Dyer, IN: Dyer husband, employee charged in wife's death

April 12, 2010 4:46 PM
A Dyer man and his employee were charged today in connection with the beating death of his wife after he was captured on a neighbor's video surveillance system going to her home at around the time she is believed to have been killed.

Douglas Thompson, 61, and Reginald Coleman, 56, are both charged with murder, according to the office of Lake County, Ind., Prosecuting Atty. Bernard Carter. Beverly Thompson, 61, was found dead on Friday in her home in the 600 block of Hillside Drive. An autopsy found that she died of blunt trauma to the back of her head.

Police arrived at the home about 6 p.m. Friday after the Thompsons' daughter discovered her mother's body, according to a probable cause affidavit filed in Lake County Court. Detectives found some evidence at the scene that would tend to show that the woman was killed by a burglar, but upon further investigation, it appeared that someone had tried to stage the scene.

"The dresser drawers were opened in a stair step fashion and closet doors were opened yet nothing inside the drawers or closets appeared to have been disturbed," according to the affidavit. Also, a blood-soaked blue fleece glove found outside the back door "appeared to have been set in blood with no sign of spattering."

The victim's purse and a bank bag containing $1,100 were also undisturbed, according to the affidavit.

The Thompsons' daughter told police she last spoke with her mother about 3:30 p.m. According to the affidavit, a neighbor's video surveillance system recorded Douglas Thompson arriving at the home at 3:20 p.m. in his pickup truck. The recording shows his wife arriving home at 3:44 p.m. At 4:32 p.m., the video shows Douglas Thompson driving away.

Douglas Thompson later showed up at his daughter's home with Coleman to drop off several empty boxes. After they left at 5:30 p.m., the daughter went to her mother's home and found the body.

On Saturday, detectives went to Coleman's home, which Douglas Thompson owns, and found a bag with bloody clothes, as well as jewelry belonging to Beverly Thompson hidden in a heating/cooling unit, according to the affidavit. They also found a pair of tan work boots that had recently been cleaned with bleach.

Authorities said the Thompsons lived together and "argued a lot," the affidavit states. Douglas Thompson also recently had lost more than $62,000 at a local casino, and his liquor store was failing, authorities said.

Douglas Thompson told police he was at his home Friday afternoon, but stayed only about 10 minutes, long enough to pick up the boxes and use the restroom, the affidavit states.

-- Staff report