MARION COUNTY, Fla. – A man is accused of fatally shooting his pregnant wife then taking cellphone pictures of her bloody and lifeless body, according to the Marion County Sheriff's Office.
Chrystal Terry, who was 19 weeks pregnant, was reported missing on Jan. 8 after loved ones said that she hadn't been seen or heard from since Dec. 21.
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Her husband, Vincent LaSara Terry, told deputies that she left their Summerfield home without taking her cellphone, purse, medications or any other personal belongings at about 9:30 p.m. Dec. 21, according to an arrest report.
A friend told deputies that she received several urgent texts from Chrystal Terry at around 7:54 p.m. that night.
"Will u plz come pick me up. 911," one text read, according to documents. In another text, Chrystal Terry wrote, "I'll do anything" and "I need u plz."
During the course of the investigation, a search warrant was executed at the Terry's home and deputies said they found that the floors had recently been cleaned but a blood splattering was detected on a wall in the living room.
A .22-caliber rifle and 53 rounds of ammunition were recovered from Vincent Terry's dresser in the master bedroom, according to authorities.
A search of Vincent Terry's and Chrystal Terry's cellphones were also conducted. Deputies said that they recovered deleted pictures on Vincent Terry's phone that showed his wife bloody, with severe facial trauma and a gunshot wound to her abdomen.
Urgent texts to her friend that were sent from Chrystal Terry's cellphone had also been deleted, records show.
Deputies said when they confronted Vincent Terry with the pictures they recovered from his cellphone, he admitted to "getting into it" with his wife and he took the pictures to show her "how she looked" because she had taken some pills, the arrest report said.
Vincent Terry insisted that Chrystal Terry left the house after the pictures were taken, according to authorities.
Cadaver dogs searched the couple's property, but Chrystal Terry's body was not found, deputies said.
Based on the blood evidence in the home, the cellphone pictures and the fact that Vincent Terry had a documented history of domestic violence against his wife, deputies arrested him on Monday.
He is charged with second-degree murder and possession of a firearm by a
convicted felon and 53 counts of possession of ammunition by a convicted felon. He's being held at the Marion County Jail without bond.