CLINTON, Iowa — An 18-month-long homicide investigation revealed a Clinton couple hid the body of a man in a dumpster after the husband shot and killed him during an altercation back in February 2021, the Iowa Department of Public Safety announced.
Police arrested 44-year-old Lewis Vaughn, Sr. and his 35-year-old wife Jessica Vaughn on Wednesday, Aug. 31. Lewis has been charged with first-degree murder while Jessica has been charged with abuse of a corpse.
The investigation stems back to Feb. 24, 2021. The criminal complaint against Lewis Vaughn says Clinton police arrived at an apartment building located at 847 Gateway Ave. to conduct a welfare check after they received a tip that a shooting had occurred the day before.
Officers did not get a response when they knocked at the door, so they obtained a search warrant to enter the apartment unit. Once inside, they found a "violent crime scene" and a 9mm shell casing, the criminal complaint says.
Jessica Vaughn allegedly admitted to police that she owned "several firearms," not knowing where her 9mm gun was at and that she hadn't reported it missing.
Initially, investigators with the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation requested the public's help in locating two persons of interest: Ja'Kwane Polidore and Khalil Pugh, both of Clinton.
The criminal complaints against the Vaughns identify the homicide victim as Pugh and Polidore as the owner of the unit.
Investigators discovered Pugh's cell phone and car in the parking lot of the apartment building, Lewis Vaughn's criminal complaint says. They also found that Pugh's family and friends hadn't heard from him since Feb. 23, 2021.
A Feb. 26, 2021 release from Iowa DPS did not disclose the matter of the investigation, it only referred to the incident as a "violent crime."
Pugh was last seen with Lewis Vaughn before traveling to Polidore's home, the criminal complaint against him says.
Interviews done at the apartment building revealed there had been an altercation at Polidore's residence and gunshots. Neighbors told police they saw the maintenance man's truck backed into the parking lot outside the building. Officers confirmed Lewis Vaughn was the maintenance man at the time of the incident.
Phone records revealed Lewis Vaughn left the location and went to another residence in Clinton, where he knew the residents. The residents told police he asked for help in disposing a dead animal.
Jessica Vaughn admitted leaving her residence and traveling to the apartment building to look for her husband, according to the criminal complaint filed against her. She told police she arrived at the building and watched her husband leave.
She said she followed Lewis Vaughn to the dumpster, however, she denied knowing what her husband did.
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The investigation revealed Lewis Vaughn called his wife after he killed Pugh to ask for help in disposing the body. Jessica Vaughn's criminal complaint accuses her of helping move Pugh's body into her husband's truck and driving to the dump site.
A search warrant conducted on Lewis Vaughn's truck found evidence of blood, which was later confirmed to be from a person. The DNA profile of the blood found in the apartment and the truck matched, according to the criminal complaint.
On Feb. 27, 2021, investigators contacted the residents where the couple allegedly dumped Pugh's body. That's when they learned the dumpster had been emptied just one day prior.
The dumpster was also searched, and investigators discovered more evidence of blood. The DNA matched the blood found at the apartment and in the truck. Further investigation revealed the DNA belonged to Pugh.
The investigation determined that a physical altercation occurred between Pugh and Lewis Vaughn. Both criminal complaints say Lewis Vaughn shot Pugh twice, resulting in his death.
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