A man in South Carolina, who is already in custody over allegations that he kept four people – including a married couple – captive in his basement for years while using their money, is now facing additional charges, including murder.
Police announced that 35-year-old Donnie Ray Birchfield Jr has been charged with the murder of 49-year-old Shirley Arnsdorff, as well as first degree criminal sexual conduct.
The investigation began on 25 July, when police officers responded to a death report at a home in Lancaster. There, officers said that they found a woman, later identified as Arnsdorff, lying on the floor unresponsive. She was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.
Authorities allege they discovered that Birchfield had been keeping four people in his basement, including Arnsdorff, as well as her husband and two other women, according to reports in the South Carolina Post and Courier and NBC News.
A police warrant, obtained by the Post and Courier, reportedly alleges that the victims were denied access to food and medical care, abused, and cut off from the outside world. Authorities also reportedly allege that Birchfield used their bank cards.
According to NBC, the warrants do not say how Birchfield knew Arnsdorff or her husband, but alleges that the two other women had been involved in romantic relationships with him.
Birchfield was arrested on 1 August, and initially charged with multiple counts of false imprisonment, exploitation of a vulnerable adult, domestic violence, neglect of a vulnerable adult, financial transaction card theft and financial identity fraud. Authorities have now added the murder charge and one count of criminal sexual conduct.
“During the ongoing investigation of the death report, our investigators discovered evidence that led to these new charges today,” the police said in a news release on Friday.
In an email to NBC this week, Birchfield’s lawyer said that Birchfield maintains his innocence and looks “forward to litigating this case in the court system where facts, evidence, and the rule of law matter”.
Birchfield is being held without bond at the Lancaster county detention center, according to the police.
Last Friday, the Lancaster police chief, Don Roper, called the case “heartbreaking”, adding that it had “profoundly impacted our community”.
“The Lancaster police department is dedicated to achieving justice for the victim and her family,” Roper said. “We extend our sincerest condolences to the victim’s family and hope that we can bring them some peace through justice. We encourage anyone with further information to come forward and assist us in this ongoing investigation.”
