After going through all the resources I could find, I put together my own timeline through the first 2 weeks, and then David Robert Perry being labelled the prime suspect in the homicide death of Kelly Rothwell.
March 11
KR spends night w/good friend DS.
March 12
KR & DS spend day toether.
Witnesses say David Perry stalked the young cadet and her best friend that entire weekend. In fact, sources say, Perry followed them to a local Publix supermarket. [
LINK]
3:38 pm: After Kelly Rothwell has lunch at Chili's restaurant (US 19, Clearwater) and finishes shopping at Publix w/friend DS her car is caught on camera leaving the Publix. She had told DS she was going to her Indian Rocks Beach condo (2708 Gulf Blvd - 20 minutes away from that Publix) to end her relationship with her abusive live-in boyfriend, a former NY corrections officer, David R Perry.
4:30-5:30 pm: Downstairs neighbor and his wife hear a loud pounding noise like something being dropped on the floor of KR's condo (directly above their unit), then later the sound of a vacuum cleaner running in KR's master bedroom for some time.
5:20 pm: DS received a text message from KR's phone. PCSO believes the message was not authored by KR. Phone was in the area of Ulmerton Road and 119th Street (appx 12 min away from her condo) when the message was sent. [interesting: thats 100 yards from a Home Depot, across the street from the large Largo shopping area]
6:30 pm: KR did not show to pick up the keys for her new residence.
6:30 pm: KR is a no-show for a planned police cadet get-together at Caddy's, on Sunset Beach.
"prior to midnight": David Perry heads for his hometown of Elmira, NY - leaving most of his possessions behind.
"within hours of KR's disappearance" cell towers placed Perry's phone at State Road 52 and Interstate 75 in north Pasco County [about 80 minutes away from condo]. Search there later turned up no evidence.
March 13
10:00 am - 12:00 pm: after another cadet called DS to ask if KR was with her, DS gets extremely worried and calls PCSO to request a welfare check at KR condo. WCSO find no signs of KR or DP at the condo, they force entry. Condo is immaculately clean ("too clean"), no blood. KR's police academy binder and notes are found in the condo complex Dumpster. Both KR and DP cars missing.
1:00/2:00 pm(?): KR’s car (green Subaru) found parked at a Holiday Inn (401 2nd Street, Indian Rocks Beach) 2 miles from her condo. Rothwell's green 2007 Subaru Outback was found in Indian Rocks Beach, parked in front of the Holiday Inn at 2nd Street and 4th Avenue. Det. Bailey says it's possible Perry parked it there. "To obviously make it look like she had departed and left the residence on her own accord, but she has no affiliation with these businesses in the area, nor did she check in the hotel," said Det. Bailey. [
LINK]
When contacted by detectives (uncertain of time - but must have been a call to his mobile while he was entoute to NY), Perry said little except that police should check with Rothwell's police academy friends, one of whom he claimed was a "love interest" he believed Rothwell was cheating with. [
LINK]
March 14
David Robert Perry is located in Elmira, NY. He refuses to talk to New York authorities, who subsequently learn that Perry told family members "this is going to get bad".
March 15 - March 20
David R Perry travels to Ohio, then Oklahoma
March 21
David Perry arrives back in NY. Authorities inspect Perry's car and report a strong odor of chemical agents. Piece of carpet sent to labs for testing. No blood or female DNA found in trunk carpet (DNA breaks quickly in corrosive chemical agents).
March 27 David Perry resurfaces in Florida at a storage unit
Detectives say they became aware Perry was at a local storage facility removing items at 10:30 am Sunday March 27. They went to the facility and attempted to talk to Perry. "Even being face to face with detectives, who are trying to find his girlfriend, he still refused to cooperate," according to a statement released by the sheriff's. Perry told detectives he would not speak with them without his attorney present. [
LINK]
June 14
David R Perry is formally named by homicide detectives as the prime suspect in the disappearance of Kelly Rothwell. "His bizarre behavior and lack of cooperation coupled with David Perry (starting) a new relationship with another woman shortly after Rothwell disappeared has detectives now naming him a suspect in her disappearance," the statement said. Detectives say that Perry's family members in Elmira also are uncooperative and have requested an attorney to be present during questioning. [
LINK]
Here is what I think might have happened:
Since there are witnesses and evidence to the fact Perry had been stalking KR up that point in the weekend (Publix), it makes sense that he arrived back to the condo after she did (followed her back).
Assuming the murder occured at 4:30 (loud thumps heard), and that David Perry had KR's phone with him at 5:20 near the Home Depot/shopping area - then I think its a good bet that David Perry was out buying all the specialty clean-up and body transport supplies he would need. To avoid an electronic trail, he pays cash from the stacks of cash he seems to have around according to reports. He probably replied to the DS text at 5:20 just to make sure DS would not become concerned about the aftermath of the break-up and go to the condo (where Kelly's body was), after all Kelly's friends have said David Perry threatened to kill her if she ever broke up with him. Its possible he went from there to Eagle Lake Park to scope out a potential dump point, which is where the dog-walking witness who came forward in Dec made eye contact with and saw him acting suspiciously and hiding behind trees. While this witness could not specifically recall the day, since she said for sure it was "that week" (same week her mother passed) - Saturday 3/12 was the last day of that week, the day Perry left FL, and day of the week KR went missing. If he was looking to dump the body there later he definitely did not want to be placed at the scene - so he abandonned those plans.
Perry returns to the condo and starts cleaning up ("continuous vaccuming" heard later). He tosses KR's academy books and notes into the dumpster - why? many of her personal belongings were still in the condo. Was she using her book/notes to show demonstrate something to him that enraged him? By the time he is done cleaning its immaculate - no trace of anything. Prior to finishing the clean-up, he will have also situated the body in a way he could later remove it from the condo (I hate to suggest the "Grant Haze" method, but its possible).
His next move would be to get Kelly's car away from the condo to a place it could sit for a while without drawing attention (the Holiday Inn 2 miles away). Then what? walk back? Probably, I doubt he would have taken a cab or bus (surely LE interviewd all bus drivers and cabbies). Phone records would probably indicate if he had called someone for a ride, and I'm sure his phone was OFF and left at the condo. 2 miles was probably the extent of distance he could go and walk back within 30 minutes, and a safe minimum distance in his mond. Were there no images of him on surveillance cameras anywhere on his walk back on Gulf Blvd to the condo? maybe he just walked on the beach.
Perry gets back to the condo and makes preparations to leave for NY: KR's car has been moved 2 miles away, the condo is cleaned of any forensic evidence, the body is packed up. Perry leaves items in the condo, and in a storage unit (he comes back for some of those 3/27), because he needs to get out of there as quickly as possible. The longer he's there the better the chance of him getting caught - he rather leave most of his belongings, as culpable as that appears he knows he will be fingered immediately regardless.
I think Perry left the condo for good at 9:00 or 7:40. LE has specifically requested info on the whereabouts of either KR or Perry from 4-9, so there must be a reason they are sure of where he was (or heading) after 9. LE has also stated he left for NY before midnight. I bet his phone pinged 80 minutes away (I75 & 52) at 10:20 or at 9:00. The only time for the ping given has been "within hours of KR missing", so this would fit. I doubt he was 80 minutes away earlier and then came back to the condo - not enough time to clean the condo and move KR's car if that was the case.
Perry has not been arrested yet, for anything related to Kelly Rothwell.
(more from the Jan article): [
LINK]
<snip>
Rothwell's friends have said all along that David Perry threatened to kill her if she ever broke up with him.
Detective Bailey explained why felony stalking charges are being pursued.
"Basically, they follow the person, excessive phone calling, wanting to know their whereabouts, tracking the person down, wanting to know their every move, that type of thing. So that's what happened in this case, without giving any details of it," Detective Bailey told 10 News.
Right now, detectives say, there's simply not enough evidence to charge Perry with murder. But the charge of felony stalking may be a possibility.
</snip>
Glad to see he was arrested today for Grand Larceny. I also hope they do at least eventually arrest him for stalking. If convicted, it carries a 1-10 year sentence, and something tells me Perry would be looking at 10. If he's arrested, it would also give LE additional tools and avenues to investigate the murder.
