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Boyfriend Of Missing Florida Woman Arrested For Second-Degree Murder As Police Search For Her Body
Florida police have arrested Collin Knapp in the murder of Kathleen Moore, who went missing more than a week ago.
The boyfriend of a Florida woman missing since Nov. 30 has been arrested for second-degree murder in her death.
Investigators are still searching for Kathleen Moore’s body, Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco said Monday during a press conference.
Collin Knapp, 30, has a court appearance scheduled for Tuesday afternoon, according to local news outlet WFLA.
“We wish that Collin would provide us information on where Kathleen is,” Nocco said. “As one of our detectives described, he was very cold, even when we were begging with him to tell us where her body is. He wouldn’t give us that information, Nocco said.
Police said Moore, 34, was last seen early in the morning on Nov. 29 in New Port Richey. Just hours earlier, the couple had hung out with friends in Pinellas County and visited bars in Largo and Indian Rocks Beach.
Investigators said that the couple had argued while they were out. They left Tampa Bay and headed to Knapp’s home in Pasco County.
He purchased cigarettes at a 7-Eleven in New Port Richey around 12:30 a.m. Knapp told police that Moore was in his Cadillac, but Nocco said police were unable to confirm his account after reviewing surveillance footage.
Knapp told authorities that the couple argued again when they arrived at his home. He said that Moore took her backpack and left. Police said they have no proof that Moore left the house on Carmel Avenue.
Moore was first reported missing to the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office on Nov. 30, but the Pasco County Sheriff’s office took over the case after establishing that Moore was last seen in that county.
Knapp told police about an hour after Moore left, he decided to go to his job at Harold Seltzer’s Steakhouse, where he works as a kitchen manager, to complete a meat inventory, authorities said.
Police said they later discovered that Knapp had taken clothes to work with him and put them in a dumpster, which was taken to a landfill, which police searched for several days. They found the clothing which authorities said was stained with blood.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement determined that the blood on the clothes belonged to Moore.
“Yes, there was blood that was identified as hers on our suspect’s pants, however there is lots of blood that was located during this investigation,” Nocco said.
Nocco said that Knapp has an extensive criminal history with 10 prior felony arrests and nine misdemeanor arrests since 2004 including aggravated assault, aggravated battery, and domestic violence.
"Our hearts and prayers pour out to the family and friends of Kathleen Moore. I know you were all searching for a better resolution, and we all were, but unfortunately, this is what we have," Nocco said.
Moore’s mother, Karyn, told WFLA that she wanted her daughter to be remembered for her warm and friendly personality.
“I’m really going to miss her very, very much. I love her with all my heart. I truly believe that we all in life have to take a journey and I just wish that Kathleen’s journey didn’t stop where it did,” she said.
Nocco said his department had received dozens of calls and tips about the case from the community.
"If there's one thing that I can tell the family is that Kathleen was absolutely loved by this community," Nocco said.
He also said that a man had recovered Moore’s cell phone at a dumpster at a local Walgreens.
