Man was strangled to death, then found wrapped and burned in ditch, Iowa cops say

Race is not believed to be a factor in the death of a Black man found burned in a ditch earlier this month, according to Iowa police.

Four white people were charged Tuesday — a week after the body of 44-year-old Michael Williams was discovered ablaze in rural Iowa, the Iowa Department of Public Safety said in a release.

Steven Vogel, 31, was charged with murder and Julia Cox, 55, Roy Lee Garner, 57, and Cody Johnson, 29, were also arrested Tuesday morning, Iowa authorities said. Vogel and Williams were acquaintances and “often socialized within the same circle of friends,” a press release stated.

Williams’ body was found Sept. 16, but he was believed to have been killed on Sept. 12, the public safety office said. He was allegedly strangled to death, wrapped in cloth and plastic that was secured with rope and tape, and then transported to a rural area where his body was burned, officials said.

His death was initially ruled a homicide, though he was not identified until two days later.

Vogel allegedly showed the body to Johnson and offered him drugs to help him remove it, according to court documents. Garner is accused of receiving help from Vogel and Cox to take Williams’ body to the ditch and get rid of evidence.

Officials with the Iowa Department of Public Safety and NAACP said Tuesday there is no evidence the death was a hate crime motivated by race.

“If there is something there, then we need to identify and address it,” Betty Andrews, president of the Iowa-Nebraska NAACP, said in a press conference. “If there is not something there, we need to make sure that we have that clarity, as well. Any time there is a concern about the possibility of a racist act, that’s where we are.”

In addition to his murder charge, Vogel was also charged with abuse of a corpse, officials say. Cox, Garner and Johnson each were charged with accessory after the fact and abuse of a corpse Cox and Garner also face destruction of evidence charges.

Williams was a father and grandfather, according to KCCI. His ex-wife, Janalee Boldt, told the station she is “holding it together for her kids.”

“My daughter will not let me outside in the dark by myself because she’s afraid of losing another parent,” Boldt said.

Williams’ aunt, Paula Terrell, told the Des Moines Register he was a fast food worker who had been recently unemployed because of his diabetes.

“If you met him on a park bench, or at the bus stop, he’d say you were his new friend,” Terrell said. “He was a very trusting soul, and always looked for the best in everyone.”

This story was originally published September 23, 2020 at 10:20 AM with the headline "Man was strangled to death, then found wrapped and burned in ditch, Iowa cops say."