Cops found loyal dog guarding the spot where his owner was found burned — when they scanned his chip, it led them straight to the murderer
Trigger Warning: This article contains themes of murder and gun violence, which some readers may find distressing.
A brave dog helped solve an unraveling mystery in Texas. When police received an urgent call about a fire near a residence, they did not expect the incident would turn out to be a spine-chilling murder. However, the authorities picked up the biggest clue to solve the murder mystery–a white dog. The police arrived at the site to find a dog barking wildly at them while his dead owner’s body burned beyond recognition. They witnessed a heartbreaking sight as the poor animal refused to leave the crime scene. He was scanned for a microchip, as is protocol for lost dogs, which led the police straight to the culprit.
In April 2023, a 26-year-old woman named Mandy Rose Reynolds was found dead and set on fire in Robinson, Texas, the McLennon County District Attorney’s Office said, per PEOPLE. While it was impossible to guess the person behind the murder, the victim’s dog, Titan, became central to the investigation. He did not budge from the location where his owner had died, but was forced out by animal control for his own good. Titan “barked frantically at officers and refused to leave the area of the body, but also refused to allow police to capture it,” a press release stated. At the same time, identifying the victim was a challenge until a microchip scan on the dog revealed key information. The police found out the names of the owner and her pet. The information also led them to Reynold’s residence.
The house was wiped clean, and all the victim’s belongings were missing, the authorities reported. Eventually, the police ran a check on the owner’s vehicle information using a license plate database, noting her car was also stolen. This became the turning point in the investigation. They tracked the car in Wichita, Kansas, and informed the local police to keep an eye out for the vehicle in question. Later, Wichita police spotted the car and caught hold of the prime suspect within days of the murder. Derek Daigneault, then 29, had fled on foot and was hiding in a grocery store. He was Reynold’s cousin and was found guilty of her grotesque murder. Police found a handgun inside the car, with shell casings matching those used to burn the victim’s body.
Eventually, the investigation uncovered more clues linking the suspect to the murder. Walmart security footage showed him buying an “identical” plastic storage container, a shovel, and a gas can only a day before the murder. Titan was also spotted in the car in the footage. The murderer was sentenced to life in prison in November of that year, the DA’s office confirmed.
The tragic demise of her daughter was too difficult for Reynolds’ family to bear. Her mother, Karleen Handy, set up a GoFundMe in her child’s memory and raised $1,335 for the family to attend court proceedings in Texas.
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