ALTOONA, Ala. — An Alabama man has confessed to killing his girlfriend and trying to burn her remains on Christmas Eve, authorities said.
Ace Antonio Pierre Belcher, 32, called Altoona police late Thursday to report that he had an argument with his girlfriend, Traci Melvin Wilemon, that turned physical and led to her death, The Gadsden Times reported.
Belcher initially told responding officers that he found Wilemon, 50, lifeless on the floor of their Altoona home. However, things didn’t add up, so they called called investigators from the Etowah County Sheriff’s Office, Sheriff Jonathan Horton said in a press release.
As a result, detectives obtained a search warrant and processed the scene for hours early on Christmas Day. Finally, Belcher confessed to killing Wilemon during a fight and trying to burn her remains, according to sheriff’s officials.
Belcher, who was arrested early Friday, is facing charges of murder and abuse of a corpse. He remained held without bond early Monday, online records show.
The Alabama Department of Forensic Science will conduct an autopsy on Wilemon’s body. Investigators from the sheriff’s office will attend the examination, Horton said.
A request by Fox News seeking additional information was not returned by the sheriff’s office at the time of publication.
