2 Years Later, Opening Statements Begin In Dismemberment Trial
DETROIT (WWJ/AP) - A 41-year-old man accused of killing a Detroit-area couple and dumping their chopped up body parts in the Detroit River is about to stand trial.
Opening statements will begin Wednesday morning in the trial of Roger Bowling in Wayne County Circuit Court.
Bowling is charged with first-degree murder in the slayings of 32-year-old Danielle Greenway and her 42-year-old fiancé, Chris Hall, at their home in Allen Park.
The U.S. Coast Guard recovered Greenaway's and Hall's torsos Tuesday floating in the Detroit River on July 17, 2012, east of Belle Isle where Lake St. Clair empties into the river. A fisherman later spotted additional body parts underwater and along a seawall, not far from where the torsos were found. An open suitcase, sheet and circular saw were found along with the remains, police said.
After finding the couple's remains, investigators went to their Allen Park home where they found disturbing evidence -- including "copious amounts" of blood and numerous cleaning supplies.
"Evidence collected from the scene would indicate that they were murdered in their home and their bodies transported to the location in Detroit where they were recovered," then-Interim Police Chief James Wilkewitz said.
Authorities say Bowling shot the couple to death before chopping up their bodies. A medical examiner determined that Hall died of multiple gunshot wounds, while Greenway died of single gunshot.
Bowling, Greenway's former boyfriend, had been living with her and Hall for about a month before the killings, police said. Authorities have not publically identified a motive.
Bowling also faces charges of dismemberment and mutilation of a body, using a firearm in a felony and tampering with evidence.
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