Police arrest brother of disabled woman found dead in car trunk
October 30th, 2008 by Jennifer Walker-Journey
The man who checked his disabled sister out of a Georgetown, Kentucky, nursing home in 2006 and whose car her mummified body was found in the truck of last week, has been arrested, according to Lexington Herald-Leader.
Timothy Allen Brown was arrested Tuesday evening in St. Louis on charges of abuse or neglect of an adult and interstate flight to avoid prosecution. Police say Timothy will likely face more charges.
As we reported Oct. 29, Timothy checked his sister Penny Brown out of Georgetown Healthcare Center in 2006 and moved her into his home with his 8-year-old son. Penny suffered from Cerebral palsy and used a wheelchair for mobility, and had a room to herself in her brother’s home.
In mid September, police visited Timothy’s home as part of a child welfare case. The boy was later removed from the home after social service workers discovered deplorable living conditions, such as human feces on the floor. The boy told police he was not allowed to go into his aunt Penny’s room, which then led police back to Timothy’s home to search for her. Neither Timothy nor his sister were there. Police later found Timothy’s car abandoned and found Penny’s body “wrapped in quilts and then the quilts were wrapped in construction-grade plastic to make it more of an air-tight package, and then placed in the back of his car, in the trunk,” said county coroner John Goble.
Police believe that Penny could have been dead since she was released from the nursing home in her brother’s care. Once released, Penny stopped using her food stamps and her medical card. But her $600-$700 per month social security disability checks continued to be cashed, police say.
Penny’s father, Terry Gray of Georgetown, told police he spoke with his daughter by phone in December 2007. Otherwise he was not involved with either Timothy or Penny.