2-year-old killed over spilled milk
Monday, Nov. 2 2009 @ 11:00AM
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| He lived with his frail stepmom, making it easy to kill and hide the bodies |
Sowell made spare money scrapping for metal to sell. And since he refused to pay stepmom rent because his dad owned the house, he could use his meager earnings to drink and do dope. Neighbors say he often invited them in to party -- especially the women. Once he got them in the house, they were on his killing grounds.
His stepmom was too frail to climb stairs, so she didn't know what Anthony was doing on the third floor. But according to police, that's where he raped and killed at least six women, then strangled them before burying them in the house...
Two bodies were found decomposing in the attic. Others were buried in the basement and back yard. At least one of those may have be his stepmom.
Allen Sowell, Anthony's brother, says he lost track of the serial killer after he want to prison. But when he'd occasionally talked to their stepmother, she'd say she wanted Anthony out of the house. He wouldn't pay rent and she didn't approve of his drug use. She was planning to file court papers last spring to boot him from the home.
Now Allen Sowell wants to know where his stepmom is. Neighbors say she was sent to live at a nursing home, but he's not buying. "She would be calling me," he told the Cleveland Plain Dealer. "That's not happening, and that worries me."
Anthony Sowell first came to police attention again in September, the same day they'd conducted a routine check on the sex offender. Eight hours later, a woman says she was drinking with Sowell at the home when he punched her, choked her with an electrical cord, and raped her.
But the woman wasn't altogether cooperative. And the Cleveland Police Department -- not exactly a top-notch crime fighting unit -- has been known to let rape cases pile up with little investigation. It took them an entire month to get a search warrant for Sowell's home. That's when they found the bodies. Five of the women had been strangled. The death of the sixth still has to be determined. They still don't know how long the bodies have been there.
Sowell was arrested walking down a street in the city's sprawling East Side ghettos, not far from his home.
Detectives are now combing missing person reports since Sowell was released from prison. At least four families have come forth with information on loved ones who disappeared in the area. Police say Sowell's method was to meet women on the street and invite them to his house.
Janice Webb, 49, was last seen in the neighborhood on June 3. Family members say she struggled with drug abuse, and they provided detectives with a photograph.
Also see A Long History of Cleveland Police Laziness Allowed a Serial Killer to Run Free
and Bodies, Fresh Grave Found in Home of Sex Offender Anthony Sowell.
They continue to let these predators out of prison knowing they can not be reformed. innocent people keep getting murdered by these animals. Our justice system needs some serios help. How many more people have to die before enough is enough?
Posted 11/02/2009 at 03:07:03 PMIt also, as usual, has everything to do with who the victims were. If people were going missing regularly in an upscale neighborhood, the alarm would have been raised much sooner.
Posted 11/03/2009 at 12:04:04 AMI live in cleveland and so this story hits home for me. I am not in the neighborhood but drive through often and will say that, this is ludcris. The CPD blame every one but themselves. I dont know how or why after 7-8 women are reported as missing in the same zip code within a 8-10 block radius would they not look at every sex offender in the area for clues. Maybe because these were women living in poverty, with drug or alcohol problems. This isnt based on race as some may say its about being racist but is about the prejudice of poor people, with bad habits. If I had gone missing there would be pics of my face on everybodys tv and on the covers of most newspapers. Come on CPD, EVERONE DESERVES THERE CHANCE AT LIFE NO MATTER WHAT YOU THINK ITS WORTH. And sowell took lives knowing that because he knew he could ge away with it, even stating to a living victim that he would kill her and no one would ever look for a crack addicted bitch. think about that
Posted 11/04/2009 at 03:32:29 PMDont blame anyone but Sowell and to some extent his victims themselves. We know his history but you must also look at the victims lifestyles. Many of these women have purposly alienated themselves from thier friends and families in order to rome the streets without being hounded to seek help for substance abuse. They prostitute themselves for litteraly pennies,a cigarette and a part of a can of beer.
Posted 11/04/2009 at 07:22:30 PMDont be surprised if more cases like this are uncovered as the steets of Cleveland are filled with potential victims like those that have been uncovered. Just take a look at the unsolved murders and rapes that have occured in the same area.
If they knew he was a rapist and that he chocked someone then why would they release him after only serving 15 years in prison? He knew was going to do the same thing when he got out only this time he hid the evidence of his crime.
Posted 11/04/2009 at 09:07:00 PMI am moving out. I am buying a house in Phoenix where the housing market will rebound and it's safer to live there. The weather is nice. I am scared of ohio
Posted 11/05/2009 at 07:16:57 AMI feel that the police ignored the call for help in this neighbor hood because of the poverty level and known drug use. However, I am willing to bet that if one of the neighbors would have contacted the newspaper or media about the smell coming from the house, it would have lit a fire under their(police officals) behinds to avoid negative publicity! The lack of doing their jobs have now been exposed; but look how many lives could have been saved. What about the free bar-b-que? Do you think he was serving up his victims?
Posted 11/05/2009 at 03:41:35 PMScum killing scum, a victimless crime.
Posted 12/23/2009 at 10:00:14 PM