Deputies from the Santa Rosa County Sheriff's Office announced on Sunday, April 3, that missing Florida mom Cassie Carli was found dead and buried in a shallow grave in Alabama. They located her body in a barn on Saturday evening, one week after Carli went missing, according to CNN.
Authorities told reporters during the press conference that when the police searched the said barn for Carli, they found signs of a body buried under a patch of dirt that was disrupted. The St. Clair County coroner said that investigators were called in to uncover the Florida mom's body, where they initially identified Carli via a tattoo on her right foot.
The sheriff said police were not yet revealing what led them to the specific location, but they did say that the property was linked to her ex-boyfriend Marcus Spanevelo "in a roundabout way."
Carli last seen on March 27 in Navarre, Florida
Carli was last seen in the parking lot of Juana's Pagodas in Navarre, Florida, on March 27, when she was supposed to pick up her daughter Saylor from Spanevelo during a scheduled custody exchange.
Authorities discovered Carli's vehicle in that same parking lot, but she was still missing with her purse left behind in the car. Sheriff Bob Johnson issued a statement during a press conference earlier in the week, saying that there were things in Carli's purse that they didn't think she would just up and leave.
Johnson added that the police are concerned because people don't usually go four days without anyone hearing from them or not using their credit cards or cell phones. Both Saylor and Spanevelo were found the following day in Birmingham, Alabama, with the young child returned to her mother's family.
Spanevelo was arrested several days later in Tennessee on charges of giving false information concerning a missing person investigation, destruction of evidence, and tampering with evidence.
The family of Carli told WFLA Now's JB Biunno in an interview on Friday that she was concerned about her former partner as they worked through custody problems. Cassie's brother, Anthony Carli, said that she has been telling him that Spanevelo has been threatening her for the last two years. Anthony added that Cassie always said that if anything happens to her, it's him.
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Autopsy of Carli's body to take place on Monday
Deputies announced during the press conference that an autopsy of Carli's body is scheduled to take place in Huntsville, Alabama, on Monday, where her cause of death is expected to be determined. Depending on the finding of the autopsy, Spanevelo could face additional charges.
Penn Live reported that Johnson wants Spanevelo to pay for what he has done, saying, "Once the autopsy is done and you see the charges filed you'll understand. I think [Spanevelo] is going to spend the rest of his life in prison or he's going to get the needle. Hopefully the needle."
