A man has been taken into custody and is facing charges of homicide, improper handling of a body, and manipulation of evidence following the death of his child.
According to KCTV 5, Michael C. Howard, 68, a Houston attorney, allegedly shot his son Mark Randall Howard, 20, at their weekend home in Sabine County, Texas.
Howard was formally diagnosed with Down syndrome but was considered high-functioning and gainfully employed, according to the New York Post.
During a press conference on Thursday, Sabine County investigator Joseph McDonough stated that Michael Howard believed his son was an intruder and shot him with a shotgun. According to the New York Post, he then used a tractor backhoe to move the body, transporting his son to a trash woodpile about two miles away on their over 2,500-acre property, where he “cremated” the body.
Investigators reported that Michael Howard claimed he “cremated his son in accordance with what he felt his son would have wanted.”
“It is a bizarre crime anywhere you are, just because of the nature of the event,” McDonough said. “Mr. Howard committed this act, and in furtherance of that, burned the body and cleaned the crime scene, which, as an investigator, I would take as indicative of nefarious purposes.”
Michael and Mark Howard had arrived at the family’s Sabine property either on November 30 or December 1 and were said to be the only people on the property, with a possible “caretaker” having access.
Prior to their arrival on November 29, police were called to the property for the theft of a tractor and trailer. Michael Howard used the work phone number on the business card left behind by the responding officer to report the shooting around 2 p.m. on the following Monday, according to KCTV5.
On the afternoon of November 29, deputies had been called to the property regarding the theft of a Kubota tractor and trailer. The responding deputy left their business card with Michael Howard, who later called the work phone to report the shooting the following Monday at around 2 p.m.
Howard’s bond is set at $20 million, and he is being held in Sabine County jail.
[Feature Photo via Sabine County Jail]
