Menu
Granddaughter and boyfriend accused of stabbing Morehouse victim to death
MOREHOUSE, Mo. — Two people are in custody following what authorities term as the “savage” murder of a Morehouse woman.
Ashley M. Riggins, 34, and Rayshand C. Lyons, 27, of Morehouse are charged with first degree murder, two counts of armed criminal action, first degree robbery, two counts of child abuse, tampering with physical evidence and abandonment of a corpse in connection with the stabbing death of 73-year-old Dottie Lutes of Morehouse. Riggins is Lutes’s granddaughter.
At approximately 4:30 a.m. Monday, Aug. 3, a family member stopped at Lutes’s home in Morehouse, which she had shared for the past month with Riggins, her three great-grandchildren and Lyons, who authorities described as Riggins’s boyfriend.
According to Capt. Bud Cooper with the New Madrid County Sheriff’s Department, the man found the granddaughter’s three children asleep in their beds; however Lutes, Riggins and Lyons were not there.
“He also saw blood spatter on the walls, blood on the bed and bloody drag marks in the house to the carport,” Cooper said. Lutes’s vehicle was missing.
The family member contacted Morehouse Police, who contacted the New Madrid County Sheriff’s Department.
Cooper said the Major Case Squad was activated to search for Lutes, Riggins and Lyons.
Authorities were able to determine Riggins was in the Charleston, Mo., area, where they took Riggins and Lyons into custody. Also Lutes’s vehicle was recovered.
As officers began to search the adjacent streets, Cooper said an officer noticed a trampled down area in a soybean field at the corner of Finney and Cleveland streets.
“There they found the grandmother’s body. She had been savagely murdered,” Cooper said.
According to the probable cause statement by Sgt. Joshua Johnson with the New Madrid County Sheriff’s Department, Lutes “had several slashes and stabs to her body and was wrapped in green outdoor carpet and the carpet was taped with black duct tape.”
During an interview, Lyons told authorities tension was ongoing between Lutes and her granddaughter. Also he stated “he and Ashley had planned to assault Dottie at 4 a.m. on Monday, Aug. 3, 2020, and also commit a robbery by taking Dottie’s money and a firearm,” Johnson wrote in the probable cause.
According to Lyons, when they entered the elderly woman’s bedroom, Riggins tapped her grandmother on the shoulder waking her. He said Riggins then “hit her with that blade.” Lyons also admitted to stabbing the woman with a small buck knife.
The two women began fighting, Lyons stated, with Lutes calling for help. Lyons admitted to knocking Lutes to the floor as Riggins continued to stab her.
During the altercation, one of the grandchildren woke up. The teen told authorities he grabbed his mother and pleaded with her to stop. He then said Lyons told him it was too late.
A second grandchild was awakened and said he became sick and threw up when he saw the bloodshed. He said his mother told him and his brother to help take the woman’s body out of the house.
Both teens told police they complied with their mother’s request because they were afraid of her.
In his testimony to officers, Lyons noted the victim was still breathing as they wrapped her into carpet from the front porch. The victim was then placed in the back of the vehicle and Riggins and Lyons drove to Charleston where they abandoned the body.
Lyons also noted after the victim was killed, he searched her room. He found two one-dollar bills and some change as well as a debit card, which they were not able to successfully use.
Riggins refused to speak with officers following her arrest.
According to the probable cause statement, Riggins has an extensive criminal record including assault, stealing, forgery and distribution of a controlled substance. Lyons’s criminal record includes burglary, obstructing law enforcement and possession of marijuana.
They are being held without bond at the Mississippi County Jail.
Arraignment is scheduled for 1 p.m. Wednesday before Associate Judge Joshua D. Underwood.