Man Killed Woman During Argument Over Travel Destination, Hid Body In Suitcase

A man from Arkansas, who was accused of killing a woman and hiding her body in a suitcase in 2017, was indicted on murder charges Monday.

According to a copy of the indictment, David Houston-Harvey, 25, was traveling with Laramie Cline through Colorado’s Weld County on Interstate 25 on Aug. 10, 2017, when the two got into an argument over the destination. While Cline wanted to stay in Colorado, Houston-Harvey wanted to go back to Arkansas or travel to Alabama, the Denver Post reported. The relation between the two was, however, unknown.

The accused initially told the investigators that Cline suddenly pulled a gun on him during the argument after which he grabbed the weapon from her hand and shot her. He, however, changed his statement and said he fatally shot Cline while she was asleep. Houston-Harvey then stuffed the woman’s body in his suitcase, hid it in the trunk of the car before driving back to Arkansas and dumping the body in a lake. The accused also disposed of the gun and the victim’s mobile phone.

The accused continued to drive the victim’s car until Aug. 20, 2017, when he was caught by the officials, who found the vehicle parked near a park after they traced Cline's phone. The officers found dried blood in the spare-tire which was kept in the luggage compartment area and took the accused into custody after tracing him through CCTV footage.

Houston-Harvey, who was serving a 12-year prison sentence for dumping the victim’s body, was indicted on charges of second-degree murder, first-degree murder and theft of a motor vehicle Monday. He remained in an Arkansas jail awaiting a court date.

In a similar incident in February 2019, a man was arrested after the body of his ex-girlfriend was found inside a suitcase in a wooded area of Connecticut. Valerie Reyes’ body was found by highway workers near a Connecticut road. Investigators traced Da Silva Rojas after he used Reyes' ATM card to withdraw cash post her death. Da Silva told the officers that the victim fell to the floor and hit her head to the ground after they had sex at her home. He then taped her mouth, bound her legs and hand before placing her in a suitcase and dumping her in a forest.