Edward Weaver: Guy Calls For Help With ‘Car Trouble’ — And The Body Inside His Trunk

Edward Weaver did like most people do when they’re having car trouble — he phoned a friend. However, he openly admitted that car trouble wasn’t the only problem he was facing. Now, he’s behind bars and facing murder charges.

According to Fox 2 Now, chilling details from a court affidavit regarding Weaver’s case have been revealed. Apparently, the 24-year-old Poplar Bluff murder suspect sent a multimedia text message to another unnamed man. It has been reported that the text was sent with a horrific photo of a dead body included a message that read, “I am having car trouble and I have a body in the trunk.”

According to Fox Carolina, deputies with the Butler County sheriff’s office discovered the vehicle alongside the road on Thursday, August 27. PIX-11 reports that Butler County Coroner Jim Akers has identified the victim as 48-year-old Norman K. Jones, also of Poplar Bluff. Jones, who was last seen alive on August 22 had been reported missing by his wife.

The victim was reportedly found bound at the arms and legs with a ligature around his neck, which leads authorities to believe that he was either shot or strangled to death. Weaver told the friend he contacted that the car belonged to the victim inside the trunk, but the information has yet to be confirmed. However, the observations are preliminary since the detailed results of the official autopsy, which was conducted on Friday, have not yet been released. Witness statements suggest Weaver and Jones had gotten into a heated altercation after Weaver accused the victim of stealing pills from him.

Apparently, the verbal confrontation escalated and the horrific turn of events led to Jones’ death, reports WDAF. Although all of the circumstances surrounding the victim’s death have not been released, investigators believe the body may have been in the trunk of the car since Sunday, August 23.

“We think it’s been there for a few days,” investigators said. “Our deputy seen it on the side of the road, seen it in a ditch. Didn’t know if it was associated with a traffic accident or something like that, so we investigated further and that’s when he found the obvious odor of a decomposing body, and subsequently found the individual in the trunk.”

Weaver was arrested and charged with first and second-degree murder. He has been booked in the Butler County jail without bond. Another person of interest identified as Amber McDannald has also been arrested.

[Image via Butler County Sheriff’s Office]