Man on parole for involuntary manslaughter charged with murder after victim’s body was found encased in concrete
By JoBeth Davis
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KANSAS CITY, Missouri (KMBC) — Jackson County Prosecutors have announced murder charges against a Sugar Creek man in connection with an Independence man’s May disappearance.
According to a news release, William Morrison has been charged with first-degree murder and armed criminal action. Charging documents in the case link Morrison to the disappearance and subsequent death of 45-year-old Jonathan Brown.
A heavily redacted probable cause document released by the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office details the investigation into Morrison. During the investigation, Morrison told multiple people the victim had gone to Springfield, Missouri.
Documents state one person linked Morrison to a white Buick sedan that he reportedly used as a “do dirt car,” as well as to a house where Morrison was performing concrete work.
Investigators used cellphone data and surveillance from a nearby residence to disprove Morrison’s accounts of his movement in that vehicle around the time of the victim’s disappearance.
On May 23, detectives with the Kansas City Fire Department and Missouri Task Force One cadaver dog handlers searched a residence linked to Morrison in connection with Brown’s disappearance. During the search, two cadaver dogs independently alerted to the odor of human remains in the basement of the house near a newly poured concrete slab and a dirt pile near that slab.
Detectives obtained a warrant and excavated that area, uncovering a man’s corpse encased in that concrete. The victim appeared to have died from a single gunshot wound to the back of the head. His death was ruled a homicide by the Jackson County Medical Examiner’s office.
Documents also state that Morrison, who was in the Jackson County Jail on May 23, contacted one of his employees from jail, asking him to dispose of an item hidden on top of an air duct in Morrison’s home. That item was a brown leather wallet with a concerning ID inside. The employee contacted police.
A female associate of Morrison’s also told detectives that Morrison gave her two cellphones to take to Springfield, Missouri, and dump.
Police noted Morrison is in custody on unrelated charges and has an active felony parole violation warrant. Morrison is on parole through the Missouri Department of Corrections for charges including theft and involuntary manslaughter.
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