A 54-year-old Alabama woman was arrested after allegedly leaving a dead man decomposing in her apartment’s bedroom for up to two weeks without notifying authorities — the second time in six months that someone died in the home.
Valerie A. Bonner was arrested on Tuesday and charged with felony abuse of a corpse and tampering with physical evidence, according to court records reviewed by Law&Crime.
Officers from the Foley Police Department responded to the Alison Pointe Apartments at 10:50 a.m. on Tuesday after a neighbor requested a welfare check, Birmingham ABC affiliate WBMA reported. When police arrived at the scene, they discovered the body of an adult male who appeared to have died for some time.
Police have identified the deceased man, whom they believe died of an overdose, but his identity has not been released as of Thursday afternoon, according to Mobile CBS affiliate WKRG. Bonner allegedly knew the man had died in her bedroom but chose not to report it in order to avoid potential legal consequences.
“She said the deceased died from a possible overdose, and she didn’t want us to know because she thought she’d get in trouble,” Foley Police Lt. Tony Fuqua said during Bonner’s first court appearance, according to WKRG. “She knew that this person was dead in her apartment, had been dead for days, and she failed to notify us of the death, and she allowed that body to lay there and decompose over time.”
The refusal to notify authorities about the man’s death resulted in an abuse of a corpse charge, and additional steps were allegedly taken to impede law enforcement. She is accused of stealing the victim’s wallet and cellphone and allegedly throwing them in a dumpster to prevent police from discovering his identity. The latter accusation resulted in Bonner being charged with tampering with evidence.
In the indictment, filed in Baldwin County District Court, prosecutors stated that Bonner “knowingly” treated the victim’s body “in a way that outraged ordinary family sensibilities.”
Police also noted that Bonner’s husband was previously discovered dead in the house, also from overdosing.
“Approximately six months ago, in the same apartment, her husband died of an overdose,” Fuqua told Mobile Fox affiliate WALA. Fuqua told the station that Bonner “could definitely be looking at other charges” in relation to the two deaths at her home.
Bonner was processed at the Baldwin County Jail, where a judge set her bond at $5,500, with $5,000 for abuse of a corpse and $500 for tampering, according to records.
It was not immediately clear when Bonner would appear in court again.
