Iowa man found guilty of killing missing wife and burning her body in cemetery
01/25/2022 2:12 pm PST
WATERLOO, Iowa (TCD) -- A jury found a 31-year-old man guilty of killing his wife and burning her body in a cemetery in 2018.
According to the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, Frederick Williams was convicted of first-degree murder and abuse of a corpse to conceal a crime. On Jan. 26, 2018, Waterloo Police responded to Garden of Memories Cemetery at approximately 3:23 p.m. for a "suspicious" death investigation. An autopsy by the Iowa State Medical Examiner’s Office identified the victim as 40-year-old Lakisha Quintel Williams. She had been reported missing on Jan. 24, two days before she was found dead.
The Courier reports Williams was wrapped in bedding and had a plastic bag over her head when she was found. She died of asphyxia.
Lakisha Williams' husband Frederick Williams was charged with crimes related to her death in February 2019, according to KWWL-TV. He was reportedly already in custody for violating his parole.
Lakisha’s family reported her missing because she did not show up for work, The Courier reports. On Jan. 20, the last day she was seen, some of her coworkers reportedly said they heard her argue with Frederick over the phone.
Video surveillance footage reportedly shows Frederick picking her up from work at 4:10 p.m. and then coming back soon after. Lakisha called a cab and Frederick allegedly followed the taxi. Lakisha got out of the car and the cab driver left. She called another cab and Frederick reportedly followed that car, too. Lakisha reportedly told the cab driver she was afraid her husband was going to kill her.
According to The Courier, cell tower records placed Frederick Williams' phone near the cemetery where Lakisha was found around the time she was believed to have been killed.
Black Hawk County Attorney Brian Williams (no relation) said during his closing arguments, "The defendant never looked for his wife because he knew she was never missing."
Williams said Frederick "strangled her, smothered her, wrapped her in her own bedding" before he "burned her and then went on with his life."
The Courier reports Frederick could face life in prison. His sentencing date was not yet announced.
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