An Iowa man who cut off his GPS monitor and disappeared just before a jury pronounced him guilty of murder was found and rearrested after 20 hours on the run.
Gregory Showalter Sr., 63, was charged with strangling his 60-year-old wife, Helen, on July 31, 2021, and dumping her body in or near the Des Moines River, where she was found the next day. He has been free on bail while his trial was under way in Wapello County, as CrimeOnline previously reported.
On Friday, his attorney called and told him to come to court for the reading of the verdict, but he never showed. The judge issued a warrant for his arrest.
Ottumwa Police Lt. Jason Bell told the Ottumwa Courier that police found him at his home just before 10 a.m. Saturday and took him into custody. He is being held without bond pending sentencing on October 16 in the murder case.
Judge Daniel Wilson ordered the verdict read Friday afternoon. The jury convicted Showalter of first degree murder, abuse of a corpse, and other related crimes.
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Officers searching for Showalter Friday afternoon found a woman at his home who said she was his friend and that he had given her his car keys and said he wouldn’t need them anymore. A police dog tracked a scent to a nearby motel, but officers didn’t find him.
The Iowa Department of Public Safety issued a statement thanking “everyone that provided information that lead to the arrest of Showalter.” The department said it would release more details at a later time.
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[Featured image: Gregory Showalter Sr/Iowa Department of Public Safety]
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