Reynolds’ body was found, Robinson police determined that she was burned inside a large plastic storage container, according to the DA’s office. Police also discovered a .380 shell casing in the burned container, the state government agency said.
San Marcos police obtained surveillance video from Walmart showing Daigneault on the morning of April 4, 2023, buying a large plastic storage container identical to the one found at the scene, a shovel and a gas can, according to the release.
The Walmart video also showed Daigneault leaving the store in Reynolds’ car, and Titan was seen in the footage sticking his head out the car’s window, the DA’s office said. San Marcos police found Reynolds’ belongings in an abandoned truck several miles from her home, according to the state government agency.
The medical examiner determined that Reynolds died from a gunshot wound to the head, the news release reads. The Texas Department of Public Safety Crime Laboratory confirmed the bullet found in Reynolds’ body and the shell casing discovered by Robinson police were both fired by the handgun seized by Wichita police, the DA’s office said.
Daigneault was sentenced to life on Nov. 7 after a jury convicted him of Reynolds’ murder, according to the release.
