I've been following the murder investigation of Nancy Cooper, a resident of North Carolina, since her body was discovered this past July in a drainage ditch near her home. Her husband, Brad Cooper, said she left a couple of days earlier to go jogging but never returned.
Search warrants were issued for the couple's house and Brad's work. Results of the search warrants and the autopsy reports were sealed and no information was released for quite some time. The couple's two children were given to Nancy's family for temporary custody.
Just recently, Brad Cooper was arrested on charges of first degree murder in the death of his wife, Nancy Cooper. Through his lawyers, he still maintains his innocence, but will have a hearing in December to determine if he will face the death penalty.
In North Carolina, first degree murder is punishable by the death penalty or life in prison without parole. No one has been put to death in North Carolina since 2006 when four inmates were executed.
Death Penalty Sought In Nancy Cooper Murder
Brad Cooper: Back Up Your Claims
In a new development in the Nancy Cooper murder investigation, Nancy's husband Brad, is asking her friends to back up their claims of emotional abuse and extramarital affairs.
Nancy's friend, Jessica Adam, was the one to call police and report her missing on July 12th. In her 911 call, she made claims that Brad may have hurt his wife. Also, in affidavits from Nancy's friends and family, they claim that Brad is an absent parent, who is mentally unstable, withheld money from his wife, and may have had up to four extramarital affairs.
Brad Cooper's attorneys subpoenaed more than a dozen of Nancy Cooper's friends to hand over emails, text messages, letters, telephone records, and other correspondence and evidence to prove their claims. His attorneys are also asking for evidence about any extramarital affairs the couple may have had.
Search Warrants Unsealed In Nancy Cooper Murder Investigation
It's been a while since I've posted anything about the Nancy Cooper murder investigation, but quite frankly, there hasn't been any new developments to talk about. That is, until today.
The search warrants that were originally sealed for sixty days were released yesterday. Although they don't really reveal much in the way of who might have killed Nancy Cooper, they do raise some speculation. In the search warrants are affidavits from the investigators that say that Cary Police were suspicious from the first day they talked with Brad Cooper, two days before her body was found face down on the bank of a storm pond in a cul-de-sac less than three miles from her home. They say his story was inconsistent with what they heard in interviews with family and friends.
A search warrant affidavit also said that on the day they first talked with Brad, he had "small red marks with scratches on the back side of his neck." While Brad did not explain the marks, he did say that he had spent the morning scrubbing and cleaning the house because of an argument he and Nancy had had earlier about the condition of the house.
Brad also told investigators that he had recently cleaned his car because he had spilled gasoline in the trunk. Investigators noted that although the trunk was cleaned, with no odor of gasoline at all, the inside of the car had not been cleaned. The front of the car had not been vacuumed, and there were numerous items in the passenger seat.
Among the items seized from the home were: a green dress, a black sports bra, a red shirt, blue and gray tennis shoes, high-heel shoes, a pink object thought to be a fingernail, a pillow, bed linen, “documents and writings,” two cameras and three computers. Police also seized items from Brad's office at work, including computers and external hard drives.
Authorities have stated that Nancy's homicide is not a random act, but they have still not named any suspects or persons of interest in the case. They haven't revealed her cause of death, either. The only thing the search warrants do say is that she died under "suspicious circumstances."
Brad Cooper said that Nancy went jogging on the morning of July 12 around 7am, but never returned. The search warrants to show that Nancy's cell phone and keys were still in the house, which according to her friends, was unusual since she always took her cell phone and keys with her for protection. A friend reported Nancy missing hours later when she failed to show for an appointment with her.
Nancy's body was found two days later on July 14th by a man walking his dog, less than three short miles from her home.
Nancy's family still has great confidence in the Cary Police Department, and applaud their efforts.
Speculations Abound In The Nancy Cooper Murder Investigation
I've been following the story of Nancy Cooper. She's the North Carolina mother of two that went out jogging one Saturday morning and never came back. Her body was discovered a couple of days later. No suspects have been named in the case, and there aren't many details available yet. The police are being very hush-hush about what they know and what they've found. It's anybody's guess as to who murdered Nancy, and many people are forming their own opinions as to who did it.
I found a discussion board that is running rampant with speculation and explanation in the case. For every opinion one way, there is another in the opposite direction. No one really knows, but everyone's willing to guess.
Have a look at the message board here.
