Yahoo News Woman Fled Captivity & Said Man 'Killed My Friends.' Now He’s Charged with Murder — and Allegedly Said There Are More Victims: Police
Timothy Haslett Jr. was indicted on 10 felony charges including first-degree murder in connection with the death of Jaynie Crosdale
A Missouri man accused of sexually assaulting and kidnapping a woman who fled captivity and went door to door seeking help is now charged with murder — and he allegedly confessed to having more victims, authorities said.
At a press conference streamed by KMBC-TV on Tuesday, July 9, Clay County Prosecutor Zachary Thompson announced that Timothy Haslett Jr. was indicted by a grand jury on 10 felony counts including first-degree murder in connection with the death of Jaynie Crosdale.
The murder charge comes in addition to the nine charges Haslett is already facing, which include rape, sodomy, kidnapping, assault and endangering the welfare of a child, according to Thompson.
While it’s unclear if he has entered a plea to the charges, Thompson said Haslett is being held on a $5 million bond. PEOPLE reached out to a public defender previously listed as Haslett’s attorney but did not immediately hear back.
An investigation into Haslett began on Oct. 7, 2022, when a woman escaped captivity from his Excelsior Springs, Mo., basement, Thompson alleged.
Authorities said the woman, whose identity has not been publicly released, went door to door in Haslett’s suburban neighborhood wearing a dog collar and screaming for help, PEOPLE previously reported. She ran to a neighbor's home and claimed a man held her against her will for several weeks in his basement and sexually assaulted her on numerous occasions.
The alleged victim had visible bruises on her body, neighbors told KCTV5. Neighbor Ciara Tharp said her grandmother let the woman inside her home while another neighbor called the police.
Tharp also told KCTV5 that the victim "made the comment that he 'killed my friends.' They didn't make it. 'He killed my friends.' She just kept repeating it."
According to court documents cited by KHSB and NBC News, the unidentified woman claimed Haslett told her he killed two other women he'd held captive.
However, Thompson said at the press conference that “today’s charges represent everything we can charge with the available evidence,” noting that the murder charge against Haslett is only related to Crosdale’s death.
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According to Thompson, authorities suspect Haslett killed Crosdale sometime between June 6, 2022 and Oct. 7, 2022. He said her remains were found inside a barrel, and that she appeared to have been shot.
Authorities said the discovery was made near the Waverly Port Access on June 24, 2023, according to a probable cause statement obtained by KBMC-TV. She was last heard from by a family member in September 2022 and was reported missing in January 2023, per the statement.
Thompson said at the press conference that Haslett and Crosdale likely met as part of Crosdale’s “commercial sex work.”
“Over 100,000 photo and video files were received and investigators have been spending countless hours reviewing them for relevant evidence,” Thompson said at the press conference.
“Today's indictment represents the next step in our pursuit of justice for the victims, the families and our community,” he added. “Physical, psychological and sexual torture described by the defendant’s surviving victim is brutal and barbaric.”
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