Okla. couple allegedly killed man who lived with them and burned his body in a metal box

OKLAHOMA CITY (TCD) -- A 47-year-old man and his 45-year-old wife were arrested last week for allegedly killing a man who was staying with them, burning his body, and burying the remains in their backyard.

On March 2, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) announced deputies from the Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Office arrested Jason Cornett for first-degree murder and desecration of a human corpse and Elizabeth Cornett on charges of accessory to first-degree murder and desecration of a human corpse for the death of 43-year-old David Orr.

Orr was living with the Cornetts at the time of his disappearance. He reportedly last spoke with a family member on Jan. 16, 2021.

According to the OSBI, Elizabeth Cornett used Orr’s food stamp card Jan. 17 at a grocery store in Harrah. Two months later, in March, investigators from the Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Office and Pottawatomie County Sheriff’s Office executed a warrant at the Cornetts' residence on Walker Lane in Mcloud and searched the backyard, but they did not find anything.

Then, in November 2021, someone in federal custody reportedly told investigators Orr was killed in a bedroom at the Cornett home and burned inside a metal box. The person in federal custody said Orr’s body was then moved to a location in Edmond.

Investigators executed a second search warrant at the home in Mcloud and found blood in a bedroom. Detectives took mouth swabs and the DNA matched Orr’s as it was listed in the Combined DNA Index System.

Orr’s cause of death was not listed.

Both Cornetts were arrested and booked into the Oklahoma County Detention Center, then transferred to the Pottawatomie County Jail. Jason Cornett is being held without bond, while Elizabeth Cornett’s is set at $200,000.

MORE:

• Two Arrests Made in Case of Man Missing Since January 2021 - Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation